Supplies of finished cattle remain tight on the ground, with all factories anxious for cattle.

Quotes are still working off €3.75/kg for bullocks, with €3.75/kg to €3.80/kg going for heifers, but these are expected to move higher next week.

There is more money available for higher numbers and regular sellers.

Some of the smaller players have had to increase quotes further to secure cattle supplies on foot of high demand.

Further north, Foyle Meats is offering an extra bonus of 10c/kg for animals killing out between 300kg and 380kg carcase weights.

Aberdeen Angus and Hereford stock are also in high demand from retailers, with processors offering bonuses as high as 25c/kg to secure supplies.

Young bulls are moving off €3.70/kg for R grading bulls and €3.80/kg for U grading bulls, with very little talk about carcase weight limits. Under-16-month bulls are in short supply, with factories generally working off €3.65/kg to €3.70/kg base price.

Cows have moved up this week, with €3.00/kg now available for P grading cows and €3.10/kg being quoted for O grading cows.

Good R grading cows are generally moving off €3.30/kg, with €3.40/kg available for higher numbers of well-fleshed suckler-bred cows.

Tightening supplies

Department of Agriculture AIMS figures point to a significant drop in slaughter age cattle in the national herd on 1 November 2020.

There were 91,677 fewer cattle aged between 18 and 36 months on 1 November 2020 compared with 1 November 2019.

This was made up of 27,321 fewer cattle in the 18- to 24-month category, 26,019 fewer cattle in the 24- to 30-month category and 38,337 fewer cattle in the 30- to 36-month category.

This points to a tightening in supplies for the first six months of 2021. Meanwhile, 2017 was the last year when numbers were as low.

Retail demand

UK retailers have seen record sales in December, with Kantar data released this week pointing to over 10% growth in sales in all of the major UK supermarket multiples.

With anticipated widespread lockdowns across Europe, restaurant closures will have an impact on food service demand. However, unlike the first lockdowns, many are now fully geared up for take-away and delivery services.

This reduction in demand will be offset by the increase in retail demand expected in the next few weeks as households continue to dine at home.

Figures from the AHDB show that Irish imports of beef into the UK were down 3% to the end of October compared with 2019 levels, pointing to Irish beef being maintained on UK supermarket shelves throughout 2020.

Irish imports made up 69% of imports into the UK for that period. Polish beef imports to the UK fell by 16% during the same period as a result of lower food service demand.

IFA livestock chair Brendan Golden said: “Market conditions are strong in our main export market and with the worst-case scenario Brexit avoided, this market must be built on and any trade distortions from logistical access issues cannot find their way back to farmers.”

NI comment

In Northern Ireland, the beef trade is also showing signs of upward price movement.

Factories have left base quotes unchanged at 368p/kg (€4.30/kg inc VAT), but farmers are securing deals of 380p to 390p/kg (€4.45/kg to €4.57/kg) for in-spec steers and heifers.