Beef Update
IFA Livestock Chair Declan Hanrahan said there is capacity in the marketplace for higher beef prices. “The Bord Bia Prime Export Benchmark price is 45c/kg above ours and factories must do more to close this gap.” Declan Hanrahan said Irish farmers are producing beef to the highest standards in the world and must be paid for the work we do. “Factories and Bord Bia cannot just sit back and allow Quality Assured Irish beef be devalued in our key export markets by weak selling and increased volumes of cheap southern hemisphere beef that have been given access to our markets,” he said.
The IFA Livestock Chair said factories must stand a lot stronger in the marketplace and return higher prices to farmers. Bord Bia need to start justifying the money farmers pay them to promote our beef against these cheap non-Quality Assured imports in the UK and EU markets. “A gap of 45c/kg with prices in our key markets is not acceptable and must be closed,” he said.
Beef Price Update 07/05/2026
Base Steer €6.60/6.80kg. Heifers €6.70/6.90kg. Higher deals for larger and specialist lots. Y Bulls R/U €6.80/7.10Kg. Cows €6.10/6.70kg.
Supply Figures as Reported by DAFM – WK 18 (03.05.2026)
| Animal | Number | Change prev wk | % of total | YTD | YTD Change |
| Y Bulls | 1,512 | ▲120 | 5% | 42,533 | ▼-190 |
| Bull | 630 | ▲118 | 2% | 7,639 | ▼-716 |
| Steer | 12,289 | ▼-31 | 40% | 205,831 | ▼-26,980 |
| Cow | 6,355 | ▲24 | 21% | 117,156 | ▼-27,855 |
| Heifer | 9,799 | ▼-25 | 32% | 179,156 | ▼-28,431 |
| Veal-V | 41 | ▼-59 | 0% | 482 | ▼-1,895 |
| Veal-Z | 31 | ▼-19 | 0% | 1,859 | ▲549 |
| Total | 30,657 | ▲128 | 100% | 554,656 | ▼-85,518 |
Official Irish Prices as Reported by DAFM – WK 18 (03.05.2026)
| c/kg (Incl. VAT) | U3 | Change prev wk | R3 | Change prev wk | O3 | Change prev wk | P+3 | Change prev wk |
| Steers | 709 | ▼-2 | 700 | ▲1 | 687 | ▲0 | 655 | ▲3 |
| Heifers | 718 | ▼-2 | 706 | ▲1 | 698 | ▲1 | 648 | ▲0 |
| Y Bulls | 703 | ▲3 | 692 | ▲3 | 672 | ▲0 | 656 | ▲5 |
| Cows | 0 | ▲0 | 664 | ▲10 | 622 | ▼-1 | 609 | ▼-3 |
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 |
| 25/04/2026 | 632.6 | 636 | 631.4 | 636.3 | 619.7 | 616.9 | 542.9 |
| 02/05/2026 | 626.4 | 630.1 | 624.2 | 630.9 | 613.4 | 610.1 | 531.7 |
| Change | ▼-6 | ▼-6 | ▲0 | ▼-5 | ▼-6 | ▼-7 | ▼-11 |
| Price in c/kg (Incl VAT) | 769.2 | 773.7 | 766.5 | 774.7 | 753.2 | 749.1 | 652.9 |
Euro Price for the Most Recent Week (€/KG Deadweight excl. VAT)
| Country & Type | 27.04.2024 | 26.04.2025 | 25.04.2026 |
| EU + Y Bulls R3 | € 5.02 | € 6.45 | €6.98 |
| IE + Steers R3 | € 5.21 | € 7.56 | € 6.69 |
| UK + Steers R3 | € 5.70 | € 8.21 | €7.22 |
Sheep Update
IFA Sheep Chairman Adrian Gallagher said despite factories trying to dampen the trade over the past week the reality is supplies are not on the ground and factories are having to pay above quoted prices to secure lambs and hogget’s. He said prices this week for hoggets are making from €9.40kg to €9.70kg with Spring lamb prices ranging from €10.00kg to €10.30kg. Cull ewes are making from €5.30kg to €5.60kg.
He said hogget supplies are drying up on the ground and are back 9% on the same period in 2025. The limited supply of spring lamb coming to market is expected to continue over the coming weeks leaving a shortfall of supplies available for processing. Sheep meat produced across the EU is also down this year and factories must stand firm and maximise returns from the marketplace. Adrian Gallagher said farmers should shop around, consider the mart outlet and sell hard as supplies of sheep remain tight.
Lamb Price Update 07/04/2026
Hoggets €9.40/9.70kg. Weights to 23.5kg. Spring Lamb €10.00/10.30kg. Weights to 21kg. Higher deals groups/larger lots. Ewes €5.30/5.60/kg.
Supply Figures as Reported by DAFM – WK 18 (03.05.2026)
| Animal | Figure | Change | YTD | YTD Change |
| Lambs/Hoggets | 23,375 | ▼-5,165 | 590,423 | ▼-55,384 |
| Spring Lambs | 3,799 | ▲1,353 | 42,663 | ▲13,805 |
| Ewes and Rams | 4,462 | ▼-1,414 | 81,320 | ▲25,649 |
| Light Lambs | 0 | ▲0 | 0 | ▼-71 |
| TOTAL | 31,636 | ▼-5,226 | 714,406 | ▼-16,001 |
Official Irish Prices as Reported by DAFM – WK 18 (03.05.2026)
| c/kg (Incl. VAT) | This week | Change prev. wk | 2025 | Change prev. yr |
| National Avg Price | 926.02 | ▼-9 | 870.31 | ▲56 |
| YTD Avg | 847.95 | ▲7 | 878.31 | ▼-65 |
Official GB Prices as Reported by AHDB
| R3L | Overall SQQ* | Type of lamb | |
| 25/04/2026 | 850.5 | 843.4 | New season Lamb |
| 02/05/2026 | 847.0 | 837.3 | New season Lamb |
| Change | ▼-4 | ▼-6 | |
| Price in c/kg (Incl VAT) | 1040.0 | 1028.1 | 1 |
