The NFS has been conducted on an annual basis by Teagasc since 1972. The purpose of the survey is to determine the financial situation on Irish farms by measuring the level of gross output, costs and income across the spectrum of farming systems and sizes. A random nationally representative sample is selected each year in conjunction with the Central Statistics Office. Each farm in the survey is assigned a weighting factor so that the results of the survey are representative of the national population of farms. The survey is operated as part of the Farm Accountancy Data Network of the EU and it fulfils Ireland’s statutory obligation to provide data on farm output, costs and income to the European Commission on an annual basis. The principal measure of the income used is Family Farm Income per Farm (FFI). This is calculated by deducting all the farm costs (direct and overhead) from the value of farm gross output. Unpaid family labour is not included as a cost. FFI therefore represents the financial reward to all members of the family, who work on the farm, for their labour, management and investment. It does not include income from non-farming sources and thus may not be equated to household income.

Probability: Simple random, Probability: Stratified. Random: The Teagasc National Farm Survey, is a random stratified sample based on the CSO Farm Structures Survey. The farms are stratified according to Farm System and Size (UAA - Utilised agricultural area in hectares). Data is provided voluntarily by farmers, collected by farm recorders who are assigned to particular geographical areas. The recorders collect data from circa 80 farms each, via 12 Month detailed farm accounts. The recorder visits farms on average twice per year, collecting the data electronically and provides an individual farm report on completion of the survey. Data is quantifiable and verifiable for all farms, being validated and verified as collected on series of excel spreadsheets and further validated in-house via suite of validation programs. Primarily economic data is collected on farms, but also technical & demographic data is collected.

Face-to-face interview: PAPI