How many beef farmers signed up to AgNav ahead of factory pricing changes?
Beef farmers aiming to get the maximum available breed bonus on their prime Angus and Hereford cattle will be required to have signed up to the sustainability platform AgNav from next Monday, September 7.
AgNav is a free online sustainability platform for farmers, created through a partnership between Teagasc, Bord Bia, and the Irish Cattle Breeding Federation (ICBF).
The requirement to join AgNav is part of a suite of changes set to be implemented to the Irish Hereford Prime and Certified Irish Angus breed bonuses available at both ABP Food Group and Kepak processing sites.
According to Bord Bia, a total of 16,775 beef and dairy farmers already have action plans in place on AgNav.
A total of 9,808 beef farmers have signed up for AgNav and have action plans in place for their farms.
These 9,808 beef farmers, and all others who sign up to AgNav, will be eligible for the additional 5c/kg 'sustainability bonus' which will form part of the new overall 20c/kg Certified Irish Angus bonus at ABP and Kepak sites.
As well as this, these farmers will also be eligible for an additional 5c/kg 'sustainability payment' on all eligible Hereford cattle supplied to ABP.
Why are beef farmers being encouraged to join AgNav?
At a farm walk in Co. Monaghan earlier this summer, agri-sustainability specialist at Bord Bia, Edel McEvoy, was asked why farmers have to join AgNav to qualify for the new maximum Angus and Hereford breed bonuses.
She explained: "Customers today are a lot more aware of where their food is coming from.
"They want to know whether or not there is a sustainability metric behind it. They want more data."
She said that in order to continue to promote Irish beef as a sustainable option for consumers, "we need to get stronger information".
"AgNav is allowing us to have the data in the background to make sure what we're saying can be verified and backed up."
AgNav aims to provide secure, accurate, and verifiable data that allows farmers to choose the most appropriate sustainability actions tailored to their farm.
Farmers can read more about the changes to the Certified Irish Angus breed bonus here and more information on the Irish Hereford Prime breed bonus is available here.
