The processing sector at present reminds me of the current German soccer team. After losing narrowly to World Champions France, they very quietly went up several gears on Saturday night as they dispatched reigning European Champions Portugal with cool efficiency. No fuss, no commotion, just efficiency.
hose managing the factory trade have in recent weeks also been efficient as they go about their business. With their heads buried in their order books, they continue to rule the supply of information in relation to how their end of the trade is performing with a shrewd economy.
There is no talk of beef being too dear, no talk of supplies being too big or too small, and no talk of the concessions being given on price, age, movements or weights. All that matters is that the supply keeps coming. This has meant that every five cents increase in base prices to suppliers is hard-fought.
This saw base prices for bullocks harden to around €4.15-4.20/kg last week, with heifers moving firmly to €4.25/kg. With factory demand continuing very strong, the market for those selling has broadened, with most sellers of finished stock now faced with three choices. The first is whether you take a grid base price, the second is, can you get a flat price from your agent, and the third is, do you bring your cattle to your local mart?
Having gone off the radar a few weeks ago, last week saw Friesian bullocks again reported as being sold flat with prices ranging from €4.10-4.20/kg while quality assured Angus were reported as moving from €4.50-4.60/kg flat. Non-quality assured heifers were also reported to have made from €4.50-4.60/kg flat. On the mart front, beef continues to see local and northern agents knock all the colours of the rainbow out of each other on price as mart managers report prices across the country stronger by €100-150/hd over the last three weeks. All of this puts more pressure on the factories to try to keep their base price someway in line with the reality of what’s happening on the ground.
Moving to the market for cull cows, the range of prices now sees R grades on €3.70-3.80/kg with O grades on €3.45-3.60/kg while your better grade P grade on €3.35-3.45/kg although I’ve had reports that mixed loads of O’s and P’s making €3.60/kg flat. Among the bulls, U grades have moved to €4.30/kg with R’s on €4.20/kg which is also reported to be the base for those bulls under sixteen months.
Data from Bord Bia shows that to the end of May, the live export of cattle to Northern Ireland had almost doubled from the same period in 2020. In 2020 to the end of May, 18,956 cattle were exported from the Republic to the north however, this year, the equivalent figure shows that a total of 36,770 went north. Of that 36,770 figure, 19,327 were classified as “finished” with the balance made up of 4,941 stores, 4,011 weanlings and 8,491 calves. However, data from the north’s Department Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA) shows that only 7,722 cattle from the south went for immediate slaughter. This implies that since the start of the year, 11,605 of those “finished” animals went for further feeding north of the border, with earliest arrivals by now probably gone through the processing system.
