Irish farmers will benefit from a new €20m support scheme for suckler farmers, called the Beef Environmental Efficiency Pilot Scheme (BEEPS).

It is understood that farmers will receive a payment of €40/suckler cow for providing weight data on both cows and calves.

It is believed that the Irish Department of Agriculture will invest in mobile weighing scales that will be positioned in feed merchants throughout the country that farmers will be able to borrow to carry out the weighing.

The programme will provide funding for approximately 500,000 of the over 900,000 suckler cows in Ireland. The support comes off the back of growing pressure for a support payment of €200/cow for the suckler industry.