Carcass weights reverse trend

Marts: A drop in slaughtering weights for cattle between 2001 and 2003 has been reversed this year with higher carcass weights making up for some of the loss in throughput for the first half of the year.

Average carcass weight for bullocks, young bulls and heifers all declined during the early years of the decade, partly due to the necessity for producers to remain under set stocking levels for premia and extensification payments, coupled with the uncertainty of the Cattle Census Dates used to assess stocking levels on farms.

Returns from factories for the first six months of this year has shown a significant reversal, with all categories showing a substantial increase in average carcass weight.

This follows a slight increase in average carcass weight for bullocks, heifers and cows during 2004.

For the period Jan-June 2005, compared to the same period in 2004, young bulls have shown the biggest increase at 11%, adding 34kg to the average carcass. Bullock weights are 17kg higher, an increase of more than 5%. Heifers are up 5.5% adding an average of 15 kg, and cows slaughtered increased in weight by 13kg, or 4.4%.

Average carcass weight for bullocks was 348kg, with heifers at 286kg and young bulls weighing in at an average of 346kg. The average for cull cows was 308kg.

The heavier carcasses have partly offset the decline of 6% in the number of animals slaughtered compared to the same time last year.

There has been a similar pattern in the beef trade in Northern Ireland.

The average weight at slaughter for bullocks increased by 15kg, young bulls increased by 25kg, and there was an increase of 5kg in heifer weights.