Beef Update
IFA livestock chairman Declan Hanrahan said the proposed €75 suckler cow scheme for this year must be payable on all cows in the herd. He said the arbitrary limit of 40 cows proposed by the Department per farm is not acceptable and must be removed. Declan Harahan said there are a very limited number of farmers with over 40 suckler cows left in country and these farmers cannot be unfairly penalised in this national exchequer scheme as was the case last year. The IFA livestock chairman said including all of the cows on these farms will have minimal impact on the overall costings of the proposed scheme and the Minister for Agriculture Martin Heydon must address this unacceptable penalty on suckler farmers with over 40 cows. Declan Hanrahan said the continuation of the meal feeding and vaccination measures in the scheme is practical, however the proposal to include parasite control measures through Faecal egg counts and silage testing require further consideration both in terms of the costs the proposals will impose on smaller scale farms and options provided. He said it is vital the scheme details are finalised and published at the earliest opportunity to avoid the fiasco of last years scheme where some farmers had their calves long sold before details of the scheme were announced with these farmers through no fault of their own ruled out of the scheme.
Beef Price Update 14/02/2025
Base Steer €6.35/6.45kg. Heifers €6.45/6.55kg. Flat prices €6.80kg to €7.10kg. Higher deals and flat prices for larger and specialist lots. Flat prices €6.60/6.80kg. Y Bulls R/U €6.60/6.80Kg. Cows €5.60/6.30kg.
Supply Figures as Reported by DAFM – WK 07 (16.02.2025)
| Animal | Number | Change prev wk | % of total | YTD | YTD Change |
| Y Bulls | 3,187 | ▲123 | 8% | 22,482 | ▲1,124 |
| Bull | 469 | ▲60 | 1% | 2,315 | ▼-75 |
| Steer | 13,562 | ▲1,825 | 35% | 83,836 | ▲683 |
| Cow | 9,243 | ▲764 | 24% | 56,231 | ▼-7,110 |
| Heifer | 12,694 | ▲1,531 | 32% | 80,638 | ▲6,182 |
| Veal-V | 13 | ▲7 | 0% | 168 | ▼-886 |
| Veal-Z | 115 | ▲45 | 0% | 737 | ▲418 |
| Total | 39,283 | ▼-4,645 | 100% | 246,407 | ▲3,665 |
Official Irish Prices as Reported by DAFM – WK 07 (16.02.2025)
| c/kg (Incl. VAT) | U3 | Change prev wk | R3 | Change prev wk | O3 | Change prev wk | P+3 | Change prev wk |
| Steers | 667 | ▲15 | 662 | ▲15 | 657 | ▲16 | 627 | ▲17 |
| Heifers | 673 | ▲11 | 664 | ▲14 | 662 | ▲15 | 617 | ▲15 |
| Y Bulls | 664 | ▲15 | 654 | ▲14 | 637 | ▲14 | 630 | ▲10 |
| Cows | 0 | ▲0 | 613 | ▲23 | 577 | ▲15 | 561 | ▲12 |
Official GB Prices as Reported by AHDB
| Steers | Steers | Heifers | Heifers | Y bull | Y bull | Cow | |
| p/kg | R3 | R4L | R3 | R4L | R3 | R4L | -O4L |
| 08/02/2025 | 629 | 630.6 | 627.2 | 629.2 | 615.7 | 621.9 | 478.1 |
| 15/02/2025 | 642.0 | 645.2 | 639.1 | 643.1 | 630.1 | 616.1 | 491.8 |
| Change | ▲13 | ▲15 | ▲4 | ▲14 | ▲14 | ▼-6 | ▲14 |
| Price in c/kg (Incl VAT) | 807.1 | 811.1 | 803.4 | 808.5 | 792.1 | 774.5 | 618.3 |
Euro Price for the Most Recent Week (€/KG Deadweight excl. VAT)
| Country & Type | 31.12.2022 | 30.12.2023 | 04.01.2025 |
| EU + Y Bulls | € 5.21 | € 4.97 | € 5.61 |
| IE + Steers | € 5.00 | € 5.03 | € 5.64 |
| UK + Steers | € 5.12 | € 5.64 | € 6.65 |
Live Cattle Exports 10th February
Sheep Update
IFA sheep chair Adrian Gallagher said the proposed €13 ewe scheme for this year is a practical extension of the scheme which ran in 2024 with the addition of foot bathing of sheep to the shearing, BCS, Vaccination and plunge dipping options provided last year. He said in order to draw down the full €13/ewe payment it is proposed farmers select 2 measures from shearing, BCS and vaccination and one measure from foot bathing and plunge dipping. Adrian Gallagher said we see clearly the level of decline in the national flock, a trend that is continuing this year and it is vital this scheme and the establishment of the reference numbers for the scheme maximise participation and the numbers of sheep farmers will be paid on. IFA have called for farmers, similar to last year’s scheme, to be given the higher number of the 2024 census or the average of the previous 3 years with hoggets retained for breeding on the farm included in this years scheme reference number. Adrian Gallagher said with the demand for sheep meat currently there is a real danger hogget’s ordinarily kept for breeding could be sold for meat and this would have very negative long term implications for the sector, by including these replacement hoggets provides an incentive and support for farmers to retain their flocks production levels.
Lamb Price Update 20/02/2025
Lambs €9.00kg/9.30kg. Weights to 24kg. Higher deals groups/larger lots. Ewes €4.90/5.20/kg.
Supply Figures as Reported by DAFM – WK 07 (16.02.2025)
| Animal | Figure | Change | YTD | YTD Change |
| Lambs/Hoggets | 35,485 | ▲2,998 | 218,315 | ▼-86,228 |
| Spring Lambs | 0 | ▲0 | 17,278 | ▲8,707 |
| Ewes and Rams | 4,301 | ▲981 | 22,841 | ▼-12,313 |
| Light Lambs | 3 | ▼-1 | 16 | ▼-2 |
| TOTAL | 39,789 | ▲3,978 | 258,450 | ▼-89,836 |
Official Irish Prices as Reported by DAFM – WK 07 (16.02.2025)
| c/kg (Incl. VAT) | This week | Change prev. wk | 2024 | Change prev. yr |
| National Avg Price | 755.07 | ▲17 | 630.58 | ▲181 |
| YTD Avg | 774.29 | ▲1 | 662.54 | ▲202 |
Official GB Prices as Reported by AHDB
| R3L | Overall SQQ* | Type of lamb | |
| 08/02/2025 | 734.2 | 729.4 | New season Lamb |
| 15/02/2025 | 742.6 | 7369.0 | New season Lamb |
| Change | ▲8 | ▲6,640 | |
| Price in c/kg (Incl VAT) | 911.8 | 9048.4 | 1 |
Live Sheep Exports 2024
