Irish processors are gearing up for a busy Easter holiday market and this, coupled with a tightness in finished cattle supplies, has meant they have had no choice but to increase quotes to get cattle. Last week’s kill dropped over 800 head to just over 37,000, with this week’s kill expected to come in much lower due to the four-day week.
Irish processors are gearing up for a busy Easter holiday market and this, coupled with a tightness in finished cattle supplies, has meant they have had no choice but to increase quotes to get cattle.
Last week’s kill dropped over 800 head to just over 37,000, with this week’s kill expected to come in much lower due to the four-day week.
Quotes for bullocks have moved above €7/kg, with heifers now trading at a base price of €7.25-€7.30/kg at the top of the market.
Flat prices of €7.60/kg are now freely available for Aberdeen Angus bullocks and heifers, with more going to those with numbers.
The cow trade has also moved on with €7-€7.20/kg and over now being paid for top-quality, well-fleshed suckler cows.
There has been a remarkable start to the 2025 beef trade, with heifers now sitting €500/head (€1.55/kg) above what they were selling for in January, just 11 weeks ago.
The Irish price is still €1/kg behind the British price, but has levelled up with some of our main European markets in recent weeks.
Northern Ireland
Quotes took a bigger jump in Northern Ireland this week, with heifers and bullocks up 10-15p on the previous week. Tight supplies of slaughter-fit cattle north of the border have resulted in base quotes rising 10p to 15p/kg on last week, to 640p to 645p/kg (€8.00/kg to €8.07/kg) for U3 animals.
Further afield, the top prices reported in the British market last week included 677p/kg (the equivalent of €8.47/kg including VAT) in the south of Britain.
This is a subscriber-only article
SHARING OPTIONS: