On a 280kg heifer carcass, farmers in Britain are being paid close to €125 more than a farmer in the Ireland, figures from the Livestock and Meat Commission (LMC) show.
According to the LMC, the British and Irish heifer price gap jumped to 44.5c/kg in the week ending October 2, an increase of 2c/kg in the space of four weeks.
Irish R3 heifers stood at 374.9c/kg during the week ending October 2, a fall of 12.8c/kg compared to the corresponding period in September.
However, despite British heifers falling by 5.8c/kg, the R3 heifer price still reached 419.4c/kg at the end of last week.
Figures from the LMC also show that the north/south price differential jumped from 12.9c/kg four weeks ago to 18.8c/kg last week.
In a week when the euro was the equivalent of 86.4p, the R3 grade heifer price in Northern Ireland was down by 6.8c/kg to 393.7c/kg.
Meanwhile, the European Union average price for an R3 grade heifer was down by 4c/kg to a total of 374.1c/kg, figures from the LMC show.
EU Deadweight Cattle Prices – Heifers R3 Equivalent (€ Cents) Source: LMC
Sweden remains on top of the heifer price table
Sweden remained in pole position in the EU league table, despite a price drop of 49.7c/kg, with an R3 heifer price of 458.2c/kg for the week ending October 2.
British R3 heifers took second place, with the price paid for these cattle being 38.3c/kg behind the prices received in Sweden.
Northern Ireland fell one place to fifth position, as Spain was the biggest market mover, jumping from eight to sixth thanks to a price rise of 12.2c/kg.
Irish heifers fell to eight place in the league price table, while Denmark and Germany took up the ninth and tenth positions.