It’s another positive start to the week’s beef trading, with steers starting on a base of €3.65/kg with most processors. Some are still trying to purchase at €3.60/kg, but agents have been given the instructions to leave no cattle behind them in farmers’ yards - a clear indication that finished cattle supplies are still tight.
It’s another positive start to the week’s beef trading, with steers starting on a base of €3.65/kg with most processors.
Some are still trying to purchase at €3.60/kg, but agents have been given the instructions to leave no cattle behind them in farmers’ yards - a clear indication that finished cattle supplies are still tight.
It also puts the ball in farmers' hands in terms of negotiating higher prices. Heifers are starting on a base of €3.65/kg, similar to last week, but a wide gap remains.
There is a share of heifers coming into over €4.00/kg this week
Regular sellers and those with numbers have been able to secure prices 5c to 10c/kg higher than this. Add in the 20c/kg in-spec bonus and a grading or breed bonus and it means that there is a share of heifers coming into over €4.00/kg this week.
Young bulls continue to move off a base of €3.55/kg to €3.60/kg, albeit in small numbers. Cows are steady, with €2.90/kg being paid for P+3 cows, €3.00 for O+3 and €3.20/kg being paid for good R+3 cows.
Again, there is a large variation in prices and farmers with one or two cows would see better value in the mart ring at the moment.
Kill numbers
The kill for the week ending 28 June rose to 37,292 head of cattle, over 2,000 more than was slaughtered in the corresponding week in 2019.
Coupled with that, there were almost 1,000 cattle headed north for direct slaughter.
The biggest lift came in heifers and cows, up 653 and 610 head respectively.
A high kill and increased price all point to a good demand for beef at retail and food service level. Up to the end of June, the Irish cattle kill was down 37,000 or 4.2% in 2020 compared with 2019 kill levels.
Food service demand
Food service businesses reopening has lifted demand and given a bounce to beef markets in recent weeks.
It’s taken a few weeks for supply chains to get up to speed and restock and the big test will come when things return to normal - which is when we'll see whether the increased demand will last.
While the Irish market is lagging 40c to 50c/kg behind the our main export market the UK, we are somewhat more closely aligned with our European neighbours in terms of beef price.
NI prices
The Northern Ireland beef trade remains strong, with plants working on an opening price of 360p/kg (€4/kg ex-VAT), with deals available well ahead of base levels.
Steers and heifers are generally moving from 365p to 375p/kg (€4.05 to €4.16/kg) for U-3 animals. Northern Ireland factories are still very active in the south, paying 10c to 20c/kg above Irish prices.
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