The number of beef cattle processed in the week commencing Monday, February 7, has increased for the sixth consecutive week.
Figures from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) show that the number of cattle processed at DAFM-approved slaughter plants in week six of this year stands at 38,220 (including veal).
Last week’s beef kill witnessed a sharp rise in veal throughput which stood at 1,813 head, compared to 231 head in the previous week.
Excluding veal, last week’s throughput stood at 36,407 cattle; this represents an increase of 450 head from the 35,957 cattle processed the previous week.
Weekly veal throughput is expected to further increase throughout February and March and begin to decline again in April, as spring-calving on dairy farms draws to an end.
Weekly factory throughput excluding veal:
As the above chart shows, this year’s weekly throughput figures are bucking the trend of last year. While weekly kill numbers dropped off at the end of January and into February last year, cattle numbers are increasing each week this year.
Last week, Agriland reported two rises in beef price coming from processors. The move by factories to increase prices at a time when weekly cattle supplies are also increasing shows the extent of the demand for beef at present.
Cattle throughput comparisons:
As the above table indicates, the number of cattle processed this year up to Sunday, February 13, stands at 200,511 cattle (excluding veal). This year’s total beef kill is running over 13,000 head of cattle ahead of the same time last year.
According to Bord Bia’s latest projections, the number of cattle processed in Irish factories is projected to increase by 70,000 head this year.
The rise in throughput appearing early in the year is a welcome sign for trade in the later part of the year, as it helps offset the risk of a deluge of grass cattle appearing in late autumn.