Load of steers is worth €9,000 less this year
Ignoring angry reactions from farmers, processors reduced their official quotes for beef by an average of 5 cents/kg for this week’s trade, as cattle supplies remained strong. The base quote for both steers and heifers this week is 375 cents/kg.
There is very little more to be got for steers by haggling with the factory agents. Some finishers are managing to get a few cents/kg more for better quality heifers. Adding to the woes of finishers, processors are penalising for over 30-month animals and over-weight, which has reduced the price paid for some quality heavy steers to around 350 cents/kg. This equates to a drop of around 1.10/kg compared to 12 motnhs ago, which reduces the farmer’s pay cheque for a heavy carcase by 400-430 per head, or 8,000-9,000 a load of steers.
