Factory agents all report their phones being far busier since the end of last week. Torrential rainfall has put an end to the grazing season in parts of the west and northern regions.

While ground conditions were better in the east and south, finishers are in cases now coming under pressure to lighten the pressure on land.

Significant increase

This is seeing a significant increase in the number of cattle coming on to the market at a time when many factories are still working their way through a backlog in supplies which developed during the protests.

The time lag from booking to getting cattle accepted for slaughter varies between plants and animal type, with appetite for cows and bulls said to be still at a low level.

Prices are unchanged, with steers trading on average from a base of €3.45/kg to €3.50/kg. The general run of heifers are trading on a base of €3.55/kg, with a small percentage trading on a base of €3.50/kg, while Liffey Meats is topping the heifer price with its base of €3.60/kg. However, appetite for stock there is said to be sluggish.

Increase in cows

As expected, the change in weather is also starting to bring more cows on to the market, with this evident in cow entries in mart sales.

Dairy farmers in the south and midlands were happy to milk on cows while weather was relatively good, but with ground conditions now worsening, they are reducing grazing intensity and slowly starting to move higher numbers of empty cows.

Cow prices have dipped in some plants by 5c/kg to 10c/kg on their re-opening.

P+3 grading cows range from €2.75/kg to €2.85/kg, while O grading cows range from €2.85/kg to €3.00/kg. R grades are more variable, ranging from €3.00/kg to €3.20/kg.

Sluggish bull demand

With factories working to clear the backlog of bulls with specialist finishers, there is low demand for sellers handling small numbers.

General prices range from €3.40/kg to €3.45/kg for R grades, while U grades range from €3.50/kg to €3.55/kg.

There is also a big variance between carcase weight limits being set, with some plants slower to quote for bulls over 420kg to 430kg, while others are offering more leniency up to 30kg to 50kg higher.

There is a low number of bulls less than 16 months currently coming on stream. It is hard to get a gauge on price due to mixed demand, with the general base price reported ranging from €3.40/kg to €3.45/kg.

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