It has been a horrendous few weeks for Irish beef farmers, with the double whammy of falling prices and a struggle to get cattle booked into factories.

With kills at a 20-year high and a weak beef market, it is clear that the Irish beef industry is working at or slightly beyond its capacity.

This is reflected in comparing farm gate prices with those in the main markets in which we export beef to, as well as including the top three global beef exporters who operate outside the EU rules of production.

To complete the comparison, the relative position of Irish R3 steer prices is included for the same week in December last year and 2016 to give a three-year pattern.

Three-year comparison

In the first week of December this year, Irish R3 steer prices averaged €3.66/kg, which is 16c/kg below the same week last year, although 5c/kg better than 2016.

When comparing with Britain, our main export market for beef, this price is well behind their R3 steer equivalent of €4.08/kg in the first week of December 2018.

The British price has been falling sharply in recent weeks and is well behind the €4.24/kg equivalent last year and €4.27/kg in 2016.

Looking at farmgate prices in the countries where Ireland sells most of its beef on the continent, prices are behind those paid for R3 young bulls in France, Germany, Italy and Spain.

French R3 young bull (YB) prices in the first week of December 2018 were €3.76/kg, 10c/kg ahead of Ireland.

In the same week 2017, they were €4.01/kg and in 2016 they were €3.69/kg.

In Germany, R3 YB were €3.88/kg this year, compared with €4.16/kg in the same week last year and €3.86 in 2016.

Italy was returning an average of €3.94/kg this year on the R3 YB, compared with €4.14/kg in 2017 and €4.06/kg in 2016.

Spanish prices on R3 YB were €3.74/kg in first week of December 2018, €3.99/kg in 2017 and €3.68/kg in 2016.

Outside the EU

Outside the EU, the USA, Australia and Brazil are the top three exporting countries in the world.

US prices are close to par with Irish, creeping ahead last week.

In the first week of December, they were just 2c/kg behind Irish on an equivalent animal to our R3 steer at €3.64/kg.

Last year, they were on the equivalent of €3.58/kg and, in 2016, the average was the equivalent of €3.68/kg.

Australia is further behind for a comparable steer to the Irish R3 on the equivalent of €3.22/kg this year, €3.09/kg last year and €3.76/kg equivalent in 2016, when Australian beef prices were particularly high.

Lowest

In global market prices, it is Brazil that is consistently the lowest of the major exporters and is currently at the equivalent of just €2.08/kg for steers comparable to our R3 and while we don’t have a price for 2017, the 2016 equivalent was €2.56/kg.

Irish prices are weak at present, but when we compare with other countries, the pattern this year is no different from the previous two years.

In December, when our weekly kill is at its highest, we are at the bottom end of EU prices in the main beef-producing countries and well below the EU average, and it has been this way over each of the past three years.