Prime cattle quotes have started off this week similar to last, with factories not willing to budge off the €3.60/kg mark for steers and €3.65 for heifers.

The one chink of light in the trade is that factories appear to be more anxious for cattle supplies and many have started to arrange kill numbers and manage supplies for the busy runup to Christmas.

Aberdeen Angus and Hereford stock can up the bargaining power to secure higher prices, with factories actively sourcing suitable stock to fill big retail orders.

On the ground, farmers are becoming increasingly frustrated as to the lack of movement in prime cattle prices.

Retail sales are strong and our nearest neighbour and main export market is returning over €250 extra for a 380kg carcase compared to the Irish price.

The bull trade is similar to last week, with R grading bulls ranging from €3.50/kg to €3.60/kg and U grading bulls at €3.65/kg to €3.70/kg. Under-16-month bulls are trading off €3.55/kg to €3.60/kg base price.

The cow trade remains under pressure, with quotes remaining at last week’s prices, with some farmers reporting little appetite in factories, especially for poorer-quality O and P grading cows.

Factories are using the higher supply to their advantage, with quotes for R grading cows at €3.00/kg to €3.10/kg. Good-quality U grade cows are still commanding €3.20/kg, with deals being struck for young cows. O grading cows are in the €2.75/kg to €2.85/kg bracket and P grading cows are back at €2.60/kg to €2.70/kg.

Last week’s kill went up to 38,629 head. The week before was a four-day week with the bank holiday, so if we go back to two weeks ago for comparison purposes, it’s a rise of 1,443 head, up from 37,186 for the week ending 23 October.

Cows have seen the biggest lift, with 8,927 killed last week, up from 7,884 two weeks ago. The higher numbers are coming from the dairy herd, with farmers now drying off cows and offloading empty culls.

This has put pressure on O and P grading cows, with factories holding the power due to the rise in demand.

The young bull kill took an unusual lift up to 2,061 head last week, up 493 head on the number of bulls killed two weeks ago. The heifer kill also increased, with 11,365 killed last week, up from 10,499 two weeks ago. The bullock kill is heading in the opposite direction, with 1,173 fewer bullocks killed last week to bring the figure to 15,559, down from 16,732 two weeks ago.

Numbers are predicted to get tight in the next few months, with over 100,000 fewer beef cattle aged 18 months upwards on farms.

There was 59,933 fewer beef cattle aged 18 to 24 months on farms on 1 September 2020, while the number of cattle in the 24- to 30-month age category was running 49,300 head lower. This has the potential to shift the power back to farmers in the very near future.

NI comment

In Northern Ireland, there is plenty of life in the beef trade. Factories increased base quotes by 6p/kg to 366p/kg (€4.38/kg inc VAT) as demand grows within the retail sector and plants focus on orders for Christmas.

Deals on steers start at 370p/kg (€4.43/kg) and rise to 376p/kg (€4.50/kg) for more regular sellers supplying bigger numbers. Demand for heifers is extremely strong and farmers with good numbers to offload report 380p/kg (€4.55/kg) on offer. Quotes on cows have eased to 265p/kg (€3.17/kg) for R3 grading animals, although deals are still running upwards to 300p/kg (€3.59/kg).