The price for an R4L steers has lifted by 1p and now sits level with the R4L heifer price of £3.82/kg.

In terms of numbers, 3,624 steers were slaughtered, up 38.7% from last week, and there was nearly an 80% increase in heifer numbers up to 3,038, as abattoirs become move active following a quiet festive period.

In fact, the kill this week is 4% higher than for the first full week of the year 2017.

There has been a drop of 14p to £3.55/kg for R4L young bulls, but the volume being traded is relatively small, which leads to the volatility. Cull cows that graded at O+4L were securing a price of £2.76/kg, which is also down slightly, by 3p/kg.

Looking at the situation on the continent, beef production has remained the same for 2017 at 6.4 million tonnes, but there has been a shift in the dynamic.

The four largest producers, the UK, France, Germany and Italy, experienced reduced production, but have been compensated for by increases in Ireland, Poland and the Netherlands.