Low-carbon transition in European agriculture requires evidence on how sectoral structures adjust under policy support. In Ireland, fiscal investment through the Organic Farming Scheme has increased over the period 2020–2023 as part of national and EU commitments to sustainable production. The study provides a descriptive economic analysis of growth and structural change in the organic farming sector over this period, with particular attention to the organic beef subsector. The analysis uses data from the Central Statistics Office Census of Agriculture 2020 and the Farm Structure Survey 2023. Growth is measured through volume-based rates of change in conformity with Eurostat farm structure reporting. The results show growth in the number of organic farms by +147%, while certified organic land area expanded by +144%. Growth occurred primarily in beef systems in absolute terms and in sheep systems in relative terms, with smaller increases in dairy, tillage, and mixed farms. Expansion was concentrated among small and medium-sized holdings and in the Northern and Western regions. At the same time, average standard output on organic farms declined by 24% and median output by 16%, reflecting the entry of smaller and more extensive farms with lower economic scale. The study documents the structural adjustment in Ireland’s organic beef sector during a period of expanded support, without inferring causation. The findings provide new evidence on how policy-supported expansion is associated with sectoral structural change and transition toward lower-carbon production systems in a region with historically low levels of organic adoption.
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