Beef prices look set for another firm week, as factories have put their best foot forward with a 5c/kg rise apparent on in-spec heifers and steers.
This week’s quotes appear to be up on last week’s quotes and procurement staff remain keen to secure numbers of suitable cattle to fill lairages for the week’s kill.
Starting with steers, a base price of €4.25/kg seems to be the general run this week. Some factories appear reluctant to move prices up and are putting forward shy quotes of €4.15-4.20/kg for steers.
In terms of heifers, the general run would appear to be a base price of €4.30/kg, with some procurement officers quoting the same price for heifers and steers at €4.25/kg.
On the heifer front, more is available and farmers killing impressive bunches of well-fleshed heifers have told Agriland that they have secured a base price of €4.35/kg for the week ahead.
Bargain hard on beef price
Cattle numbers remain tight across the board and farmers who are bringing cattle to the factory this week should bargain hard before settling on a beef price.
Given the current climate of the beef trade and the strong demand for cattle, various deals are being done including flat prices for groups of finished cattle.
Some plants are offering an additional 10c/kg bonus for heifers and steers killing out at a carcass weight of between 300kg and 400kg.
While cow prices are up this week, factories across the country appear hesitant on following suit, with many citing the same price as last week for cows.
With quotes of €3.55/kg for P-grade cows, €3.65/kg for O-grade cows and and €3.80/kg for R grades, it seems there is more scope for farmers to bargain on cow price.
As always, factories are particularly keen for well-fleshed cows, and most procurement agents will not walk away from a deal on a bunch of well-fleshed cows over the sake of a few cent in the difference of the factory quote and the farmer’s asking price.
Processors are claiming to have less interest in bulls this week but are quoting approximately €4.15-4.20/kg on the grid for young bulls and €4.20 and €4.30 flat price for R and U-grade under 24-month old bulls respectively.