Get paid to boost herd health: the Beef Welfare Scheme 2025
IAS
Agriculture
The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) has launched the Beef Welfare Scheme 2025. This is great news for suckler beef farmers: with an increased budget of €28 million (up from €20 million in 2024), this scheme offers substantial payments in return for practical actions that improve animal health and performance.
To benefit, you need to act now. The application deadline is 24th September 2025, and forage test kits must be purchased no later than 13th October 2025.
Additionally, if you’re already in the Suckler Carbon Efficiency Programme (SCEP), this new scheme can stack with your existing payments.
Read on to learn more about how to qualify, exactly what’s required, how much you can earn, how to apply, what other benefits there are to joining the scheme, and why booking your forage analysis with IAS Laboratories now is a smart move.
What is the Beef Welfare Scheme 2025?
The Beef Welfare Scheme 2025 is a targeted support for suckler beef farmers, designed to improve calf health and welfare. The scheme rewards farmers who carry out certain health and nutrition-related actions, including forage testing, faecal testing, meal feeding, and calf vaccination.
DAFM’s aim is twofold: to help calves thrive, to reduce disease incidence on-farm, and to give farmers real financial incentive to take these actions.
How do I qualify?
You can only apply for this scheme if you:
- Are aged 18 years or older
- Have an active herd number with Herd Owner Status (not Herd Keeper)
- Submitted a Basic Income Support for Sustainability (BISS) application in 2025 for your holding
- Are a suckler beef farmer (you have eligible calves born to eligible suckler cows between 1st July 2024 and 30th June 2025)
- Are an “Active Farmer” as defined by DAFM.
What must I do to comply with the Beef Welfare Scheme 2025 and how much can I claim?
To be eligible for payment, there are three key actions to be undertaken:
- Action 1: meal feeding (mandatory)
To reduce the stress on calves at weaning time, you must introduce meal feeding for 4 weeks pre-weaning and 2 weeks post-weaning.
This results in a payment of €35 per calf.
- Action 2: vaccination (optional)
If you choose this option when you apply, you must implement a vaccination programme against clostridial diseases and/or calf pneumonia in suckler calves. Details of the programme must be recorded.
This results in a payment of €15 per calf.
- Action 3: forage or faecal testing (optional)
If you choose this option when you apply, you must either:
- Take 3 forage samples and submit them to a laboratory like IAS for analysis, or
- Carry out 2 faecal tests for specified parasites and submit them to one of these laboratories for testing
This results in a payment of €25 per calf.
For all 3 actions, these payments are capped at 45 calves. If you do choose to complete all of them, you can claim up to €3,375 in total payments!
How to apply for the Beef Welfare Scheme 2025
Applications are open now via AgFood.ie. The process is simple: log in with your Agfood credentials, navigate to the Beef Welfare Scheme 2025, and submit your application before the 24th September deadline.
Keep in mind:
- The scheme is first-come, first -served due to lab turnaround times
- Sampling kits must be purchased no later than 13th October 2025, and you must retain copies of all receipts.
If you’re planning to take part, now is the time to get started.
Why should I apply?
The Beef Welfare Scheme’s payments are already a fantastic boost to your income. But did you know that, if you’re already in the Suckler Carbon Efficiency Programme (SCEP), this new scheme stacks with your existing payments?
If you combine your SCEP and Beef Welfare Scheme supports, you could see your payments reach €225 per cow-calf pair. In today’s cost-sensitive farming environment, that’s a margin boost you can’t ignore.
The scheme ultimately comes with plenty of benefits to improve the health of your cows and support your farming business. DAFM has created this scheme to help:
- Reduce calf losses
- Improve daily liveweight gains
- Reduce veterinary costs
- Make smarter use of feed.
All this starts with accurate, insightful data performed by an accredited laboratory like IAS Laboratories.
How forage analysis can help you comply with the Beef Welfare Scheme 2025
Are you considering opting for the forage route? It’s straightforward, and IAS Laboratories can help you every step of the way.
What forage tests are required?
DAFM requires 3 separate forage/silage samples to be analysed.
Each sample needs to be analysed for quality parameters (F1, F2, yeast, and mould) and mineral content (FMS, FMH, and FMG).
These results don’t just mean you qualify for payments. They will also give valuable insight into the nutritional and mineral status of the forage your animals are eating. The information can help you balance rations more effectively, avoid deficiencies, and improve calf performance over the winter housing period.
IAS Laboratories: how we can help
IAS Laboratories provides a full suite of forage and silage testing services that meets all the scheme’s requirements, including feed evaluation and full mineral analysis. We test for a broad spectrum of minerals and determine the nutritional value of the silage overall. Data is given on dry matter, pH, ammonia, protein, metabolisable energy (ME), and dry matter digestibility (DMD).
We make the whole process easy for you:
- We provide a free sampling kit containing everything you need for analysis including sample bags, a delivery envelope, an analysis request form, and full instructions on taking and sending samples.
- Results are reported 10 working days from the time of registration, in an easy-to-understand visual format so nutrient adequacy can be determined quickly.
As the scheme is run on a first-come, first-served basis, you need to apply now, and you must order your forage test kits by 13th October. Plus, the earlier you test, the earlier you can adjust your plans and claim your payments from the scheme.
Additionally, if the scheme is oversubscribed, then the number of eligible animals may be reduced.
Contact us or speak to your advisor direct to receive your free sampling kits today.
References
The Beef Welfare Scheme – what you need to know – The Beef Edge | Podcast on Spotify