# ABP Young Farmer Academy: what the calves are worth and what you sign up to *Published 2026-11-02 by FarmAI Ireland* ABP's Advantage Young Farmer Academy supplies calves at no up-front cost to farmers aged 35 or under in dairy calf-to-beef or suckler systems. You repay out of the final cheque when the cattle are sold to ABP. An interim payment comes along the way, and a guaranteed minimum base price. On Teagasc's 2026 figures, that is about €422 a calf you do not fund yourself. **Checked 27 October 2026.** Everything below about what the Academy offers comes from [ABP's own pages](https://www.abpireland.com/advantage-beef/advantage-farming-futures/). ABP does not publish the interim payment amount, the level of the guaranteed minimum base price, the number of places, or a closing date. That is not a criticism of the scheme. It means the terms are settled farm by farm, so the questions further down are the work. ::: official-advice-banner This is a five-year commercial contract, not a state scheme. Get the terms in writing and have your Teagasc advisor, accountant or solicitor read them before you sign. ::: ## What is the ABP Advantage Young Farmer Academy? It is ABP's own programme, run inside its [Advantage Beef Programme](https://www.abpireland.com/advantage-beef/), aimed at farmers starting out. It is a commercial scheme, not a DAFM one, so the terms are ABP's to set. From ABP's page, a participant gets: | What ABP provides | What ABP publishes about it | |---|---| | Calves supplied at no initial cost | No price, and no statement of how that price is later set | | An interim payment to help cash flow | No amount and no date. A farmer testimonial on ABP's page says it arrived "in the new year" | | A guaranteed minimum base price | Confirmed on both pages. No level given, and no explanation of how it is reviewed | | Eligibility for the Advantage, Quality Assurance and breed bonuses | Named, but the values sit in a brochure rather than on the page | | Calves from high genetic merit sires | Described in words, with no Commercial Beef Value figure attached | | Savings on farm inputs, and a farm liaison officer | Described, with no figures | To qualify you must be 35 or under, farming in your own name or in a partnership, in a dairy calf-to-beef or suckler enterprise. The commitment is a contracted five-year period. You register by completing the expression of interest form on ABP's site. The problem the scheme is aimed at is real. The [Commission on Generational Renewal in Farming](https://assets.gov.ie/static/documents/15d388b4/Commission_on_Generational_Renewal_in_Farming__Final_Report.pdf), chaired by Aidan O'Driscoll, found only 4% of Irish farmers are under 35 while 37% are over 65. Teagasc's CSO-based profile for 2023 gives 4% and 38%. The Commission counted at least €429 million of supports in 2024 and still found the age profile "not improving significantly". It also found 96% of Irish farms are family-owned, so most entry still runs through a family transfer. ## What are the free calves actually worth? Start with what a calf costs. Teagasc's Tipperary demonstration farm at Ballyvadin, Fethard is a joint venture with Dawn Meats and Shinagh Estates. It paid **€267 a head in 2025** and projects **€422 a head for 2026**. That is €155 more per calf, a rise of 58%. Both figures are the farm's own accounts, presented at its open day on 22 July 2026. Across the wider DairyBeef 500 farms in 2025, Teagasc recorded beef-sired bull calves at €257 and beef-sired heifers at €219. Friesian bulls averaged €97. All were bought at two to three weeks old. So the arithmetic on the Teagasc 2026 figure, for your own intake: - 40 calves at €422 is **€16,880** - 60 calves at €422 is **€25,320** - 100 calves at €422 is **€42,200** That is the cheque you do not write in February. For someone starting out, with no beef sales yet to fund it, that is usually the barrier that decides whether the enterprise happens at all. The deferral has a value of its own, and you can work it out rather than guess. Take your calf bill and multiply it by the rate your bank or credit union would charge on a stocking loan. Multiply that by the years until the cattle are sold. That is roughly what the deferral saves you in interest. It is the honest figure to set against anything you give up in return. One caveat on the calves themselves. "High genetic merit" is ABP's description, not a number. Ask for the Commercial Beef Value of what you are being offered. ICBF cites research showing every €20 of CBV adds 6kg to 7kg of carcass weight and a quarter of a conformation score. A