Lidl has become the first supermarket retailer in Ireland to launch an innovative new sustainability support programme for Irish beef farmers.

Date published: September 13, 2024

The Lidl Sustainable Beef Programme has been developed by the retailer in partnership with Lidl’s beef supplier Liffey Meats, Bord Bia and more than 20 beef farmers from across Ireland who will work together to implement innovative sustainable farming practices in order to reduce carbon emissions associated with beef farming.

The industry-leading Lidl Sustainable Beef Programme will be measured through AgNav, the farmer-centric sustainability support platform developed by Teagasc, the Irish Cattle Breeding Federation (ICBF) and Bord Bia.

The pioneering AgNav platform allows participating farmers to collate verified data on their farming practices. Farmers will review their data and progress will be regularly measured. Ongoing supports will be offered to the farmers as they progress on their sustainability journey. This will result in informed implementation of on-farm actions with the goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions, improving water quality and biodiversity and contributing to better animal welfare. +3

More than 20 beef farmers currently supplying to Lidl Ireland from counties Cavan, Galway, Longford, Meath, Roscommon, Westmeath and Wexford have already signed up to participate in the programme, with that number expected to double over the coming months.

Through the industry-leading programme, participating farmers will benefit from on-farm knowledge sharing sessions where farmers and external industry experts will share and demonstrate best practices in sustainability.

Representing an initial investment of more than €200,000 over four years, Lidl Ireland aims to create greater awareness of the environmental challenges associated with beef farming amongst consumers and to share insight on the initiatives undertaken by the participating farmers to make beef more sustainable, with a view to translating the impact of the programme in a clear way for customers shopping Lidl’s quality Irish beef products.