The beef trade remains in a positive position this week, with factory agents still very anxious for cattle.

The agent verdict before Christmas was that factory lairages would be backed up with cattle until at least the end of January.

This was due to what they said was a lot of farmers keeping cattle to sell in the new tax year of 2026.

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This glut of cattle hasn’t materialised, with agents actively sourcing cattle in the last week for the next few weeks' kill.

Bullocks are working off base prices of €7.00/kg to €7.10/kg, with more moving at the higher end of that range in the last seven days.

Heifers are working off a base price range of €7.10/kg to €7.20/kg. Larger suppliers have been able to squeeze a little more beyond the standard quotes in the last few days.

Breed bonuses remain at the lower end of the 20c to 30c/kg range, with 15c/kg on offer for in-spec Hereford cattle.

Cow trade

The cow trade is also steady, with R grading cows being priced at €6.80/kg to €6.90/kg.

U grading cows are still trading at €7/kg to €7.10/kg, while O grading cows are being bought for €6.60/kg to €6.70/kg.

P+3 cows are back a little further, with some factories trying to purchase P+3 cows at €6.20/kg to €6.30/kg.

The mart is still the best place to go if farmers have small numbers of cows to sell.

Bulls have probably held the best out of all categories of stock, with R grading bulls still coming in at €7.25/kg and U grading bulls at €7.40/kg.

Specialised bull finishers have been able to squeeze a little more out of some processors.

Under-16-month bulls are working off a €7/kg to €7.10/kg base price to go on the grid.