Today, Monday the 19th August, the ICBF has announced that the deadline for applications to the National Genotyping Programme (NGP) has been extended to Tuesday 27th August. To continue the momentum of applications to date, later this week, advisors will be given access to sign up their authorised clients, provided the farmer has given them the necessary information and permission. This extension will give herds an extra 8 days to apply for the programme.
All herds participating in the Suckler Carbon Efficiency Programme (SCEP) are encouraged to apply. One of the most important benefits for SCEP herds joining the NGP, is that they would be able to access double tissue calf tags. This allows participating SCEP herds to sample their calves at birth as opposed to having to wait until later in the Summer to receive tags, resulting in additional labour.
How much will it cost?
Beef: For suckler beef herds who are actively participating in the Suckler Carbon Efficiency Programme (SCEP) there is NO requirement to join the Beef HerdPlus service.
Suckler beef herds who are NOT in SCEP can also join the National Genotyping programme; however these beef herds will be obliged to join the ICBF Beef HerdPlus service, where the annual membership is charged at €60 per year.
The first year of genotyping is free, and each genotype will cost €4 thereafter (years 2-5) and will be paid at tag purchase. A direct debit for the genotyping fee for Newborn calves will be triggered once calf tags are ordered with the Tag Provider. This will be collected from the herdowner, by ICBF, approximately within a month of the order.
All NGP samples will count towards your annual 70% SCEP genotyping requirement, so you will only incur the €6 cost on calves above your SCEP requirement.
See example calculation below:
- A herd with a SCEP reference number of 20 has to sample 14 animals/year (70% of ref number).
- There are 20 calves born in the herd and all are registered via DNA registration.
- 14 of the 20 samples will be counted towards SCEP, meaning the farmer will only incur the cost of genotyping for the remaining 6 calves.
Total annual cost to the herd in above example to participate in DNA registration: 6 x €6 = €36
What would I be signing up for?
For new herds signing up in 2024, the programme will run from 2024-2027. From January 2025-2027 you would be registering your calves electronically, using the DNA registration process. This will mean taking a tissue sample from the calf at birth, posting to the relevant lab and recording the calves information online via Agfood.ie or using a farm software package. Once the DNA results are returned to ICBF, you will complete the registration online and a passport (blue card) will be issued.
How do I sign up to the programme?
- You can sign up by logging into your ICBF account at icbf.com.
- Click on the “NGP Apply Here” button on the home screen and follow the instructions.
- Only herds willing to register their calves online, via Agfood.ie or via farm software package, can apply.