Co Cavan publican Brendan Fay said he is "not surprised" over recent figures released by the Vintners' Federation of Ireland which revealed that more than 2,500 pubs have closed since 2005.
The chief executive of the VFI Pat Crotty recently called for targeted supports for rural pubs which are facing an "existential threat" with the numbers of pub closures now getting even faster.
Mr Crotty warned that the situation facing pubs in rural Ireland has hit a crisis point, with the rate of closure every year now averaging 128.
Brendan Fay owns The Widows Bar in Belturbet.
Mr Fay said publicans are afraid to put prices up because they don't want to lose customers even though bills have went through the roof.
He said he envisions that another several thousand pubs will be closed over the next year or two if something doesn't change:
