Named breeds and bonuses secure future for Irish beef farmers
Angus is the most popular breed for consumers, but Wagyu has gained popularity over the past few years.
Hard times for consumers, and high prices, have reduced the volume of beef sales by 6.5% in the UK, the market Ireland relies on to take nearly half of its beef.
However, beef production is also falling, which supports the prices paid to Irish farmers for beef cattle. Breed bonuses also offer great support to beef farmers in these difficult times.
There has been a positive move by Irish Hereford Prime and ABP Food Group to announce the new Hereford breed bonus structure that will be worth up to 20c/kg on all eligible cattle from next September.
Also farmer-led, the Certified Irish Angus Producer Group already offers a tiered bonus structure of up to 20c/kg for cattle through a standard bonus, a genetics bonus, and a sustainability bonus.
The vote of confidence by these groups defies the falling beef sales in the UK and in the EU, where beef consumption has declined since 2007, forecast to continue with a 2% reduction this year.
Breed bonuses are even more impressive at a time when under-pressure consumers are trading down to cheaper options.
In the UK, they are spending 11.7% less, year-on-year, on named beef breeds, according to the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB). That’s a much steeper decline in sales than the 6.5% fall seen in total beef sales in the UK.
Inflationary pressure causing rationalisation of retail ranges caused the lower sales of retail products with named beef breeds, according to the AHDB. Could such trends endanger the beef breed bonuses paid to Irish farmers?
The AHDB analysis reveals that British consumers shopping for beef consistently regard the most widely recognised breeds well, which in the UK are Angus and Wagyu.
Angus is the most popular breed for consumers, but Wagyu has gained popularity over the past few years.
The AHDB says named beef breeds (including Angus, Wagyu, Hereford and Native Breed) accounted for 2.6% of all retail beef sales in the UK over the past year, equivalent to 15,700 tonnes. Angus was 1.9% of total beef volumes.
Wagyu was 0.5% of total beef volumes, but that share has grown by an impressive 50.2% year-on-year. Wagyu is used most often for steaks and burgers, where its distinctive fat marbling enhances moisture and flavour.
Aberdeen Angus is the most recognised name on packs, with 85% of consumers aware of the breed, the highest level in four years. Wagyu awareness is up by more than 12 percentage points, to 75%.
Named breeds may be even more important in foodservice, where they are used on menus to communicate provenance and elevate dish credentials.
Long may it continue, because UK figures show that farmers there have responded to the messages from the markets on named breeds.
The UK’s AA and AA cross cattle numbers have grown consistently over the past five years.
In 2025, 29% of prime cattle of 12 to 29 months killed in the UK were Aberdeen Angus or Aberdeen Angus cross, making it the most popular breed. Just over half of these were dairy beef animals, with the remainder from the suckler bred.
Registrations of Wagyu and Wagyu cross have grown significantly, from 13,500 head in 2021 to 45,500 head in 2024, but declining since then. They still made up only 2% of the total prime kill in 2025, with 90% of them dairy beef animals.
Meanwhile, in Ireland, over the past 10 years the bonus paid by ABP and Kepak to members of the Certified Irish Angus producer group has boosted the considerable growth of the Angus breed.
Angus births have increased by 82%, from 346,772 in 2016 to more than 600,000 in 2025, reflecting strong farmer confidence in the breed and in the consistency of the bonus payments.
Irish Hereford Prime also reports increasing numbers of cattle going through their scheme, which will be celebrated when the 17th European Hereford Conference takes place in Kilkenny this week.
