Beef market report: Upward beef price trend reversed by processors
This decisive action by the factory bosses has dampened the confidence which had been building in beef production for 2015.
The base price being quoted for steers is 410 cents/kg across the country this week.
Some farmers say they are negotiating for up to 415 cents/kg.
However, getting the extra cents appears to be more the exception than the general rule in the trade this week.
Heifers are being quoted for at a base of 420 cents/kg, and following a pattern of trade very similar to the steers, with a few cents more being secured in hard bargaining for only a minority of this week’s heifers.
So farmers are observing the gap between Irish and UK prices widening again, and even speculating on the possibility that 2015 could follow the 2014 pattern.
With sterling having strengthened against the euro, the R4L-grade steer price in the UK is now at the equivalent of 527 cents/kg (including VAT), and the price gap has extended to about 350/hd for the typical finished animal.
Cow prices at the factories are holding around the same as last week, or slightly stronger for the better quality cows.
The base quote for O/P-grade cows is ranging 330-370 cents/kg, and up to 380-385 cents/kg is being reported for R-grade cows.
While the factory intake last week remained high, at just over 31,300 head, it was around 800 less than the same week in 2014 — falling behind last year for the first time in 2015.
Tighter intake over the coming weeks would help to stabilise the price.
In Britain, beef market demand is reported to be holding steady.
In France, last week’s beef trade was described as steady, with reasonably high volumes of domestic product on the market, especially within the manufacturing sector.
In Italy, demand for most cuts remained slow, with increased competition reported in the market.