better calf is worth real money at the far end, and CBV is how you check before the calf is on your yard. ## What does a guaranteed minimum base price actually protect against? A minimum base price is a floor, not a bonus. It pays you nothing while the market sits above it. It matters only in the year the market falls through it, which is exactly the year you would need it. So the level is the whole question, and ABP does not publish it. A floor set well below the cost of production is reassurance rather than protection. A floor near it is worth a great deal. You cannot tell which you are being offered until someone writes the number down. Two things to do before you take the floor on trust. Read our plain-English guide to [cattle price terms](/read/cattle-price-terms-plain-english). A base price means nothing until you know what the grid does to it for your grades and fat scores. Then check the trend on our [market data board](/data), which carries the CSO's monthly reference prices. The CSO publishes about two months in arrears, so treat it as a benchmark, not today's quote. ## Does dairy calf-to-beef still pay at these calf prices? This is the part the free calves do not settle, and it is worth knowing before you commit five years. Teagasc's figures from the same Tipperary farm: | | 2025 | 2026 projected | |---|---|---| | Calf purchase price | €267 | €422 | | Cattle sales per head | €2,207 | €2,122 | | Net margin per head | €511 | €209 | | Net margin per hectare | €1,620 | €553 | Margin per head falls from €511 to €209. A €155 rise in the calf and an €85 fall in output per head account for most of that €302 drop. Across all the DairyBeef 500 farms, 2025 came in at €1,465 a hectare excluding subsidies, up from €717 in 2024. So 2025 was a strong year, and 2026 is projected well back from it. Teagasc's DairyBeef 500 target is €500 a hectare. The programme is explicit that this excludes farm family labour and land costs. The Tipperary farm's 2026 projection of €553 a hectare clears that target, but your own labour is not in it. The point is not that the system does not work. It is that the Academy removes the cash barrier at the start and leaves the margin risk with you. Our piece on the [Teagasc beef budgets for 2026/27](/read/teagasc-beef-budgets-2026-27-explained) has the breakeven price and how to run your own numbers against it. ## Six questions to ask before you sign ABP's farm liaison team can answer all of these. Get the answers in writing, in the contract, not in a conversation at a mart. 1. **At what price are the calves charged back, and when is that price set?** On arrival, at a fixed figure, or at the market on the day you sell? This is the single biggest unpublished term, and it decides what the scheme is worth. 2. **What is the interim payment, and when exactly does it land?** ABP's page says it assists cash flow and a testimonial says "the new year". Ask for a figure and a date, and confirm it is a deduction from your final cheque rather than an extra payment. 3. **What is the guaranteed minimum base price set at, and how is it reviewed?** Ask for the number, the term it holds for, and who can change it. 4. **Must you supply all your cattle to ABP, and at what specification?** Ask what happens to an animal that misses spec, and whether you can sell elsewhere if a competitor is paying more. 5. **What happens if you leave before the five years are up?** Ask what is repayable, over what period, and what triggers a breach. 6. **Who carries the loss if a calf dies or fails to thrive?** You will be rearing animals you have not yet paid for. Establish whose risk that is, and whether you need to insure it. If an answer is not in the written contract, treat it as not agreed. ## Where to get help Talk to your Teagasc advisor before you commit. Ask about the margin figures, and whether your grassland can carry the extra stock. If you are farming in a registered partnership, the succession tax credit doubles from January 2027. Our piece on [Budget 2027 farm measures](/read/budget-2027-farm-measures-dates) has the dates, because the registration timing decides whether you get it. ABP lists two contacts on its pages. The Advantage Beef Programme is on +353 52 744 1444 or advantagebeefprogramme@abpireland.com. Farm liaison officer Sean Maher is on 086 074 8240 or sean.maher@abpireland.com. ## Frequently asked questions **Who qualifies for the ABP Young Farmer Academy?