Farmers and beef industry stakeholders from all over Ireland and beyond traveled to Teagasc Grange in Co. Meath today (Wednesday, 1 July) to attend the biennial BEEF2026 Open Day.
The theme of this year’s event was ‘Driving Sustainable Performance’ and all aspects of the topic relating to beef farming and the lives of beef farmers were explored during the event.
Click here To visit BEEF2026 Knowledge Center.
Paul Crossan, Head of Teagasc Beef Enterprise, set the scene at the event’s opening stand highlighting that the beef farms of the future must be “profitable, manageable and attractive”.
He stressed that time pressure is a major challenge on many beef farms across Ireland, particularly beef farms where the farmer has an off-farm job.
Strategies to improve time efficiency on beef farms, such as using contractors, improving farm infrastructure, and adopting new technologies, have been mentioned as potential ways to reduce the amount of time required to operate a beef farm.
Teagasc figures presented that day indicated that net margin/ha on the top third of Irish lactation farms more than tripled in 2025 to €1,580/ha from €520/ha in 2024.
The three key requirements highlighted to drive sustainable performance on all Irish beef farms are:
Peter Doyle of Teagasc said the annual cost of keeping a suckler cow/calf pair was estimated at €1,000 but a net profit of €820/cow/year could be made.
However, when targets in KPIs are missed, those profits can be significantly eroded, he said.
Key performance indicators affecting suckler farm profitability that were highlighted in the research are average daily gain (ADG), calving rate, lack of clover in the herds, age at first calving, and length of grazing season.
Ellen Fitzpatrick, a researcher at Teagasc, highlighted the impact of paying higher prices for calves for low-value beef cattle and its impact on eroding profit margins.
Alain Dillon of Teagasc highlighted that the combination of calves with high genetic value for beef and an efficient system increases farm profitability in dairy beef operations.
The BEEF2026 event also showcased several region-specific villages with advisors on hand to discuss the latest advice and best practices in grassland management, siring, dairy calf-to-beef operations, and beef finishing companies.
There were also areas of the open day dedicated to health, safety and wellbeing as well as advice and education.
BEEF2026 attendees can also visit an anaerobic digester on the farm as well as meet representatives from the agricultural industry and technology villages.
The day also included a series of panel discussions focused on dairy products from calf to beef, lactation agriculture, and industry outlook.
Stay tuned Agriland For more updates from the event or click here To see some of the key research presented on the day.
