The announcement on Monday evening of the temporary closure of McDonald’s premises, followed by similar closures and a general shutdown in the UK led to a nervousness entering the beef trade at the start of the week.

Factory agents were immediately more cautious in quoting for cattle. Some agents say this added to a level of panic selling which had been evident to a lower level in the previous weeks, with some producers adding under finished animals to bookings.

Factories are strongly advising against this approach and point out that if the kill is allowed to settle at its normal level then there will be a much better chance of price stability in the weeks ahead. Last week’s kill was recorded at 37,898 head, but when 3,385 calves are subtracted from the overall figure it gives a more accurate representation, with throughput of 34,513 head.

The forecasts before coronavirus hit was for the kill to tighten significantly in the period from the end of March through to late June, with predictions pointing to a kill in the region of 30,000 to 32,000 head. If this materialises, then it will greatly help the oversupply of certain cuts of beef from building excessively.

This week’s steer and heifer quotes are in the region of €3.60/kg to €3.65/kg, with very little deviation from this range for cattle deemed in-spec. Opposition remains for heavy carcases weighing in excess of 420kg, with the trade for such steers and heavy bulls hit by a collapse in the food service trade. These cattle are, in cases, being offered a 5c/kg to 10c/kg lower quote, but it should be pointed out that this depends on how much cattle exceed the desired carcase weight by, if they are the exception rather than the general case in a batch and the producer-processor relationship.

There has been a lot of concern about cows and if the trade will collapse in the wake of a sharp reduction in demand for burgers.

Factories say that the demand for cows has reduced, but has not disappeared. They say they will be managing throughput closely and matching the proportion of the kill made up from cows going on demand. Prices have reduced by 10c/kg to 15c/kg on last week’s levels, with significant variation remaining between plants.

P+3 grading cows range from €2.70/kg to €2.80/kg on average with O grading cows moving from €2.85/kg to €3.00/kg. Meanwhile, R grades are meeting quotes of €3.00/kg to €3.15/kg, with U grades anywhere from €3.10/kg to €3.30/kg.

The bull trade is being helped by throughput continuing to fall. Last week’s bull kill was recorded at just 2,698 head, which is a reduction of 1,569 head on the corresponding week in 2019.

Prices have mirrored steers and heifers and also eased 5c/kg to 10c/kg. This has occurred to varying degrees depending on the plant purchasing and if they are linked in to a supply agreement with producers.

The general run of U grading quotes range from €3.55/kg to €3.60/kg, with higher paid to specialist finishers. R grades range from €3.45/kg to €3.55/kg, with prices for both grades of bulls also strongly influenced by carcase weight. O grading bulls range from €3.20/kg to €3.40/kg.

NI trade

The northern trade has a high percentage of deals completed in a price range of £3.28/kg to £3.32/kg.

This is the equivalent of €3.56/kg to €3.60/kg at 92.2p to the euro and €3.75/kg to €3.80/kg including VAT at 5.4%. British prices are relatively steady at an average of £3.45/kg (€3.95/kg incl VAT) for R4L steers and heifers.