The prices being paid by factories to Irish farmers for their beef are 50c/kg behind the equivalent price across all of the country’s main export markets, says the Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers Association (ICSA).
ICSA beef chair Edmund Graham has called for an explanation as to why prices in Ireland are a “totally different story” compared with last year, when prices in export and the domestic market “were pretty much in alignment”.
“Figures show that over the year to date, Irish beef price is well below both UK and EU markets for R3 steers (average Irish €4.77/kg, average EU €4.93/kg). If we look at the latest R3 heifer prices, most of the EU markets are returning around €5/kg or better, while we are stuck at €4.56c/kg,” he highlighted.
Quality assurance failure
The ICSA beef chair claimed that the beef price gap “strongly suggests quality assurance, with all the bureaucracy that is entailed, is delivering absolutely nothing when the figures are so stark”.
“It now appears that our quality assurance [Sustainable Beef and Lamb Assurance Scheme (SBLAS)] is a complete failure in delivering any price benefit to farmers,” he said.
Beef farmers need €7/kg and more as a beef price to meet rising input costs, says the ICSA. \ Donal O' Leary
Graham said farmers will be “astonished” to hear that “even Polish beef prices have powered ahead of our price”.
“In Poland, R3 heifers are now fetching €4.91/kg. This is an abject failure and Irish farmers need answers from Bord Bia and from factories.
“Why should farmers continue with [SBLAS] when even Polish beef farmers are getting a better price, even though the economy of Poland is on a different level to us?” he argued.
Meeting
The ICSA representative said he would be seeking an immediate meeting with new Bord Bia CEO Jim O’Toole to discuss what is going wrong.
“Farmers are being completely robbed at the moment at a time when input costs are at an all-time high. We have been promised for many years that the efforts with the quality assurance scheme would lead to premium prices, but, right now, we are down at the bottom of the price table.
ICSA beef chair Edmund Graham. \ Dave Ruffles
“This is not good enough. Farmers will need prices north of €7/kg to feed cattle this winter, but at the moment we are not anywhere near €5/kg, even though almost every important market we are selling to is delivering this to their own farmers,” he said.
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The prices being paid by factories to Irish farmers for their beef are 50c/kg behind the equivalent price across all of the country’s main export markets, says the Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers Association (ICSA).
ICSA beef chair Edmund Graham has called for an explanation as to why prices in Ireland are a “totally different story” compared with last year, when prices in export and the domestic market “were pretty much in alignment”.
“Figures show that over the year to date, Irish beef price is well below both UK and EU markets for R3 steers (average Irish €4.77/kg, average EU €4.93/kg). If we look at the latest R3 heifer prices, most of the EU markets are returning around €5/kg or better, while we are stuck at €4.56c/kg,” he highlighted.
Quality assurance failure
The ICSA beef chair claimed that the beef price gap “strongly suggests quality assurance, with all the bureaucracy that is entailed, is delivering absolutely nothing when the figures are so stark”.
“It now appears that our quality assurance [Sustainable Beef and Lamb Assurance Scheme (SBLAS)] is a complete failure in delivering any price benefit to farmers,” he said.
Beef farmers need €7/kg and more as a beef price to meet rising input costs, says the ICSA. \ Donal O' Leary
Graham said farmers will be “astonished” to hear that “even Polish beef prices have powered ahead of our price”.
“In Poland, R3 heifers are now fetching €4.91/kg. This is an abject failure and Irish farmers need answers from Bord Bia and from factories.
“Why should farmers continue with [SBLAS] when even Polish beef farmers are getting a better price, even though the economy of Poland is on a different level to us?” he argued.
Meeting
The ICSA representative said he would be seeking an immediate meeting with new Bord Bia CEO Jim O’Toole to discuss what is going wrong.
“Farmers are being completely robbed at the moment at a time when input costs are at an all-time high. We have been promised for many years that the efforts with the quality assurance scheme would lead to premium prices, but, right now, we are down at the bottom of the price table.
ICSA beef chair Edmund Graham. \ Dave Ruffles
“This is not good enough. Farmers will need prices north of €7/kg to feed cattle this winter, but at the moment we are not anywhere near €5/kg, even though almost every important market we are selling to is delivering this to their own farmers,” he said.
Read more
Beef Trends: appetite growing as numbers tighten
More positivity in this week's beef trade
Beef price must ‘move on’ for ‘lucrative Christmas market’- IFA
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