The main reason beef prices have fallen around 50c/kg over the past three months is low consumer demand on the back of rising inflation, according to Paul Nolan of Dawn Meats.
European consumers facing high fuel prices and mortgage interest rate hikes are shelving beef for holidays, Nolan told the Irish Farmers Journal at the Tullamore Show on Sunday.
“People, I think, are deciding to take a holiday this year no matter what and you can see there’s no cheap flights and no cheap holiday,” he said.
“So, ultimately, something has to suffer and unfortunately for us, it’s the high end of the good quality food market.”
Demand in other importing markets, such as China, is also affected by inflation, Nolan commented.
However, he suggested prices could begin to rebound if the hunger for beef returns at the close of the summer season.
“So, to put all that in context, notwithstanding the high costs associated with beef farming today [compared] to a year ago, we are still at a reasonably high price for this time of the year, traditionally.
Return to schools
“Going forward, it is very difficult to know obviously.
“[Beef price] indicators are not great but I think that if people get back and get settled into schools and so on, we will see a bit of a tightening up and a bit of a return to more consumption and that will straighten things out pretty quickly,” Nolan said.
ABP’s sustainability manager Stephen Connolly pointed to similar reasons for current beef prices.
“There is a lot of competition out there with other exporting countries and in Europe, there is that economic pressure on families,” he said.
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Beef Trends: frustration growing at continued cuts
The main reason beef prices have fallen around 50c/kg over the past three months is low consumer demand on the back of rising inflation, according to Paul Nolan of Dawn Meats.
European consumers facing high fuel prices and mortgage interest rate hikes are shelving beef for holidays, Nolan told the Irish Farmers Journal at the Tullamore Show on Sunday.
“People, I think, are deciding to take a holiday this year no matter what and you can see there’s no cheap flights and no cheap holiday,” he said.
“So, ultimately, something has to suffer and unfortunately for us, it’s the high end of the good quality food market.”
Demand in other importing markets, such as China, is also affected by inflation, Nolan commented.
However, he suggested prices could begin to rebound if the hunger for beef returns at the close of the summer season.
“So, to put all that in context, notwithstanding the high costs associated with beef farming today [compared] to a year ago, we are still at a reasonably high price for this time of the year, traditionally.
Return to schools
“Going forward, it is very difficult to know obviously.
“[Beef price] indicators are not great but I think that if people get back and get settled into schools and so on, we will see a bit of a tightening up and a bit of a return to more consumption and that will straighten things out pretty quickly,” Nolan said.
ABP’s sustainability manager Stephen Connolly pointed to similar reasons for current beef prices.
“There is a lot of competition out there with other exporting countries and in Europe, there is that economic pressure on families,” he said.
Read more
Beef Trends: frustration growing at continued cuts
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