Beef prices: 'Control' the word of the week as throughput stays stable

It is not accidental that throughput at the factories continues at almost identical levels week after week.

Stability continues to be the hallmark of trade for finished animals at the factories this week, where little has changed on the base prices for almost two months.

"Not a cent more" is the response that many of the 'hard sellers' are getting for trying their hand at securing the 'extra' in deals for supplies this week.

"It's a lot tougher to get over the quoted price this week, as they (factories) seem to be tightening their hold and showing more determination to resist any increase each week," was the comment doing the rounds in the early days of this week.

Steers are on a base of 700c/kg. Some large suppliers are understood to be securing 705–710c/kg, but they are very much a minority. The base for heifers is 710c/kg, and the same applies to a few getting extra.

Prices above the base appear to be more likely to be secured in the west and north-west of the country than in the southern regions.

The R-grade cows are making 670c/kg and up to 680–685c/kg for some quality lots, while R-grade young bulls are on 730–740c/kg.

On the positive side, there was a quiet sense of relief that another weekend of threats to pull prices had passed without being turned into action, but the vibes are everywhere that 'control' is increasingly the operative word around the intentions of the processors.

It is not accidental that throughput at the factories continues at almost identical levels week after week. The only movement on the base price for almost two months has been the trimming of anything extra over the quoted price.

In the background, a number of the factories are considering, or in the process of, rationalising the scale of their operations to be more in line with the expected lower throughput of cattle for this year.

Analysis from any angle shows that the returns producers got in 2025 are 1,000 to one against being repeated in 2026. Positively, there is a good market for available supplies, which should ensure prices at, or very close to, the current level for the most part.