Farming: Minister Heydon announces opening of €4 million Dairy Beef Weighing Measure
To qualify for payment, liveweight data must be submitted for a minimum of five eligible calves in a herd.
Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon TD, has announced the opening of the 2026 National Dairy Beef Weighing Scheme (NDBWS).
Commenting on the opening of the measure, Minister for Agriculture, Martin Heydon said: “Similar to its predecessors, this scheme is intended to offer diversification opportunities for dairy and beef farmers, enabling them to benefit from the growing importance of dairy-beef production.
"Calf-to-beef systems are specialised operations. This weighing action helps farmers with decision-making regarding their stock, while also providing more accurate data on herd performance at national level.”
The NDBWS scheme, which is designed to support farmers rearing progeny from the dairy herd, is unchanged from its 2025 iteration. Participants in the scheme will be required to weigh eligible calves and submit the weight data to the Irish Cattle Breeding Federation. Eligible calves can be male calves of a dairy breed or male and female calves of a beef breed sire born to a dairy breed dam in a participant’s herd.
Minister Heydon further commented: “This scheme targets farmers rearing dairy beef progeny from the dairy herd, whether they are dairy farmers rearing their own calves or non-dairy farmers rearing dairy beef calves.
"Between this scheme and the CAP Strategic Plan (CSP) dairy beef breeding measure, I am committing €10.25 million this year to support farmers breeding and rearing dairy calves intended for beef production.
"A successful dairy beef strategy will improve the resilience of the sector with additional benefits for calf health and welfare. This funding is consistent with the overall plan for growing the dairy-beef sector published by my Department in 2024 while continuing to maintain support for suckler farming as the cornerstone of Irish beef output.”
To qualify for payment, liveweight data must be submitted for a minimum of five eligible calves in a herd and for up to a maximum of 50. Farmers can weigh and upload data on an unlimited number of eligible calves in a herd but 50 is the maximum number on which they will be paid under the scheme.
All calves must be at least 12 weeks old and registered on the holding for at least 10 days at the time of weighing. Weight data should be submitted within seven days of weighing but no later than 5.30pm on November 1, 2026. Farmers should note that they will only be paid on the number of eligible calves in respect of which they submit liveweight data by the closing date.
Applications for the 2026 NDBWS must be lodged online before midnight on Friday, May 15, 2026, using the MyAgFood portal.
Late applications will be accepted, subject to payment deductions, until midnight on Tuesday, June 9, 2026.
The full terms and conditions of the NDBWS and other relevant scheme information are available on the Department’s website.
