MINISTER for Agriculture, Food and the Marine Michael Creed launched the updated UCD Report The Contribution of the Sport Horse Industry to the Irish Economy 2017, which highlights the importance of the Irish Sport Horse sector, accounting for expenditure of €816m and supporting over 14,000 full-time job equivalents in 2016.

The third in a series of collaborations between UCD and the sport horse industry, this report follows on from the 1996 UCD Corbally report which evaluated the contribution of the sport horse industry to the Irish economy for the first time. The data was updated in 2012 and the latest Corbally, Fahey 2017 report, includes a detailed profile of expenditure, employment and net exports in the sport horse industry.

The 2017 report found that the Irish Sport Horse industry uniquely provides significant employment and expenditure throughout the whole country.

“This report highlights value to the economy of this industry currently, its ability to provide jobs in rural areas of the country where employment is scarce and the resulting economic benefit to the spin-off indirect industries is immense.

“The sport horse industry is contributing a substantial amount of economic activity with very small government investment in comparison to other agricultural sectors. However, some cracks are apparent, an aging breeder profile, and we all know a significant number of young riders are now choosing to base themselves abroad. There are huge opportunities for Ireland.

“The industry needs urgent and substantial investment to allow its talented young breeders and riders remain in Ireland, to breed and produce better Irish-bred horses, add value to them here, and together, to grow and develop a fledgling rural industry with huge potential, over the next 10 years,” said report’s authors Alison Corbally and Dr Alan Fahey.

KEY FINDINGS

  • Over 60% of breeders are located in the west and south-western counties, providing significant rural employment
  • That strength, in turn, is reflected in the number of riders from those regions, supporting showjumping, eventing, dressage and showing.
  • Breeding accounted for €271 million of all expenditure (33%) last year.
  • There were 14,810 active sport horse breeders in 2016 and each of those breeders had an average of 2.6 broodmares.
  • The age profile of breeders is rising – in 2012, 7.10% of breeders were under 30 but that figure has dropped to 3.7% now.
  • The number of breeders over the age of 60 increased from 22.70% in 2012 to 36.45% in 2016.
  • The vast majority (93%) of breeders in 2016 had owned horses for more than 10 years.
  • The competition sector accounted for €168m of expenditure.
  • There are 10,000 registered horses competing in show jumping, eventing and dressage.
  • Total value of sport horse transactions in 2016 estimated in region of €106m.
  • Value of exports was €48m last year.
  • Expenditure in leisure horse sector (including hunting) estimated at over €100m.
  • Country shows attracted over 286,500 visitors last year, 5% of which were from overseas.

    • BREEDING

    In 2016, breeders were asked whether they covered each of their mares naturally or through AI and if through AI, which type of semen was used. Interestingly, 42% of breeders covered their mares through AI; an increase of 10% since 2011.

    Of that percentage, 25% of mares were covered using fresh semen, a further 10% were covered using frozen semen from Ireland and just 7% used frozen semen imported from abroad. The overall use of frozen semen has increased from 12% in 2011 to 17% in 2016 and the use of frozen semen from abroad has increased by 3% in the same period.

    The Irish Sport Horse Studbook has topped the World Breeding Federation’s studbook rankings for 22 of the past 24 years.

    Once again in 2017, The Irish Sport Horse Studbook has retained this significant accolade and the report indicates that 29% of breeders set out to breed an eventing horse as their primary breeding goal.

    COMPETITON SECTOR

    The 2017 report highlights the importance of the competition sector which accounted for €168 million of expenditure. There are 10,000 registered horses competing in show jumping, eventing and dressage nationally which are produced by over 7,300 competition riders and their support staff.

    The average expenditure per competition animal in 2016 was €10,313 and the average owner left their horse in a competition yard for 9.2 months of the year.

    In the sport of show jumping, Ireland has produced two world young horse champions recently. Killossery Kaiden, bred by Laura and Frank Glynn of Killossery Lodge Stud, and Columbcille Gipsy, bred by Eamonn Murphy. Each won the gold medal in the six-year-old World championship in Lanaken, Belgium, in 2016 and 2017 respectively, against over 800 of the best young horses in the world.

    The 2017 report indicates that only 31% of breeders set out to breed a showjumping horse as their primary breeding goal, with an increasing number from the previous study opting to aim to breed a showing or leisure horse.

    TRADE

    The success of Irish young horses has driven an increase in external trade since 2012. Most sport horses are sold privately, unlike thoroughbreds. The 2017 report estimated that 76% of all sport horse are sold privately, which makes estimating the net export figure more difficult. However, the total value of sport horse transactions in 2016 was in the region of €106 million, of those the value of exports was €48 million last year.

    Expenditure in the leisure sector contributed over €100 million to the overall total, of which hunting and country shows were the most substantial.

    These activities provide entertainment for participants and supporters alike, with the country shows alone attracted over 286,500 spectators last year with over 5% of those being overseas visitors. The visitors stayed in Ireland on average from five to seven nights.