Beef quotes steady as numbers remains tight

Beef quotes remain in a steady position this week, with most quotes unchanged from last week.

Some agents are erring on the side of negative sentiment going forward, but there is very little evidence of this in prices being paid for finished cattle.

Bullocks are working off a base price of €7.60/kg, with heifers moving at €7.70/kg to €7.80/kg base price.

There was talk at the end of last week that some processors would drop bullocks to €7.50/kg, but this hasn’t materialised.

Agents are still very active for cattle this week, with supplies still tight on the ground. That, along with Christmas buying starting, is adding stability to the trade.

Deals

As always, where there are numbers of good-quality cattle coming from regular customers, deals are being done for 10c to 20c/kg above the base quote.

Breed bonuses of 30c/kg are still available for in-spec Aberdeen Angus bullocks and heifers. Flat prices are still on the table, with as high as €8.20/kg reported being paid for Friesian bulls again this week.

The trade in young bulls continues strong. The going rate being offered for R and U grades is in the region of €7.80/kg to €7.90/kg, while P and O grading bulls are getting €7.50/kg to €7.60/kg.

Despite a few more cows being about, as is usual at this time of year, the trade remains exceptionally strong.

Good O and P grading cows with flesh are making €7.20/kg, with the small number of quality R grading cows easily making €7.60/kg in the factory and some spectacular prices are being paid in the marts for these good cows. U grading cows are trading for as high as €7.70/kg in some locations.