The weather is forecasted to get warmer this week, but, unfortunately, there is no good news for the beef trade.

Steers are struggling to hold on to a base of €3.80/kg, with €3.75/kg being widely offered for cattle being sold this week.

Heifers are trading 10c/kg better, though, again, cattle offered this week are generally being sold off a €3.75/kg base.

There is no rush on factories to get cattle and the Irish Farmers Journal has heard reports of farmers having to wait to get their cattle killed.

Weekly kill

The kill last week was 34,624, just a couple of hundred ahead of the previous week.

There is also pressure on under-16-month bulls killed on the grid, with €3.75/kg being the top end of quotes and several being sold at €3.70/kg.

Bulls not on the grid are still getting €3.70/kg for R grades and €3.80/kg for U grades in places, but there is a difference between factories, with some offering as much as 10c/kg less.

They are also under pressure, but maybe holding up a little better than steers and heifers, accordingly.

Cow trade

The cow trade is also under pressure, but, again, not to the same extent as steers and heifers.

Also, there is a wide variation between factories actively chasing cows and those not particularly in the cow trade.

Commenting on the latest fall, IFA national livestock chair Angus Woods said the meat factories are inflicting untold damage on beef farmers with price cuts and they need to stabilise and restore prices and stop undermining the beef market.

In the North, the trade is also under pressure, with a spread of prices between £3.24/kg (€3.84/kg) and £3.32/kg (€3.95/kg).