Des Morrison, the Chairperson of the Irish Creamery Milk Suppliers Association’s (ICMSA) Livestock Committee, has brought attention to what he notes is a “bluntly suspicious” development with regards to variable beef prices – he points out that these either rise or remain stable across Europe, but not in Ireland.
“The average reported Irish R3 steer price as of the 6 August 2022 was €4.81/kg excluding VAT, which was down 42c/kg from the 25 June 6 weeks previously. Over the same period, the EU price for young bulls increased 7c/kg from €4.91/kg to €4.98/kg excluding VAT, whilst the UK steer price remained at €5.22/kg ex VAT. Why is Ireland yet again the exception where our prices fall? Every market we sell into or bear any comparison to has either stable or rising prices, but our factories have cut the price they pay us. Every enquiry and review into our beef sector just comes up against this mystery where our beef prices seem to be deliberately disconnected from everyone else’s and we want to know why?”, he asks.
This is as average Irish prices recorded for R3 prime male cattle in the same period in 2021 was 38c above the European average, “so that the fall year-on-year is even more drastic and mysterious.”
He asserted that, “The very least that Irish beef producers deserve is the EU average price, and Irish processors need to get up to that immediately”.