An action plan was finalised today (Friday, March 8) to support dairy calf to beef systems in Ireland.
It was a main item on the agenda of the tenth meeting of the Food Vision 2030 high level implementation committee (HLIC) held this week.
The action plan, which contains 10 core themes, including knowledge transfer, breeding and improved animal health, was developed collaboratively through a consultation process with stakeholders in the beef and dairy sectors.
Minister for Agriculture, Food and the Marine, Charlie McConalogue chaired the meeting where the action plan was announced.
Minister McConalogue said: “Through the consultation and discussions to develop this 10-point plan, actions that can be undertaken at farm and processing level, to ensure optimal calf health and welfare and to facilitate greater uptake of dairy calf to beef systems, were identified.
“All partners in this plan, Teagasc, Bord Bia, ICBF (Irish Cattle Breeding Federation), AHI (Animal Health Ireland) and my own department are committed to seeing the potential offered by dairy calf to beef systems realised.
“I want to acknowledge all those that engaged with the consultation process. The observations garnered were important to the finalisation of the plan that moves now to an implementation phase,” he added.
10-point action plan:
- Action 1: Profitable and environmentally sustainable dairy beef;
- Action 2: Sexed semen;
- Action 3: Breeding and genetics;
- Action 4: Capital grants available under TAMS 3;
- Action 5: Knowledge transfer;
- Action 6: Demonstration farms;
- Action 7: Encourage sustainable relationship between dairy and beef farmers;
- Action 8: Marketing beef;
- Action 9: Beef and dairy processors;
- Action 10: Improved calf health and welfare.
A draft version of the action plan was launched for consultation on January 18, 2024, after which more than twenty submissions from a broad range of stakeholders were received during the consultation process which ended on February 16, 2024.
A meeting with representatives of farm organisations took place during the consultation phase also.
Observations from the submissions received are reflected in the document where practicable.
Pat Dillon of Teagasc said: “The beef sector remains one of the most important industries in the national economy. One of its key strengths is its grass-fed steer/heifer beef output with its strong sustainability credentials.
“Research carried out at Teagasc Grange has established profitable dairy beef systems using key technologies in relation to beef genetics, grassland management and calf rearing,” Dillon added.
Jim O’Toole, chief executive officer (CEO) of Bord Bia commented: “Producing calves with superior beef merit represents a significant opportunity for both the Irish beef and dairy sectors.
“It is imperative for both sectors to work together and utilise the expertise that we have available to further enhance our market position.”
David Graham, CEO of AHI commented: “We look forward to continuing to build on the successful model of our annual CalfCare events to further enhance the health and welfare credentials of the sector, with a particular focus on promoting integration of dairy and beef systems while delivering economic, social and environmental sustainability.”
Sean Coughlan, CEO, ICBF: “Genetic improvement and the use of indexes such as the dairy beef index (DBI) and commercial beef value (CBV) are low cost, high impact tools that can help drive the profitability of the dairy calf to beef sector.
“We look forward to working with farmers on increasing the uptake in the use of these tools for breeding and purchasing decisions.”
The Food Vision HLIC also received updates from the new Agri-Food Regulator whose chair Joe Healy attended to provide a update on their work to date, as a well as an update on the draft Biomethane Strategy.