Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Ireland
Ireland: Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) was 3.9% in 2025. ▼ Falling
Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Ireland, 1991–2025
Source: ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
Analysis
In 2025, employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Ireland stood at 3.9%. That is the lowest value across all 35 years on record.
That represents a change of down 2.6% on the previous year and down 27.6% over ten years.
Over the whole period, employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Ireland peaked at 13.9% in 1991 and was at its lowest, 3.9%, in 2025.
Ireland ranks 140th of 187 countries on this measure, in the middle of the range.
The long-run direction has been consistently falling across the 35 years of available data.
Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Ireland, year by year
| Year | Value | Change |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 | 13.9% | — |
| 1992 | 13.5% | -2.9% |
| 1993 | 13.1% | -3.0% |
| 1994 | 12.6% | -3.9% |
| 1995 | 12.0% | -4.5% |
| 1996 | 11.2% | -6.4% |
| 1997 | 10.9% | -2.9% |
| 1998 | 9.1% | -16.6% |
| 1999 | 8.6% | -5.1% |
| 2000 | 8.0% | -8.0% |
| 2001 | 7.1% | -10.6% |
| 2002 | 7.0% | -1.0% |
| 2003 | 6.5% | -7.6% |
| 2004 | 6.4% | -1.9% |
| 2005 | 5.9% | -7.5% |
| 2006 | 5.6% | -4.4% |
| 2007 | 5.4% | -3.4% |
| 2008 | 5.3% | -2.8% |
| 2009 | 5.6% | +5.8% |
| 2010 | 5.8% | +2.9% |
| 2011 | 5.7% | -0.5% |
| 2012 | 5.8% | +1.1% |
| 2013 | 5.8% | -0.2% |
| 2014 | 5.4% | -5.8% |
| 2015 | 5.3% | -2.2% |
| 2016 | 5.3% | -0.8% |
| 2017 | 5.0% | -4.4% |
| 2018 | 4.8% | -5.6% |
| 2019 | 4.4% | -7.0% |
| 2020 | 4.5% | +1.1% |
| 2021 | 4.8% | +7.4% |
| 2022 | 3.9% | -19.7% |
| 2023 | 4.6% | +19.9% |
| 2024 | 4.0% | -14.6% |
| 2025 | 3.9% | -2.6% |
Ireland compared with similar countries
- Ireland's 3.9% is above the median for high income countries, which is 2.4%, 1.6× the median. (62 countries reporting)
- Ireland's 3.9% is below the median for Europe & Central Asia, which is 4.3%, 90% of the median. (48 countries reporting)
Averages by decade
| Decade | Average | Lowest | Highest | Years |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 11.7% | 8.6% | 13.9% | 9 |
| 2000s | 6.3% | 5.3% | 8.0% | 10 |
| 2010s | 5.3% | 4.4% | 5.8% | 10 |
| 2020s | 4.3% | 3.9% | 4.8% | 6 |
Countries ranked near Ireland
More agriculture & rural data for Ireland
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), annual 22.64 % change on previous year (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 0.0106 current US$ per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Agriculture, forestry, and fishing, value added (current US$), per 1,391 current US$ per person (2025)
- Rural population, annual growth rate 0.9559 % change on previous year (2025)
- Rural population, per unit of GDP 0 units per US$ of GDP (2025)
- Rural population, per capita 0.3541 units per person (2025)
- Share of GDP from agriculture 1.1% (2025)
- Agriculture as a share of GDP vs. GDP per capita 1.1% (2025)
- Agricultural raw materials exports 0.3% (2024)
- Agricultural raw materials imports 0.5% (2024)
Frequently asked questions
- What is employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Ireland?
- Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) in Ireland was 3.9% in 2025, according to ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO).
- What is the highest employment in agriculture (% of total employment) recorded in Ireland?
- The highest recorded value was 13.9% in 1991.
- What is the lowest employment in agriculture (% of total employment) recorded in Ireland?
- The lowest recorded value was 3.9% in 2025.
- How does Ireland rank for employment in agriculture (% of total employment)?
- Ireland ranks 140th out of 187 countries with data for 2025.
- Is employment in agriculture (% of total employment) rising or falling in Ireland?
- Over the last ten years it is down 27.6%. The long-run trend across the full record is falling.
- Where does this Ireland data come from?
- The figures come from ILO Modelled Estimates database (ILOEST), International Labour Organization (ILO), published as part of Employment in agriculture (% of total employment) (modeled ILO estimate). Statizoid updates them automatically from the source API.
Download this data
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About this data
Employment is defined as persons of working age who were engaged in any activity to produce goods or provide services for pay or profit, whether at work during the reference period or not at work due to temporary absence from a job, or to working-time arrangement. The agriculture sector consists of activities in agriculture, hunting, forestry and fishing, in accordance with division 1 (ISIC 2) or categories A-B (ISIC 3) or category A (ISIC 4).