It is less than a month away from the start of special autumn-born weanling sales.

The main customers in such sales are typically live exporters and specialist beef finishers.

Numbers of high-quality weanlings destined for high-value continental EU markets such as Greece and Italy are usually low at this time of the year, which typically boosts competition.

Demand in 2025 was amplified by lower availability of weanlings across Europe, partly due to lower births and movement restrictions linked to the bluetongue virus.

The fact that from 15 July 2026, bluetongue virus serotypes one to 24 will be recategorised under the EU Animal Health Law from a category C disease to a category D+E disease has raised some concerns that movement restrictions across the EU could be lessened as no member state will be able to achieve official freedom from bluetongue.

It is likely however that many member states will still take steps to reduce the risk of importing the virus.

Furthermore, suckler birth registrations across Europe continue to fall which should ensure continued keen demand for Irish cattle.

Seamus McMenamin, Bord Bia livestock sector manager says short-term prospects look good with positive signals from existing markets and some increasing opportunities in international markets.

There were over 30,000 beef sired cattle aged from six months to 18 months exported live in the second half of 2025.

The main destinations of these are summarised in Table 1 which also details exports across other age categories.

Greek market

The Greek market is one of the highest value markets on an individual animal basis for Irish weanling bulls. Many customers have a preference for E and U+ grading Belgian Blue bulls with such bulls commanding a premium on price. Numbers exported increase with availability.

The latest European Commission beef market update for the start of June shows bulls less than 12 months trading upwards of €7/kg deadweight in Greece while bulls aged 12 to 24 months are averaging at €6.87/kg. With the country importing more than 80% of its beef requirement all forecasts are pointing to ongoing demand for elite quality weanlings.

Italian market

While the Italian market in an Irish context has transitioned from traditionally importing high-value weanling bulls to now also importing calves and beef-crosses from the dairy herd there are still a lots of customers keen for suckler-bred bulls. The main demand with weanlings is for bulls that will slaughter U and E grade with a mixture of Belgian Blue, Charolais and Limousin bulls most sought after.

The Italian bull beef price continues to be buoyed by tight domestic supplies with bulls less than 12 months trading at an average of €7.35/kg while bulls aged 12 to 18 months are just shy of €7/kg according to the European Commission.

The other main source of cattle for finishers is France but the French suckler herd remains in decline with price for bull beef averaging €6.85/kg (compared to the Irish price of €6.33/kg excluding VAT).

Exporters are positive about medium-term market prospects for both suckler bred weanlings and calves / beef-cross es from the dairy herd.

Spanish market

A high percentage of the export numbers recorded in Table 1 for the Spanish market are beef cattle bred from the dairy herd with Aberdeen Angus-crosses moving in big numbers.

There is also niche demand for suckler-bred bulls with a wider range in the quality of animals exported with bulls ranging from R grade to U grade in the main.

There is a preference at times for Limousin bulls.

The Spanish market is also performing relatively positively at present with young bull prices reported in the region of €7/kg deadweight.

There is some concerns around reduced beef consumption and lower margins from beef finishing which has slightly reduced demand recently.

Other destinations

Northern Ireland is not typically a market for big numbers of weanlings, but there is active demand for good-quality weanling / store heifers suitable for breeding. Eastern European markets such as Croatia, Hungry, Slovenia, Slovakia etc that performed strongly in recent years were quieter in 2025 due to tighter supplies and better returns from other markets.

This saw live exports to Croatia reduce but still remain significant at over 600 per head while about 450 head were exported to Lithuania in the second half of 2026.

North Africa

Demand for cattle in many North African and Middle Eastern markets is currently strong with exporters inundated with enquiries from interested customers.

The logistics of exporting to some destinations are more challenging with secure credit lines a big consideration meaning that many enquiries prove fruitless.

A couple of exporters have bulls currently in quarantine ahead of loading in the coming weeks and hope to tie down similar orders for the coming months.

Demand appears best for lighter bulls with customers less active for heavy bulls.

The Algerian market has traditionally being serviced by other countries including France but with numbers tight and an import requirement of over 100,000 bulls annually they are looking to the Irish market to fill the deficit.