Cattle prices steady at Kilkenny Mart as beef price slide halts
At Ireland's Kilkenny Mart weekly livestock sale, cattle prices steadied as the fall in factory beef quotes stopped. Heavy bullocks averaged €3.55/kg.
Cattle prices stabilised at the weekly sale at Kilkenny Mart, a livestock market in Co. Kilkenny in south-east Ireland, on Thursday, 12 November, after weeks of weaker trade. Buyers were more confident about beef prices because the slide in factory beef quotes (the prices meat processors offer) has halted in recent weeks, according to auctioneer George Candler.
Bullocks
A total of 830 animals went on sale. Candler said trade overall was sharper, particularly for quality continental-breed lots, which ranged from €4.15/kg to €5.40/kg.
Heavy beef cattle above 600kg averaged €3.55/kg, or €2,442 per head. Lighter bullocks under 400kg were also in strong demand, averaging €3.95/kg.
Sample prices included:
- a Hereford bullock (840kg): €3,060, or €3.64/kg;
- two Friesian bullocks (average 660kg): €2,200 each, or €3.33/kg;
- two Charolais bullocks (average 580kg): €2,580 each, or €4.45/kg;
- an Angus bullock (520kg): €2,000, or €3.85/kg.
Cows and heifers
The mart also held a sale of cows and heifers on Tuesday, 10 November, where buyer activity increased as beef prices firmed. There were 105 cull cows on offer. Friesian cows sold for between €1.75/kg and €2.80/kg, while continental and Hereford cull cows required up to €4.00/kg.
Beef cattle averaged €3.60/kg, with a top price of €3,100 paid for an Angus cow weighing 870kg. Two Charolais heifers (705kg) sold for €2,420, or €3.43/kg; six Hereford heifers (average 620kg) made €2,160 each, or €3.48/kg; and a Limousin heifer (570kg) sold for €2,240, or €3.93/kg.
Store heifers remained in demand, with €4.20/kg paid for forward-type Limousin heifers weighing 495kg. In contrast to other weeks, plainer cattle tended to sell more briskly and more easily, Candler said.
