Cow numbers in the marts and factories have fallen off a cliff this back end and prices continue to soar as a result.

The overall cow kill for the year to date is down more than 50,000 head, and tighter numbers in the marts saw factory agents paying over €1,800/hd for well-fleshed cows out of the milking parlour this week.

The latest Department of Agriculture figures show that the number of cows slaughtered for the week-ending 20 September was down 27% on the corresponding week last year.

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The number of cows for the week in question was 5,856 this year, compared to 8,013 in 2024 – a drop of 2,157 animals.

The number of cows killed for the year up to 20 September was 262,596 animals, down from 312,797 for the same period in 2024. This is a drop of 16%.

Cow numbers are well down on anticipated levels, with a fall-off of around 5% in the cow kill being generally forecast for the year as a whole.

The sharp drop in cull cow numbers so far this year has been attributed to farmers milking on cows later this autumn due to decent grass growth and relatively strong milk prices.

There have also been suggestions that banding considerations are a factor in the later culling of surplus cows.

Smaller cow entries in the marts have resulted in a lively trade, with €3/kg being paid in Corrin Mart for nice well-fleshed cows out of the parlour.

Corrin Mart manager Seán Leahy said there was a very strong trade for the cows on offer but he predicted that the real flush of cows would be later this year and could run into December.

It was a similar story in Kilkenny Mart this week. There were just around 50 cull cows on offer – where there would usually be around 100 at this time of the year, auctioneer George Candler said.

In what Candler described as a “flying trade”, dairy cows made €2.20-3.30/kg, with beef cows making €3.40-4.30/kg.

Factory agents did most of the buying.