LMC: EU Beef Prices Drop Back on June Levels
EU - Average R3 grade heifer price for the week ending 21 July was 417.4c/kg, a drop on the previous month of almost 19 c/kg, according to the Livestock and Meat Commission for Northern Ireland.Northern Ireland spent June ranked third in the EU deadwight cattle prices league table, with a price of €438.4 c/kg, write market commentators at the Livestock and Meat Commission.
The league table ranks EU countries in terms of the farmgate price paid for R3 grade heifers and provides a useful comparison on an EU basis.
The R3 heifer price in NI during the week ending 21 July 2013 was 16.6c/kg lower than the 455.0c/kg recorded in the week ending 23 June 2013. Despite this marked drop in the average price paid for R3 heifers between the two weeks tabulated NI actually moved up one position on the league table from fourth position in June to third position in July.
The Livestock and Meat Commission says that in the week ending 23 June 2013 the R3 heifer price in NI was 36.1c/kg higher than the EU average and by the week ending 21 July 2013 this had narrowed to 21c/kg.
Meanwhile in GB the average R3 heifer price for the week ending 21 July 2013 was 459.1c/kg. 7c/kg behind the 466.1c/kg paid during the week ending 23 June 2013. This drop in the average R3 heifer price moved it down from first position in June 2013 to second position in July 2013.
In the week ending 23 June 2013 the R3 heifer price in GB was 47.2c/kg higher than the EU average and in the week ending 21 July 2013 this was reduced to 41.7c/kg. The biggest drop in R3 heifer prices across the EU was in ROI where the average price the week ending 23 June 2013 was 465.3c/kg and this came back by 31.2c/kg to 434.1c/kg in the week ending 21 July 2013.
This marked reduction in the average price paid moved ROI down two places on the league table from second position in the week ending 23 June to fourth position in the week ending 21 July. This movement in R3 heifer prices reduced the positive differential with the EU average from 46.4c/kg in the week ending 23 June 2013 to 16.7c/kg in the week ending 21 July 2013.
With an average R3 heifer price of 466c/kg France recorded the highest average R3 heifer price in the EU in the week ending 21 July 2013. This was an increase of 4c/kg when compared to the week ending 23 June 2013 when the average R3 heifer price was 462c/kg.
TheCattleSite News Desk