National Dairy Beef Weighing Scheme opens for applications
Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Martin Heydon has today (Tuesday, April 14) announced the opening of the 2026 National Dairy Beef Weighing Scheme (NDBWS).
The €4 million scheme, which is designed to support farmers rearing progeny from the dairy herd, is unchanged from last year's version.
Farmers participating in the scheme will be required to weigh eligible calves and submit the weight data to the Irish Cattle Breeding Federation (ICBF).
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.
Dairy Beef Weighing Scheme
The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) said that for farmers 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 who satisfy the scheme requirements receive a payment of €20 per eligible calf up to a maximum of 50 calves per holding.
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 5:30p.m on November 1, 2026.
The department noted that farmers will only be paid on the number of eligible calves for 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 department's AgFood portal.
DAFM said that late applications will be accepted, subject to payment deductions, until midnight on Tuesday, June 9, 2026.
Farmers
Minister Heydon said that similar to its predecessors, "this scheme is intended to offer diversification opportunities for dairy and beef farmers".
"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.
"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," he said.
The minister said that the National Dairy Beef Weighing Scheme complements the EU co-funded CSP Dairy Beef Welfare Scheme which will operate until 2027 with a budget allocation of €25 million.
"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," he added.The full terms and conditions of the NDBWS and other relevant scheme information are available on the Department’s website.
Beef Welfare Scheme
In addition to the NDBWS announced today, a sum of €28 million was allocated in Budget 2026 for the implementation later this year of an exchequer-funded suckler beef scheme.
DAFM said the 2026 Beef Welfare Scheme (BWS) will be launched in mid-August 2026 with a similar structure and actions as last year.
However, participants will be able to vaccinate their animals against bluetongue virus, clostridial diseases or calf pneumonia under the optional Category 2 vaccination action.
