IFA National Livestock Chairman Angus Woods said cattle prices continue to rise this week with the base price for steers moving up to as high as €4.20/kg and tops of €4.30/kg for heifers.
He said the general run of prices is €4.15/4.25/kg but as factories are very anxious to get tighter supplies more and more feeders are doing deals at the higher base price levels.
Angus Woods said the strong market demand is also reflected in higher cow prices with P and O grade cows making €3.50/kg and R grades up to 3.80/kg. Top U grade cows are on €3.90/kg. In addition he said R and U grade bulls are making €4.20/kg with better prices for all U grades.
The IFA livestock leader said with the kill dropping back to 31,226, prices are continuing to rise. In addition he said cattle prices in the UK are maintaining their upward movement with further increase in the last week. The R3 steer price in the UK for week ended May 5th was £3.74/kg equivalent to €4.47/kg. Angus Woods said demand for beef remains very strong across the UK and EU markets.
Live Exports
Angus Woods said it is very positive that another boat load of heavier bulls is leaving Ireland this week for Turkey. He said this solid trade to Turkey is encouraging. In addition, he said some exporters are starting to put cattle on quarantine to be ready for private contract purchases.
To date this year, live exports are up 18% to over 120,000 head, of which over 100,000 head are calves. In addition, some 6,500 cattle have been exported to Turkey.
