Beef Tours

With around 7.3 million cattle across almost 100,000 farms, the sector is vital to the national economy and food security.

Irish beef farmers primarily use a grass-based system, utilising the country’s ideal climate for pasture growth to produce highly sought-after animals, with the arguably superior flavour of grass-fed beef being a key international differentiator. The industry relies on over 870,000 suckler cows and finished beef animals, with offspring from the dairy herd also forming a crucial and growing part of national beef production. As one of the world’s largest net beef exporters, Ireland’s exports recently approached €2.8 billion. Bord Bia (the Irish Food Board) actively promotes this premium product globally, leveraging its PGI (Protected Geographical Indication) status for Irish Grass Fed Beef as a vital marketing tool. While the average beef farm is around 35-40 hectares (approx. 86-99 acres) with an average suckler herd of 15 cows, the sector is highly diverse. Many smaller, part-time farmers, especially on the west coast, specialise in calf rearing, with weaned animals typically sold to larger fattening and finishing farms in the midlands, north, and east, highlighting an efficient regional specialisation.