This week’s factory quotes for beef cattle have continued with prices remaining on firm footing and continued keen demand from factories for all types of finished cattle.
There was an expectation from most procurement staff that weekly supplies of beef cattle would have increased by now but as of yet, it seems this trend has not materialised.
Cattle born in the second half of February 2022, are reaching 30 months-of-age now and with many farmers reporting lower weight gains from their cattle at grass this summer, lighter carcasses are being seen in many cases while other farmers are holding on to cattle for a few extra weeks.
Factory quotes – heifers and steers
Heifers are being quoted at €5.05/kg on the grid in general this week but more money is being paid in some cases where batches of choice heifers are presented.
Steers (bullocks) are being quoted at €5.00/kg on the grid in general and again, more money being paid in some cases.
On the higher end of the price scale, €5.10 and €5.15/kg is being quoted in Co. Donegal for in-spec steers and heifers respectively with carcass weights ranging from 300-400kg.
Cows
Cow prices in August have strengthened after dipping off in July and this week’s price offering sees continued positivity in the cow trade.
The graph below shows how the average prices for O=3= cows have fared out over the past 12 weeks:
Over 25,000 additional cows have been slaughtered to date this year with many of these coming from dairy herds.
Procurement staff are saying that reduced grass growth this year as well as cashflow issues on some dairy farms resulted in bigger numbers of cull cows sold earlier than usual.
P grade cows are being quoted at €4.40/kg in general this week with €4.50/kg being quoted for O grade cows.
€4.70/kg is being quoted for R grade cows and up to €5.00/kg is being quoted for U grade cows this week.
Bulls
Under 24-month bulls are being quoted at €5.30 and €5.20/kg for U and R grades respectively. O grade bulls are being quoted at €5.00-5.10/kg and €4.90-5.00/kg is being quoted for P grade bulls.
Under 16-month bulls are being quoted at €5.00-5.05/kg on the grid.