Speaking Up For Agriculture – Protecting Farming’s Social Licence

The purpose of this report is to identify and examine the main threats to Irish agriculture’s social license and recommend a strategy that will protect it for the benefit of Irish farmers, the agri-food sector and the entire nation.

While the protection of agriculture’s social licence to operate is not only of vital importance to those who are directly linked to the industry it has equal if not more significance to those who are outside of the industry. Agriculture’s positive contribution is wide and far reaching accounting for between 14 and 15% of total employment and creating €9.25 Billion of output in the national economy.

Ireland’s future economic growth and prosperity is directly linked to the success of its agricultural industry and as such the protection of farming’s social licence should be of concern to any industry, sector, business or person who has a stake in the Irish economy.