Processors tighten rein on upward price trend
Quoted prices for this week are unchanged — bringing to an end, temporarily at least, the recent week-on-week rising trend which added at least 15c/kg to the base price over the past month.
Actual returns should also have increased in line with the doubling of the Quality Assurance Premium to 12c/kg for qualifying animals.
It is up to farmers to ensure that they are being paid the extra for all animals that meet quality assured criteria.
Quoted base prices for steers at factories for this week range from 430 to 435c/kg (153p-155p/lb).
Farmers say most processors are showing greater determination to ‘freeze’ prices within the quoted range, and it is only the rare, exceptional lot that is making anything extra this week.
The word from around the country is that there is a concerted effort by processors to firmly rein in the upward movement in prices. While a similar policy seems to apply for heifers, the trade for the females is strong, and the increased premium over steer prices has been maintained.
Quoted base prices for heifers are now running at 20-25c/kg ahead of steer prices, with prices being paid generally in the 450-460c/kg range.
Cattle intake increased by about 1,000 last week to 25,470, despite the shorter week, and supply remains ahead of this time last year, which has strengthened the hand of processors to harden their price policy.
Cow prices are a shade stronger this week for the general run, with improvements of up to 10c/kg in the quotes at the lower end of the market. Base prices being quoted for O/P-grade cows are 345-365 c/kg. There is very little change in the market for the heavier, quality cows in the R-grade category, which are generally selling at about 390c/kg, although deals for up to 400c have been reported.
Easter demand boosted the beef trade in the UK last week.
On the Continent, there was very little change to report last week, with trade firm across most of the markets, helped somewhat by on-going tight supply.
