Beef Update
IFA Livestock Chair Declan Hanrahan said attempts by factories to undermine beef prices this week are unnecessary and must stop. He said demand for beef remains strong in our key markets against a backdrop of tighter cattle supplies. Prime cattle and cow throughput is back almost 53,000 head to date. If Bord Bia projections are correct for the remainder of the year we are looking at 35,000 to 40,000 fewer cattle available to factories. He said farmers should resist any attempts by factories to reduce prices. Demand is strong and factories are very anxious for cattle despite the negative propaganda. Prices up to 10c/kg to 15c/kg above quotes are available to sellers. Steers are making from €7.40kg to €7.60kg and heifers €7.50kg to €7.70kg. Cow prices are making from €7.00kg to €7.60kg depending on the grade. Young bulls R and U grades are making from €7.60kg to €7.90kg.
Beef Price Update 29/08/2025
Base Steer €7.540/7.60kg. Heifers €7.50/7.70kg. Higher deals for larger and specialist lots. Y Bulls R/U €7.60/7.90Kg. Cows €7.00/7.60kg.
Supply Figures as Reported by DAFM – WK 31 (31.08.2025)
| Animal | Number | Change prev wk | % of total | YTD | YTD Change |
| Y Bulls | 1110 | ▼-300 | 4% | 77800 | ▼-1,160 |
| Bull | 456 | ▲15 | 2% | 17084 | ▼-3,332 |
| Steer | 12543 | ▲863 | 47% | 410817 | ▼-16,996 |
| Cow | 5190 | ▼-9 | 19% | 245664 | ▼-42,907 |
| Heifer | 7314 | ▼-185 | 27% | 343707 | ▲11,401 |
| Veal-V | 24 | ▲4 | 0% | 2914 | ▼-17,054 |
| Veal-Z | 12 | ▼-7 | 0% | 1738 | ▲379 |
| Total | 26649 | ▲381 | 100% | 1099724 | ▲3,665 |
Official Irish Prices as Reported by DAFM – WK 35 (31.08.2025)
| c/kg (Incl. VAT) | U3 | Change prev wk | R3 | Change prev wk | O3 | Change prev wk | P+3 | Change prev wk |
| Steers | 802 | ▼-1 | 795 | ▼-2 | 788 | ▼-4 | 754 | ▼-2 |
| Heifers | 813 | ▲1 | 798 | ▼-2 | 792 | ▼-3 | 749 | ▼-3 |
| Y Bulls | 796 | ▲0 | 787 | ▼-2 | 769 | ▼-4 | 759 | ▼-17 |
| Cows | 0 | ▲0 | 758 | ▲5 | 729 | ▲1 | 715 | ▼-1 |
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 |
| 23/08/2025 | 649.9 | 652.5 | 648 | 652.3 | 639.0 | 642.4 | 544.7 |
| 30/08/2025 | 648.7 | 653.3 | 647.6 | 653.6 | 638.5 | 636.2 | 542.4 |
| Change | ▼-1 | ▲1 | ▲0 | ▲1 | ▼-1 | ▼-6 | ▼-2 |
| Price in c/kg (Incl VAT) | 796.5 | 802.2 | 795.2 | 802.6 | 784.0 | 781.2 | 666.0 |
Euro Price for the Most Recent Week (€/KG Deadweight excl. VAT)
| Country & Type | 19.08.2025 | 24.08.2025 | 23.08.2025 |
| EU + Y Bulls | € 4.80 | € 5.13 | € 6.83 |
| IE + Steers | € 4.62 | € 5.05 | € 7.58 |
| UK + Steers | € 5.38 | € 5.90 | € 7.48 |
Live Cattle Exports 25th August
Sheep Update
IFA Sheep Chairman Adrian Gallagher has hit out at factories for further cuts to lamb prices. He said sheep farming is a low-income sector and further cuts to prices is undermining farmers viability and squeezing their margin further. He said supplies of sheep meat produced across the UK and EU are down this year and factories must stand firm and maximise returns in the market place for sheep farmers. Factories are offering prices from €7.80kg to €8.10kg on weights to 22kg this week. Cull ewes are making from €4.60kg to €5.20kg. He said despite factories trying to reduce quotes the availability of lambs is not on the ground which are running 18% behind last year. The IFA Sheep Chair has called on factories to be responsible in their pricing of lambs and return fair prices to farmers that reflect market conditions.
Lamb Price Update 05/09/2025
Spring lambs €7.80/8.10kg. Weights to 22kg. Higher deals groups/larger lots. Ewes €4.60/5.20/kg.
Supply Figures as Reported by DAFM – WK 35 (31.08.2025)
| Animal | Figure | Change | YTD | YTD Change |
| Lambs/Hoggets | 441 | ▲52 | 758416 | ▼-137,510 |
| Spring Lambs | 36798 | ▲279 | 515810 | ▼-112,080 |
| Ewes and Rams | 5437 | ▲484 | 120551 | ▼-55,751 |
| Light Lambs | 0 | ▲0 | 126 | ▲21 |
| TOTAL | 42676 | ▲815 | 1394903 | ▼-305,320 |
Official Irish Prices as Reported by DAFM – WK 35 (31.08.2025)
| c/kg (Incl. VAT) | This week | Change prev. wk | 2024 | Change prev. yr |
| National Avg Price | 761.76 | ▼-7 | 716.71 | ▲45 |
| YTD Avg | 847.95 | ▼-2 | 786.86 | ▲56 |
Official GB Prices as Reported by AHDB
| R3L | Overall SQQ* | Type of lamb | |
| 23/08/2025 | 738.6 | 734.9 | New season Lamb |
| 30/08/2025 | 696.1 | 694.4 | New season Lamb |
| Change | ▼-43 | ▼-41 | |
| Price in c/kg (Incl VAT) | 854.7 | 852.7 | 1 |
Live Sheep Exports 02/07/2025
