Weaker trade for plain cattle

Marts: Demand in the marts for plain cattle has weakened and prices have eased with lighter weights in particular proving harder to sell, while the quality animals are continuing a good trade.

Purchasers of stores in the marts are showing a greater awareness of the price difference at beef level between the upper and lower grades with the grid scale likely to be more strictly applied for the third and fourth quarters of the year than to date.

The stronger supply of cattle, guaranteed to the factories in the autumn, will make it easier for the processors to apply the grid to payment more strictly, to trigger a difference of 24 cent/kg (over 8.5p/lb) between an R3 and O4H, capable of knocking more than €80/head off the return to the producer.