Beef procurement managers were adamant at the beginning of last week that beef quotes were only going in one direction and that was downwards.

A lot of agents were given strict instructions last week to quote €5.15/kg for bullocks and €5.20/kg for heifers, but quoting and buying are two different things.

Farmers dug in and very few cattle were purchased at €5.15/kg. A standoff ensued in some cases and factories had no choice but to increase quotes again this week back to where they were before the early March wobble.

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Bullocks in the main were working off €5.20/kg on Monday morning, with heifers working off €5.25/kg.

Donegal is back up to where it was two weeks ago as well, with €5.30/kg being paid for bullocks killing out between 300kg and 400kg, while heifers are being paid out at €5.35/kg for heifers killing out between 300kg and 400kg.

Aberdeen Angus bonuses are still being paid on in-spec cattle from 25c to 30c/kg. Herefords are working off a 15c/kg bonus for in-spec cattle.

Young bulls

The top price in the young bull market is still coming in at €5.40/kg to €5.50/kg for U grading bulls, with €5.30/kg to €5.40/kg on the table for well-fleshed R grading bulls.

P and O grading bulls are being bought at €5.00/kg to €5.10/kg and €5.10/kg to €5.20/kg.

Under-16-month bulls are being bought at €5.20/kg to €5.25/kg base price on the grid.

Cows

Cows never really flinched during last week’s state of flux, with cows still in good demand. P+3 cows are working off €4.60/kg, with O grading cows coming in at €4.70/kg to €4.80/kg.

R grading cows are generally being quoted at €4.90/kg to €5.00/kg, with U grading cows now moving at €5.10/kg to €5.20/kg.

Specialist wholesalers are still very active in marts for heavy well-fleshed cows, paying over €3/kg for some cows in the last seven days.

The latest animal identification and movement data published by the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine shows there was over 45,000 fewer beef cattle aged zero to 42 months on farms on 1 January 2023, compared with 1 January 2022.

This will help beef prices in the short term, with supplies expected to get very tight in the next few months.

It’s clear in marts that factories have issued contracts to their big feeders, with prices being paid way in excess of what ordinary farmers could give at current beef prices.

Factories have pursued a two-tier pricing market and smaller finishers will somehow have to deal with it. Selling forward stores in marts could be a better option for some and take out the expensive final finishing period.