Beef quotes are rising by the day as factories struggle to source enough finished cattle for the lucrative Christmas market.

Over €6/kg is now available for in-spec Aberdeen Angus heifers. Flat prices of €5.50/kg have been paid for Friesian bullocks, with R grade cows making up to €5.40/kg.

Beef quotes are up 64c/kg or €250/head on a 380kg carcase compared to the same week in 2023. However, a huge gulf of over €1/kg or €380/head remains between the British and Irish prices.

The buoyant beef trade comes against a backdrop of nervousness among Irish farmers as pressure is being applied in Europe to get the Mercosur deal ratified.

IFA president Francie Gorman flew out to Brussels this week for meetings with COPA, the EU farmers’ association, and the trade commission.

“The Commission’s plan appears to be to ignore the devastating impact of agricultural production in Brazil, while at the same time imposing greater regulations on farmers here,” he said. “The next Government cannot allow this to happen,” he said.