Private enterprise operates in most sectors of the economy. The Gross Domestic Product in 2000 was 81,049 bn. Some 19 per cent of the total area of Ireland is cultivated, and much of the rest is devoted to pasture. The agricultural enterprise producing the most income is animal husbandry. In 1999, livestock included 7.1 million cattle, 5.7 million sheep, 1.8 million hogs, and 52,000 horses.
Poultry production is also important.
The principal field crops are wheat, barley, oats, and potatoes. Among other important crops are hay, turnips, and sugar beets. The best farmlands are found in the east and southeast. While there has only been one recorded case of Foot and Mouth disease in the South, fears of the disease have already impacted on the economy with both agriculture and tourism the hardest hit. The need to develop the biochemistry and health food potential of the seaweed industry, which has estimated value to the economy of 50m per annum, has also been intimated.