It seems to be a repetitive lyric in the beef trade, but prices for steers and heifers are experiencing no change this week.
Processors continue to quote €3.60/kg for steers, while heifers are still being priced at €3.60-3.65/kg. Factories are stating they are predicting no cattle shortage for the coming weeks.
They are, however, still being quoted with similar prices compared to last week as P-grade cows are being priced at €2.80-2.90/kg. O-grades are remaining around a €3.00/kg price, with R-grades settling for €3.10-3.15/kg. U-grading cows are back 10c/kg with some processors, as prices being quoted are closer to €3.20/kg, although prices of €3.30/kg are still being achieved.
Under 24-month-old bulls are still receiving €3.50/kg for R-grades and €3.60/kg for U-grades, provided they are in-spec. A price of €3.50-3.60/kg is continuing to be quoted for under 16-month-old bulls on the grid.
There were a total of 37,143 head of cattle processed last week, which resulted in a decrease of 520 head in the number of cattle slaughtered in comparison to the previous week’s figure.
Northern Ireland Trade
The Livestock & Meat Commission (LMC) has stated that prime U-3 grading animals were selling at £3.54-3.60/kg (€3.91-3.98/kg) for the week ending October 25.
Average prices for O+3 grading cows and better were last week priced at £2.60-2.80/kg (€2.87-3.10/kg). It should be noted that these cow prices vary depending on weight and grade.