DEAR SIR:

It is increasingly clear that meat factories have manipulated payments to farmers for beef to the extent that the beef grid no longer has any credibility among farmers. The key problem is that it has become a one-way bet for meat factories who have retained the severe cuts for poor grade cattle but who have contrived to undermine bonuses for better grade cattle.

Analysis

Analysis of the Department of Agriculture statistics for 2015 demonstrate what cattle farmers know anyway, which is that weight limits overwhelmingly hit U grade cattle. Interestingly, this coincides with a marked improvement in the conformation of the steer and heifer kill.

Two figures jump out: the proportion of all steers slaughtered grading U went from 7.3% in 2009 to 11.7% in 2015.

Average weights in each conformation/weight grade box for U grade steers is universally greater than 400kg and, excluding some lighter fat cover U minus cattle, the average U grade steer kills at more than 420kg.

So is it being too paranoid to suggest that weight limits are all about undermining the upside that farmers should be getting from breeding better cattle?

Farmers were encouraged by the grid to breed U grade and promised conformation and quality assurance scheme bonuses.

Now the farmer gets undermined by a lower base price of typically 20c/kg and the loss of grid and QPS bonuses.

This is leading to losses of €200+ for the best of continental cattle. It’s easy to say finish them at lighter weights, but low fat scores can also hit the price.

More significantly, the suckler farmer has to live too, and a sustainable price for a quality weanling requires sufficient margin for the finisher. This cannot happen under the current assault on heavy quality cattle.

The next minister needs to insist on a complete review of the beef grid. However, a much more fundamental question is whether there is any future for the continental suckler cow? It seems that the beef processors have already decided that they no longer want or need the suckler herd.