MORE and more farmers are expressing concern at the narrowing gap between organic and conventional prices.

IRELAND will find it hard to produce enough high quality beef to meet growing overseas demand in the coming years, predicts Bord Bia chief executive Aidan Cotter.

CATTLE supplies for the factories are looking tighter this week, and prices have stabilised at last week’s level, following a drop of 3,000 head in the number of steers.

Marts: Eight factories increased the prices paid for cattle for last week’s kill in a partial reversal of the sharp decline in the return to producers the previous week as the downturn in supplies continued.

Marts: The average price for beef has increased by 5-6c/kg (2p/lb) setting a new record as competition between the processors for stock delivers higher returns to producers on a total kill of 28,099 — incl bullocks at 9,949.

Marts: There was a slight drop in the average price paid for beef by the factories — but the overall change was marginal — for a reduced kill last week.

IRELAND’S €360 million food and drink trade to Italy was mainly driven by a surge in beef exports over the past five years, it was revealed yesterday.

Marts: The upward trend in beef prices has been maintained, but the pace of change has eased to an average gain of 1c/kg, with the price variation between processors for similar stock offering the best opportunity for gains by producers.

Marts: While the upward trend in beef prices has been maintained, the pace of the increase has eased at the factories where average prices improved by 1-2c/kg last week.

Fine Gael will use Dáil time today to raise concerns about the rising unemployment rate – the highest in seven years.

More than 20,000 people have lost their jobs since Employment Minister Michael Martin came to office in 2004, it was claimed today.

Marts: Beef prices continued the upward trend, making gains of 1-3c/kg, while the rate of price increase eased at the factories for last week’s kill.

Marts: Beef prices came under pressure at the factories yesterday — the first sign of attempts by the processors to stall the upward trend of the year to date — with producers resisting cuts.

Marts: Factories paid 5c-7c/kg (2p/lb) more for cattle, under pressure to get sufficient stock last week, as producers held out for higher returns before parting with animals.

Marts: The timing and outcome of inspection of beef-producing farms in Brazil by the EU Food and Veterinary Organisation holds one of the critical keys to the impact of the ban on delivering higher returns to producers in this country.

Marts: Strong demand for a tight supply of cattle set the agenda for a price battle between producers and processors yesterday as trade resumed for the first full week of the new year as producers took control of the trade.

INDEPENDENT Irish hotel group Moran Hotels has agreed terms to buy the Bewleys Hotel chain for an undisclosed sum.

Marts: The supply of bullocks to the factories increased to more than 20,000 head after the processors increased prices by up to 5c/kg (2p/lb) last week.

BEEF prices have dropped by an average of 1c-2c/kg at the factories as the supply of cattle is maintained well above average for August. However, but the actual price paid held 3c-6c/kg (1p-2p/lb) higher than the officially quoted rates by the processors.

Marts: The decline in average beef prices at the factories has almost bottomed out, as the intake of cattle shows the first signs of shrinking but the factories continued to pay a margin of up to 3c/kg (1p/lb) over the official quotes.

Marts: Spring finishers of beef warned the processing industry at a meeting with Meat Industry Ireland last Friday of being left high and dry without spring beef supplies unless prices are improved.

Beef prices have continued the downward trend at the factories with further reductions as supplies exceeded demand at the processors yesterday.

Marts: Beef prices have made further gains to maintain parity with last year for bullocks and edge slightly higher than 2006 for heifers as the recovery of the market continues.

Marts: Stronger prices at the top of the market — for both bullocks and heifers — is the positive side of the factory returns for last week kill which provides ground for optimism by producers that the worst of the recent decline is over.

Marts: As beef prices tightened at the factories for a second week, analysis of factory averages for the first two months of 2007 show smaller factories led the field within a narrow price variation nationally.

As the processors tightened their grips on prices the return on R4L bullocks fell slightly at a number of the plants last week, in an unwelcome signal for producers who increased supply by a further 1,300 head to almost 35,000 head.

Marts: There was no change in mainstream average prices paid by the factories for cattle last week, but minor downward adjustments are showing at the top end of the market, which may be early signs of an indicator of a ceiling on returns being positioned by the processors.

Strong competition among factories for young heifers and cows has boosted prices.

Marts: A strong improvement in the prices being paid by processors for cattle has brought about a good recovery in the supply to the factories.

Marts: Beef prices have fallen 20 cent/kg (7p/lb) over the past four weeks — the largest one-month slide in years — following a drop of 5 cent/kg (2p/lb) in the average paid for R4L grade at the factories last week.

BEEF prices at the factories have come under increasing downward pressure with a further rise in the supply of cattle making the task easier for the processors.

Marts: Kildare Chilling and Kepak (Watergrasshill) increased prices by an average of 1.5p/lb to top the improvements in prices paid for R4L bullocks last week to bring the averages at the individual plants to 109.6p/lb and 108.8p/lb respectively.

Marts: The upward move in the average paid for R4L bullocks continued with a gain of 1c/kg, with a meagre half of 1c/kg gain in the overall average for R4L heifers last week.

HEIFER prices showed further gains at the factories this week, moving ahead of the steers in both demand and price, as intake of the females slipped behind year earlier levels and orders continued strong.