With some plants still finding it challenging to get their hands on full supplies, the pressure will begin to mount to start rising beef prices further.
Speaking to one finisher this week, they stated: “It’s not a bad sign for prices when the factories are having to ring the farmer and look for cattle.” This is leaving a lot of the negotiating power back into the hands of finishers.
A brief reminder this week that some plants are only killing four days due to ‘Good Friday’.
This week we are seeing procurement managers quoting €3.80/kg for steers, with some quotes of €3.85/kg also being offered.
Meanwhile, heifers are being quoted €3.85/kg but there are cases €3.90/kg being secured. There has even been mention of deals of up to €3.95/kg but this is dependent on the load and the finisher’s relationship with the plant.
For cows this week, P-grades are still priced around €3.10/kg – depending on quality and flesh. O-grades are priced at €3.20-3.30/kg, with deals for R-grades starting at €3.45/kg reaching up to €3.65/kg for the better quality cows.
Prices for bulls under 16 months-old have improved slightly, as quotes are now starting off at €3.80/kg on the grid.
Under 24-month-old bulls are valued at €3.90-3.95/kg for U-grades, while R-grades are receiving €3.80-3.85/kg. O-grades are being quoted around €3.70/kg.
Rise in UK beef price
Commenting on Friday (March 26) about a recent 8c/kg rise in the UK beef price, Tim Cullinan the Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA) president, stated that with the latest Prime Export Tracker Price being €3.87/kg, the Irish price is “lagging behind” by 12c/kg at €3.75/kg.
Adding to this, he said: “Numbers of cattle here are not meeting demand from the market place – and immediate and substantial price rises are justified.
It’s time to call a halt to the control meat factories have exerted on beef prices over the past number of weeks and make them pay the market returns.
“The value of Irish beef in comparison to Ireland’s main markets has now moved well past the €4/kg base price and this must be the immediate target”, the president stressed.
Beef Kill
The beef kill for the week ending March 28, reached 30,823 head (excluding a veal kill of 1,177 head).
The number processed has risen week-on-week, with an additional 1,698 head of cattle killed (excluding veal).
The kill continues to fall behind by 3,641 head (excluding veal) compared with the same period last year.
Looking at the figures from last week in more detail, the number of steers killed tallied to 12,282 head – with 492 head additionally processed in comparison to the previous week.
There was a rise of 787 head in the heifers slaughtered, as the total kills amounted to 9,688 head last week.
Meanwhile, there was a deficit of 1,007 head of cows slaughtered last week in comparison to the same period in 2020 – with the throughput hitting 5,694 head. The numbers of cows slaughtered was similar to the previous week.
Week-on-week beef kill changes:
Steers: 12,282 head (+492 head or +4.1%);
Heifers: 9,688 head (+787 head or +8.8%);
Cows: 5,694 head (-3 head or -0.05%);
Young bulls: 2,670 head (+513 head or +22.7%);
Bulls: 489 head (-73 head or -12.9%);
Total: 30,823 head (+1,698 head or +5.8%).