** ABP's page says farmers aged 35 or under, farming in their own name or in a partnership, in a dairy calf-to-beef or suckler enterprise, and starting out in farming. The commitment is a contracted five-year period. ABP does not publish a closing date or the number of places, so ask the farm liaison team where the current intake stands. **Are the calves actually free?** No, and ABP does not say they are. The calf is supplied at no initial cost and the cost is deducted from your payment when the cattle are sold to ABP. What you avoid is funding the calves up front — on Teagasc's 2026 figure of €422 a head, that is €25,320 on a 60-calf intake. Ask at what price the calves are charged back. **Is a guaranteed minimum base price worth having?** It depends entirely on the level, which ABP does not publish. A minimum base price pays nothing while the market is above it and only bites in a bad year. Ask for the figure and compare it against the breakeven price in the Teagasc beef budgets before you decide what it is worth. ## The bottom line The Academy answers a real question: where does a farmer under 35 find €25,000 for calves before a single beast is sold. Teagasc's own figures show why that number has got harder — a dairy-beef calf went from €267 to a projected €422 in a year. ABP taking that cheque off you at the start is worth having, and the farm liaison support is worth more than it sounds. But ABP publishes none of the terms that decide what the deal is worth. Not the charge-back price, the interim payment, or the level of the price floor. Register your interest, then get those six answers in writing before you commit five years of cattle to one buyer. A floor with no number on it is not a floor yet. --- ## Sources - [ABP Ireland: Advantage Farming Futures — Young Farmer Academy (official site)](https://www.abpireland.com/advantage-beef/advantage-farming-futures/) — ABP's own page for the Academy: the age limit, the enterprise types, the calf supplied at no initial cost, the interim payment, the guaranteed minimum base price, the five-year contracted period and the farm liaison contacts - [ABP One With Nature: Advantage Young Farmer Academy, 23 April 2026](https://abponewithnature.com/advantage-young-farmer-academy/) — ABP's description of the five-year structured programme, the calf purchase and finance options, interim payments, guaranteed minimum beef price and reduced input costs - [ABP Ireland: Advantage Beef Programme (official site)](https://www.abpireland.com/advantage-beef/) — The parent programme the Academy sits inside, confirming the guaranteed minimum base price with no level published, and the sustainability bonus - [Teagasc: Tipperary Dairy Calf to Beef Demonstration Farm Open Day](https://teagasc.ie/animals/beef/dairy-calf-to-beef/dairybeef-500/tipperary-demonstration-farm/tipperary-dairy-calf-to-beef-demonstration-farm-open-day/) — Calf purchase price of €267 a head in 2025 and €422 projected for 2026, with net margin per head falling from €511 to €209 and cattle sales per head from €2,207 to €2,122 - [Teagasc: Profitability levels rise on DairyBeef 500 farms, 11 February 2026](https://teagasc.ie/news--events/daily/profitability-levels-rise-on-dairybeef-500-farms/) — 2025 net margin of €1,465 a hectare excluding subsidies, up from €717 in 2024, with beef-sired bull calves at €257 a head, heifers at €219 and Friesian bulls at €97, bought at two to three weeks - [Teagasc: DairyBeef 500](https://teagasc.ie/animals/beef/dairy-calf-to-beef/dairybeef-500/) — The programme's €500 a hectare net margin target, stated as excluding farm family labour and land costs, and the Tipperary farm's joint venture with Dawn Meats and Shinagh Estates - [gov.ie: Commission on Generational Renewal in Farming, Final Report](https://assets.gov.ie/static/documents/15d388b4/Commission_on_Generational_Renewal_in_Farming__Final_Report.pdf) — The Commission chaired by Aidan O'Driscoll reporting that only 4% of Irish farmers are under 35 and 37% are over 65, that 96% of farms are family-owned, and that supports were worth at least €429 million in 2024 - [ICBF: Dairy calf to beef system in Tipperary delivering strong results through CBV, 18 May 2026](https://www.icbf.com/cbv-dairy-calf-to-beef-system-tipperary/) — Research cited by ICBF showing every €20 increase in Commercial Beef Value adds 6kg to 7kg of carcass weight and 0.25 of a conformation score - [Teagasc: Farming for the next generation](https://teagasc.ie/insights/farming-for-the-next-generation/) — CSO-based age profile showing 4% of farm holders under 35 and 38% aged 65 or over in 2023, with National Farm Survey succession figures for cattle farmers --- *Source: [FarmAI Ireland](https://farmai.ie/read/abp-young-farmer-academy-calves-explained)*