Beef
Concerns have been raised that the closure of Algeria to cattle imports will put downward pressure on weanling prices for Irish farmers.
The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) has no plans to purchase a ship to be used for cattle exports.
Industry stakeholders are watching developments closely as speculation grows around future services for transporting Irish cattle overseas.
Dairy
Agriland caught up with David Clarke of Cows.ie at the Ploughing Championships to see how export has being going for him in 2026.
A shipment of approximately 2,000 suckler bred bulls set sail from Belview Port in Co. Waterford this week destined for Algeria.
A total of 66% of the calves exported from Ireland under six weeks-of-age in 2025 were sired by a beef-breed bull.
Over 220,000 cattle (including calves) have been exported from Ireland in the first five months of this year.
Video
David Clarke of Cows.ie discusses the success of Irish cattle exports at the National Ploughing...
Irish cattle export numbers to date this year have surpassed 200,000 head, with over 86% (or over...
Over 110,000 calves have been exported from Ireland in the first 16 weeks of 2026, according to latest DAFM figures.
Calf Trade
Just over 126,000 cattle have been exported from Ireland as of the week ending Sunday, April 12, latest DAFM figures have shown.
Co. Roscommon-based cattle exporting business Maxwell Livestock has delivered its first-ever full shipment of Irish cattle for export.
Over 50,000 cattle have been exported from Ireland in the first 11 weeks of 2026, latest figures from DAFM have shown.
Over 15,000 cattle were imported into Northern Ireland from the Republic of Ireland for direct slaughter in 2025, according to new data.
The 2026 cattle export season has got off to a slow start as regards numbers from Ireland with overall cattle exports down 53.5%.
Irish calf export numbers have increased from almost 73,000 head to over 223,000 head in the past decade, according to DAFM figures.
Positive news in the cattle trade this week as livestock merchant Viastar has commenced the purchase of 4,000 male cattle for a new contract.
There are several headwinds on the horizon for Irish cattle exports in 2026, according to Bord Bia's Seamus McMenamin.
Weanling and store cattle exports have declined by over 20,000 head to date this year, latest Bord Bia figures show.
Agri-Business
France has announced the resumption of cattle exports under controlled sanitary conditions. Last...
Several key Irish-based cattle exporters have confirmed to Agriland that they hope to continue...
Irish cattle export numbers for 2025 are approaching 310,000 head (308,903), according to latest figures from DAFM.
The number of beef heifer exports in the first half of this year has surpassed the number of dairy bull exports
