Research conducted by food economist Ciaran Fitzgerald has highlighted the importance of the Irish dairy sector in its contribution to the rural economy. The sector alone supports 60,000 jobs of which 19,000 are in dairy farming and the rest are in areas such as milk/dairy food processing, distribution, export marketing, and research. Ireland exports 90% of its output to 120 countries across the globe and the value of exports has doubled from €2bn to €4bn since 2015 when EU milk quotas were abolished.