Beef offal value surges by over 100% in 12 months

Beef offal has experienced a surge in value this year, having more than doubled in price in the space of 12 months.

Figures from Bord Bia’s Beef Market Tracker indicate that the overall value of the fifth quarter from beef cattle as of the week ending July 31, this year, stood at €0.43c/kg of carcass weight.

Last year, this figure was less than half that and as of week ending August 1, 2020, offal value stood at €0.21c/kg of carcass weight.

To put this into context, an animal with a 400kg carcass weight had an offal value of €84/head this time last year. This year, that offal value has increased by €88/head to €172/head.

The table below gives a breakdown of beef cattle’s offal values on July 31, this year, compared to August 1, last year, on a €/kg carcass weight basis.

As the table above indicates, both hide and white offal has more than doubled in price in the space of 12 months, while red offal has increased in value by 60% – according to the Bord Bia figures.

According to Bord Bia’s website, offal and hide coming from an animal contributes to the overall value returned from the market and therefore “they influence the demand for finished cattle by beef processors”.

However, it is important to point out that while there are no published prices for Irish or EU hides or offal products, there are regular reports on the offal trade availiable from the United States’ Department of Agriculture (USDA).

Despite the lack of information on the European offal trade, these are globally traded commodities and therefore, Bord Bia has said the US data provides “a reasonable reflection” of market trends.

The by-products are classed into three different categories:

• Hide;
• Red Offals: Tongue, liver, tail etc.;
• White Offals: Tripes, fats etc.

The Irish Food Bord has however, outlined that EU returns for offal tend to be somewhat lower, due to market access and the EU ban on meat and bone meal and blood meal in animal feed.