The beef trade continues to move in a positive direction this week, with all the market signals pointing to a positive few weeks for beef finishers.

Base prices are working off a similar level to where they were this time last week, with bullocks working off a €6.70/kg to €6.80/kg base price, while heifers are generally trading for anywhere between €6.80/kg and €7.00/kg base price.

There have been higher base prices paid to bigger finishers this week, with most finishers doing any sort of number of animals working off a 20c to 25c/kg loyalty bonus.

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Flat prices for over-age cattle are not just as plentiful this week, but traditional breeds are still in high demand, with up to €7.20/kg flat price being paid for in-spec Aberdeen Angus bullocks and heifers.

Factory agents are actively ringing around customers looking for supplies.

On the contrary, there are reports of long delays in getting organic cattle killed, with some farmers reporting a six-week wait on getting organic cattle killed at the moment.

This is frustrating for organic farmers, who have to now feed cattle at grass or in sheds to maintain condition, with organic concentrates costing double that of conventional concentrates.

Agents are active in marts, with most of these cattle are being purchased around €3.70/kg to €4/kg and are being bought for a quick 70- to 100-day finish.

The mart price has lifted in the last two weeks and this has caused some concern in farmer finisher circles, with many still having nightmares about the 2025/2026 winter finishing season and the amount of money that was lost on October cattle purchases.

Bulls are also solid this week, with under-24-month U grading bulls coming in at €6.70/kg to €6.90/kg, with R grading bulls being bought at €6.60/kg to €6.80/kg.

Under-16-month bulls are working off a base price of €6.50/kg to €6.60/kg. Numbers of bulls being presented for slaughter remain small.

Cows

There is also more life in the cow trade this week, with €6.50/kg available for well-fleshed R grading cows.

U grading cows have firmed up, with €6.60/kg now on the table for well-fleshed heavy U grading cows.

O grading cows are working off a quote of €6.30/kg to €6.40/kg this week, with P+3 cows coming in at €6.10/kg to €6.20/kg, depending on weight and flesh cover.

Factory agents are also very active in marts for dairy cows, with up to €3.50/kg being paid for fleshed P grading cows this week by specialised cow finishers and agents.

Last week’s kill saw a slight rise in numbers, with the weekly kill up 1,000 head. The bullock category saw the biggest lift, with an extra 1,300 bullocks killed last week. The cow kill also saw a lift, with an extra 300 cows killed last week.

Speaking in Kilkenny on Monday night, IFA national livestock chair Declan Hanrahan said: “Factories want cattle and farmers shouldn’t be afraid to sell hard and price around.”

It’s a similar story in Northern Ireland, with quotes improving by 5p/kg over the last seven days.

Across the water saw a big rise this week, with some categories of cattle including cows and bulls seeing a 10p/kg rise in recent days.

Bullocks and heifers saw a 7p to 8p rise last week. This is on the back of good demand and tighter supplies.

R4L bullocks are coming in at 631p/kg (€7.67/kg incl VAT). That puts the British beef price within 12p to 14p of the beef price in October 2025.

Speaking at the national beef finishing event in Kilkenny on Monday night, Bord Bia’s Joe Burke said that there was very good retail demand for beef at the moment in the UK market and that was underpinning demand for Irish beef.