Five new finalist schools from around the country will be presented this week with their calves to take home and rear as part of the Certified Irish Angus Schools Competition.

These students entered the competition last October and have progressed through interviews and vigorous assessment by industry experts to reach this stage of the competition. 

On day two of the National Ploughing Championships (Wednesday, September 16), five finalist groups will officially receive the calves they will rear while completing their research projects.

These students will be on hand at the Ploughing to explain their research projects, which span an 18-month period, as they bring their cattle right through to slaughter.

Finalists from previous years along with members of the ABP and Kepak graduate programmes will also be discussing at the Ploughing the opportunities in the agri-food industry and how the school’s competition can help guide young people on that journey.

Ploughing 2026

Certified Irish Angus, along with its processor partners ABP and Kepak, will return to the Ploughing for 2026, located at stand 174.

Panel discussions will be ongoing over the three days with wider industry partners covering topics such as: finance and succession; International Year of the Woman Farmer; and water quality.

The new Certified Irish Angus Elevate Bonus was launched on September 7 across all ABP and Kepak sites.

The restructured bonus offers consistency and rewards cattle and farming systems that meet key standards in sustainability and farming practices, Certified Irish Angus said.

The procurement team from ABP and Kepak will be on hand across the three days of the Ploughing to help farmers meet the requirements and discuss the actions required.

Farm finance

Certified Irish Angus also recently launched the new Enviroflex partnership with Bank of Ireland.

Enviroflex loans are designed to incentivise farmers to continue implementing sustainability-focused improvements on their farms.

The product is now available to Certified Irish Angus members offering reduced interest rates on farm development and infrastructure loans.

The ABP Advantage programme staff will also be on hand to discuss the support that is available along with a sustainability bonus and the newly-launched Advantage Young Farmer Academy.

Kepak’s Twenty20 programme staff will also be in attendance to discuss the economic benefits available to joining the club as a calf-to-beef farmer.

Story of Irish farming

This year, Certified Irish Angus will also welcome Our Food Roots to the stand.

Our Food Roots was established to tell the story of Irish farming to the wider public.

Its aim is to bring the agri-food sector together to share the reality of how food is produced, owning both the progress being made and the challenges the sector faces.