The general mood in the beef trade is good this week, with factory agents more positive about quotes and the general outlook for the trade in the next few weeks.

Agents continue to be very active looking for cattle, with some offering more leeway on quotes than had been available up until last week.

Quotes haven’t moved a lot, but there appears to be more hope of an increase coming.

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Bullocks are working off a base quote of €6.60/kg, with €6.70/kg to €6.75/kg available in some locations this week for bigger loads.

Heifers are also in good demand, with €6.80/kg on the table as a base price for heifers. There is also 5c to 10c/kg more available for heifers where regular suppliers are selling.

While some agents have been slow to lift quotes, other sweeteners have been thrown in, including free haulage.

Breed bonuses are also a little easier to come by, with in-spec Aberdeen Angus bullocks and heifers attracting a 20c/kg premium, with in-spec Hereford cattle working off a 10c/kg bonus in most locations.

Cows

R grading cows are being priced at €6.40/kg to €6.50/kg. U grading cows are generally now being bought at €6.70/kg, with higher prices going to regular cow sellers and specialist feeders.

O grading cows are being bought for €6.30/kg to €6.40/kg. P+3 cows are coming in at €6.20/kg to €6.40/kg, with some factories quoting lower for very light cows.

Bulls

R grading bulls are coming in at €6.80/kg to €6.90/kg and U grading bulls are being quoted at €7.00/kg, although bulls are in short supply, with low numbers being killed.

There are a number of operators still able to squeeze €7/kg for mixtures of R and U grading bulls. Some of the larger bull finishers have been able to get €7.10/kg this week.

O grading bulls are working off an all-in price of €6.50/kg to €6.70/kg, while P grading bulls are being quoted at €6.40/kg to €6.50/kg, depending on weight and flesh cover.

Over-age bulls are generally working off prices of €6.80/kg to €6.90/kg, depending on grades and flesh cover.

Under-16-month bulls are working off a €6.70/kg to €6.80/kg base price on the grid.

Last week’s kill came in at just over 30,000 head. This was back from almost 31,500 the week before and shows that numbers continue to tighten across all stock categories.

May and June have traditionally been the two months where demand outstrips supply and 2026 is shaping up no differently.

Factory agents have been anxious about the upcoming eight-week period for a few months now and have been trying to line up adequate supplies to get them across the lull in supplies expected until the end of June.

The weekly kill is currently running about 3,000 head behind the same week in 2025. The weekly bull kill remains very low at 1,392 bulls per week, back 200 to 300 head on the same weeks in 2025.

The 2026 kill currently stands at almost 83,000 head lower when compared with the same period in 2025, with almost 30,000 fewer heifers killed and 27,000 fewer cows killed so far in 2026.

Bord Bia had predicted some recovery for the second half of the year, but it’s now expected that the drop in the 2026 kill will be greater than first anticipated.

Some pressure is evident in the market across the water, with some processors dropping quotes in the last week by 5p to 10p/kg.

There has been an increase in numbers available for slaughter and the pressure on price has increased the numbers available for killing.

In-spec bullocks and heifers are generally trading for anywhere between 620p and 630p/kg.

Looking further afield, the Mercosur trade deal will come into effect on Friday 1 May.

The Mercosur countries are still wrangling over what the quota split will be and current indications are that no consensus will be reached, so a first-come, first-served system will apply.

Mercosur countries will have a quota of 13,200 tonnes carcase weight until the end of December 2026.

Up to 55% of this volume may be chilled and 45% frozen, with a 7.5% tariff applied to imports.

All eyes will be on volumes and cuts in the next few months and what effect the extra volume will have on beef markets.