Beef Update
IFA Livestock Chair Declan Hanrahan said beef prices remain strong on the back of tight supplies and strong market demand. He said the total weekly kill has fallen for the fourth consecutive week in a row indicating the tightening of supplies on the market. He said mart throughput for forward store and finished cattle also remains tight and factories are struggling to secure suitable numbers of cattle to fill weekly kills. The live export trade is also adding important competition to the trade as store and finished cattle exports are up 29% and 34% from the same period in 2024. Declan Hanrahan said factories are quoting prices from €7.40kg to €7.60kg for steers and €7.50kg to €7.70kg for heifers but are having to pay up to 20c/kg above quotes in cases to secure cattle and close out deals. He said cattle supplies are projected to be back 7% in Q2 with overall throughput back 5% in 2025. Indications are cattle supplies are going to remain tight in the coming weeks and months, a similar trend across the EU and factories must continue to return strong prices to farmers that reflects current market conditions he said.
Beef Price Update 08/05/2025
Base Steer €7.40/7.60kg. Heifers €7.50/7.70kg. Higher deals and flat prices for larger and specialist lots. Y Bulls R/U €7.40/7.80Kg. Cows €6.50/7.40kg.
Supply Figures as Reported by DAFM – WK 17 (04.05.2025)
| Animal | Number | Change prev wk | % of total | YTD | YTD Change |
| Y Bulls | 1,779 | ▲178 | 5% | 42,723 | ▼-592 |
| Bull | 540 | ▼-15 | 2% | 8,355 | ▼-291 |
| Steer | 12,488 | ▼-473 | 39% | 232,811 | ▲12,130 |
| Cow | 7,226 | ▼-428 | 22% | 145,011 | ▼-8,739 |
| Heifer | 10,279 | ▼-65 | 32% | 207,587 | ▲23,044 |
| Veal-V | 49 | ▼-10 | 0% | 2,377 | ▼-15,201 |
| Veal-Z | 43 | ▲10 | 0% | 1,310 | ▲408 |
| Total | 32,404 | ▼-803 | 100% | 640,174 | ▲3,665 |
Official Irish Prices as Reported by DAFM – WK 18 (04.05.2025)
| c/kg (Incl. VAT) | U3 | Change prev wk | R3 | Change prev wk | O3 | Change prev wk | P+3 | Change prev wk |
| Steers | 797 | ▼-5 | 790 | ▼-5 | 782 | ▼-7 | 745 | ▼-9 |
| Heifers | 805 | ▼-7 | 792 | ▼-5 | 784 | ▼-6 | 735 | ▼-9 |
| Y Bulls | 787 | ▼-9 | 769 | ▼-12 | 744 | ▼-16 | 742 | ▼-9 |
| Cows | 0 | ▲0 | 732 | ▼-9 | 687 | ▼-13 | 669 | ▼-12 |
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 |
| 26/04/2025 | 708.9 | 712.1 | 706.3 | 712.2 | 698.9 | 690.4 | 557.1 |
| 02/05/2025 | 709.8 | 713.3 | 707.0 | 712.8 | 698.5 | 699.7 | 562.5 |
| Change | ▲1 | ▲1 | ▲4 | ▲1 | ▼-0 | ▲9 | ▲5 |
| Price in c/kg (Incl VAT) | 892.3 | 896.7 | 888.8 | 896.1 | 878.1 | 879.6 | 707.1 |
Euro Price for the Most Recent Week (€/KG Deadweight excl. VAT)
| Country & Type | 2022 | 2023 | 19.04.2025 |
| EU + Y Bulls | not available | not available | € 6.51 |
| IE + Steers | not available | not available | € 7.53 |
| UK + Steers | not available | not available | € 8.23 |
Live Cattle Exports 21st April
Sheep Update
IFA Sheep Chairman Adrian Gallagher said supplies of suitably finished lamb are tight on the ground as weekly hogget throughput continues to fall. Total hogget throughput is back 16% to date with overall throughput back just over 148,000 head in 2025. Sheep meat produced across the EU and UK is also down this year and factories must stand firm and maximise returns from the marketplace. He said factories are offering deals from €8.50kg to €8.90kg for hoggets this week. The limited number of spring lamb coming to market are making from €9.20kg to €9.50kg with higher deals for groups and larger lots. Cull ewes are making from €5.50kg to €5.80kg. Adrian Gallaher said farmers should sell hard and be mindful of the mart outlet where prices remain very competitive to what factories are offering.
Lamb Price Update 08/05/2025
Hoggets €8.50kg/8.90kg. Spring lambs €9.20kg to €9.50kg. Higher deals groups/larger lots. Ewes €5.50/5.80/kg.
Supply Figures as Reported by DAFM – WK 18 (04.05.2025)
| Animal | Figure | Change | YTD | YTD Change |
| Lambs/Hoggets | 31,725 | ▲3,134 | 645,807 | ▼-124,054 |
| Spring Lambs | 5,605 | ▲3,629 | 28,858 | ▲4,776 |
| Ewes and Rams | 3,522 | ▲1,208 | 55,671 | ▼-29,102 |
| Light Lambs | 5 | ▲5 | 71 | ▲12 |
| TOTAL | 40,857 | ▲7,976 | 730,407 | ▼-148,368 |
Official Irish Prices as Reported by DAFM – WK 18 (04.05.2025)
| c/kg (Incl. VAT) | This week | Change prev. wk | 2024 | Change prev. yr |
| National Avg Price | 870.31 | ▲7 | 917.98 | ▼-48 |
| YTD Avg | 878.31 | ▼-1 | 781.05 | ▲97 |
Official GB Prices as Reported by AHDB
| R3L | Overall SQQ* | Type of lamb | |
| 26/04/2025 | 699.0 | 686.1 | New season Lamb |
| 03/05/2025 | 696.8 | 686.2 | New season Lamb |
| Change | ▼-2 | ▲0 | |
| Price in c/kg (Incl VAT) | 855.6 | 842.6 | 1 |
Live Sheep Exports 2025
