Beef price tracker 2

What makes you think that?

A lad with a sh!tload of stores was afraid to sell them in early December. He was predicting a price of 7/ kg. Nothing cures high prices like high prices just like nothing cures low prices than low prices.

It has nothing do with " will the cattle be there", it has all to do with what contracts the processors commit to and at what price. One thing that they cannot control is exports. However they can work the numbers and try to control same.

There will be a concerted effort to pull or to stop price rises in February. Base of 5.6‐5.9, with flats of 6.2-6.4 in late January. Pulling back to 5.3-5.5 base by late Feb with less or non flat pricing. A peak again in late May/ early June of a January base, probably down hill from there on.

It not just Bull beef, will AA be the new bull beef. But bull beef is definitely a risky game. Feeding 1.2-1.5 ton in a low numbers game maybe 10-15 bulls. Paying 400/ ton for a magic mix. Add in risk of an accident or a fight in the shed, a farmer said to me years ago about bulls every time after his herd test he used to loose one or two.

I have 7 finishing 5 bullocks and 2 heifers. They are on a bag of maize@ 320/ ton and a half bag of a beef ration at 340/ ton. They are all tipping 30 months either at one side or the other. They are costing approx 2.5/ day.

It's enough.

Average steer price in the uk is €6.60. Probably €1 more than here. That’s surely what’s driving our prices as 50% of ours ends up there. People are still buying beef at higher prices.
There is greater demand from factories for bulls (heavier carcasses ) than before and I’d hope they don’t want to burn the remaining lads that are still at them.

The question is will lads over pay for the calves in the spring due to tge flat pricing ingredients and the bonus. It's much more than 50-100 per head. Flat pricing is taking AA in particular to a base if 30-50c ahead of the standard and the bonus of 30-40c/ LG is on top of this. Locally I heard of 5.2 base price when AA were 6/ kg flat.

Add a significant base price drop and suddenly its an issue. The finisher/ feedlots may not get caught as there replacement cost will less. However lads selling as stores to then.could see A 400kg AA bullock back at 8-900 euro. As well feedlots and large finishers are doing ad-lib not 3-5kgs and silage.

However as others posted at present numbers are on our side but housewife resistance to beef prices, grain is relatively cheap and white protein will be more competitive a 1600 gram chicken is still only around 5 euro.

The other shock to the system.is resturants and fast food outlet are promoting AA and HE burgers and steaks. There is significant resistance building to food service prices.

High prices cure high prices. I be watching my costs not going out leasing expensive machinery, jeeps or trailers to defray tax bills. It was spending rapid expansion caught the dairy boys. Sone are claiming that variable costs are 35c/l and higher where a few years ago they wanted to include a labour cost to hide there profits.

If bluetougue arrives here this summer what way will it effect the beef job?

Nothing cures high prices like an outbreak of something…and I wouldn't put it past them

When beef drops 50 cent I have no doubt the pint will drop in tandem………😀

With the price of beef in the UK and the export market open everything is in the producers favour. Keeping blue tongue out is a key….and you would have limited faith in the dept/government to ensure it.

As farmers is there anything we can do to prevent is? Keep dosing for tics I assume is the main one

Imo ABP grading has gone downhill since early summer. Cattle are back at least a grade

NNearest Dawn plan is Charleville, it slaughters for the McDonalds contract. I be afraid to send a friesan in there as all the fore quarters are minced.

Generally the ABP plant locally was OK. I am putting some of the poorer grading down to the lower weight this year. However not all.of it. However I got no bounce of the ball with them this year, a Hereford in tge last load was an O- he was fierce long and FS3= no way a O-. Coloured cattle and heifers grading O= that shoukd have been + IMO.

FR heifers grading O-&P that should have beenO-/O+

The full load of fr bullocks all graded os in the independent plant and they were the last in a bundle of 50 I bought. I was getting 50% ps in the abp plants with there fight faster comrades.

I don't think that's the problem. The machines are owned by the factories AFAIK. The machines are only periodically inspected by the Department.

I agree but what if the machines are correct which I suspect they are but they are 'adjusted'.....

That's where having the image of your carcase would help greatly

I hope that are and if you are right then they will deserve kudos. What actions have been taken?

if cattle import to the island was suspended would it guarantee it? (And I know that’s a challenge as it requires whole Ireland agreement).

The Machines are never inspected by DFAM. They send out lads trained as graders to inspect the carcasses AFAIK. However it's impossible for an eye grader to dispute a machine results unless it's significantly out unless he has technical equipment to back his assertion up.

I do know for a while they had a lad that could look at the coding of the machines but he left I think.

I am not sure will imaging help in any way. Imaging can be deceiving. FS are affected by diet, maize makes thefat very white thereby giving lower FS,s whole grass in the diet makes the fat darker which makes the machines think cattle are fatter than they are.

The processors are allowed to change the fat scoring for summer and winter cattle