Winter finishing needs 'strong price commitments' from factories

Edmund Graham, beef chairman of the Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers’ Association, has also urged farmers to demand more for beef cattle as supplies are scarce.

Input costs have been a "huge challenge" for beef farmers this year.

Farmers "can’t take on risks and costs" of winter finishing without “strong price commitments" from factories, farm organisations have warned.

Irish Farmers’ Association livestock chairman Brendan Golden has said that so far this year the market has been “returning a pretty good price, and that’s very positive” and that there is room for stronger returns for farmers.