Farmland prices plummet in Galway

The collapse in the beef industry has had a huge impact on the price of farmland in County Galway, it has been revealed.

This time last year around €10,000 an acre was being paid for top quality farmland in the county but a leading auctioneer in land sales has told The Connacht Tribune that the price has dropped by €2,000 in the space of a year.

Tuam auctioneer Martin Tyrrell, who currently has 12 farms on his books, said that the beef and cattle crisis was having an impact on land prices.

Even during the recession land prices in County Galway held firm mainly because the beef trade was solid at the time.

But Martin Tyrrell revealed this week that there had been a significant change over the last four or five months.

“I have noticed that the collapse in the beef industry as put a lot of people off the purchase of agricultural land.

“This time last year I was asking for €10,000 an acre for top quality land in County Galway and now this has reduced to €8,000.

“The price of land is market driven and unfortunately there is a cattle crisis at the moment which is dictating prices,” Martin Tyrrell added.

Read more in this week’s Connacht Tribune