THE scale and penetration of the Irish bloodstock and racing industry has been revealed in a study unveiled this week by the Irish Thoroughbred Breeders’ Association. Ireland Mapped, a visual guide to Ireland’s thoroughbred industry, shows the extent to which the industry spreads its tentacles throughout the whole of the island.

Initiated during Joe Osborne’s term as chairman of the ITBA, the detailed and comprehensive study of where all Ireland’s thoroughbreds are located is displayed in a map format and shows by county (broken down into electoral districts), province and on a nationwide basis where all our horses are. Current ITBA chairman Derek Iceton said of the survey: “There are thoroughbreds in every one of the 32 counties and, as such, are part of the fabric of our rural and agricultural economies. That is a message our Association has constantly promoted.”

Based on 2013 data from Weatherbys Ireland and Horse Racing Ireland, the ITBA engaged landscape architects doyle + o’troithigh to map where all the horses are, but the Association is seeking more input from breeders and owners throughout the country. This will be fed into the database which will be revised annually.

The maps are available for inspection at the ITBA headquarters and will be available to acquire on disc. In time the mapping will be made available on the Association’s website.

Some 70,000 horses have already been mapped and the results will be useful both commercially and for lobbying purposes.