Beef price tracker 2

Bass Reeves

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117760574#Comment_117760574

The problem with drystock profitability was it has been equated to intensive high costs systems. Excessive costs are not returned in margin in beef. It is actually a double edged sword. Extra beef produced by excessive ration and fertilizer competes against our natural grass advantage and actually competes against your profitable operation.

Adding costs such as baling paddocks because they are out of rotation and then trying to use this to silage to lengthen rotation a few weeks later is a mugs game. The same with the introduction of ration because growth rates have fallen due to wintering or slower grass growth.

Same with reseeding to hit mythical growth rates of 12-14 ton's of grass/ acre or HA. Increasing output by 20% can double farm workload

Danzy

I've started mob grazing a field, view it as a grass bank, so I can cut down fertilizer.

It's a poor field so this helps yield and allows longer grazing season. They are only in these strips for a day, out no matter what. 35 440kg heifers in to a small patch for 24 hours. This is a 1.5 acre field, they'll. Rotate through the 5 divisions over 6 days. They'll be out for 7 weeks till it reaches height again.

Prior to mob grazing, I wouldn't have put 10 on 4he same ground for a week

Another field is grazed somewhat similar. I let them into it all for 5 days, big cover, they eat plenty, trample a lot.

I'll keep 15 bullocks out on this field, eating strips, with bales, often late in to December.

Before changing the grazing technique in that field, it would be mud early on

Most of the rest of the farm I'd be careful About residuals, top when needed etc , bar paddocks near shed where stock graze a few hours on frosty days, they would go out at 8 am and back 3 hours later and a bale awaiting. They would be heifers, circa 300kg, got 22 days of that last winter.

When grass goes tight, they eat these bits tighter to buy time, avoid too much shaking if possible.

Basically 10% to 15% of the farm is dedicated to shortening winter by a month and if thefresh nice grass is going too quickly as a bank of grass.

Winter costs are savage in beef in relation to the price we get. Beyond a bare necessary level fertilizer and ration costs make no sense and that is getting worse. That might not be good farming as we knew it 20 years ago but it leaves more.

A week off winter is worth more than 2 good weeks in Summer, maybe more.

Farmers are paid cheap beef prices no matter the cost of their system, so the only solution is reduce costs, no matter if you don't like it, cause the price you get is not reflecting the insane and growing price of fertilizer,ration and every single thing.

Just to add, I'm in a high rainfall area and most of the people I know at mob grazing are in higher rainfall areas.

Danzy

Easier to save 2 than make 1 in beef

minerleague

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117763161#Comment_117763161

How do you manage water when mob grazing this field?

Danzy

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117765852#Comment_117765852

A passage goes straight through the Middle of the field so they go to the one trough but along the passage from different gaps. Short walk.

It's just lucky the way the field was laid out.

There is a soft slope to much of the farm so I have put small "dams" in the dyke to raise water a bit and let it free flow down alkathene pipes in to half barrels so a good few paddocks can be fed from either end divided up cartwheel.

morphy87

Steers 4.15 and maybe a little more to be got, he reckons they will hold at that as cattle are very scarce on the ground

Bass Reeves

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117775136#Comment_117775136

In Listowel today finished cattle were making factory prices. Some change in a week. We have gone from cattle making 100-150 less than factory price to making factory price in marts. Did not see Castleisland yesterday.

morphy87

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117778834#Comment_117778834

No I didn’t see castle island but I was talking to another agent last night and he said he was giving 4.20 + 20 cents Angus bonus, trying to pull them back to 4.15 he said but cattle ain’t there he thinks himself, that lad that offered 4.15 I never dealt with before he rang me

I’d say the factories were exspecting bigger numbers last week after the bank holiday but it never materialized, when you see numbers rising in the mart numbers are tight

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117778834#Comment_117778834

Dunedin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117779053#Comment_117779053

Steers and heifers back to 4.15 next week in the midlands. Weather is promised good next week so that’ll take pressure off farmers a bit so it’ll be interesting to see if they do the cattle.

Bass Reeves

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117779053#Comment_117779053

I think they tried to back cattle up. It seems they used a large amount of feedlot lot cattle over the last two weeks to do this so as to force smaller suppliers to prebook cattle in for 10-14 days in advance. This would have allowed them to continually pull prices. But demand is only meeting supply. As well if everyone quotes the same(you need this for a continual price pull) for farmers you might as well go to the local plant unless your cattle will grade better in another plant. This puts plants in certain area's under pressure for stock and may be forcing them to compete at mart level for stock.

Bass Reeves

Watching Gortnalea last night QA finished cattle were making a 4.15/4.2 base or more. HE and AA were making the base, Continentals around 600-630kgs were making 10-20c above it at times.

Non QA cattle were often struggling mailing 50-150 less than factory value. However some fleshy light FR 580-630kgs were making fancy prices as well

Good loser

I got €1,450 per head for 4 bullocks during the week 2 Fr 2 Her 29 months base €4.15.

Best trade all year and unbelievably good for me as a 'bottom feeder'. I had been happy out around €1,300.

Bass Reeves

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117786644#Comment_117786644

Well if you want to give Larry back 600 euro you are more than welcome to.

Good loser

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117786654#Comment_117786654

Larry would have no meas on my €600. Twould hardly fix a puncture on the helicopter.

Besides HE didn't give it to me.

Bass Reeves

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117786664#Comment_117786664

If he didn't some other one if the Larry's did. OH they would have meas in it a right. As my mother use to say mine the penny's the pounds will look after themselves.

Why do you think they are trying to pull use a by 5c/ week because it all adds up. 5c/ kg of a difference on an 330 kg carcases is 16.50. if I average that accross all my Cattle extra in a year it's virtually 1k. To the Larry's of this world ( who control the Irish processing sector) over 1.7 million cattle it's worth 28 million.

Mind the penny's the pounds look after themselves

memorystick

What would be a good flat price for 1/3 AA 1/3 HR and a mix of largely Fr with a few Sm? All QA. Middling cattle but well fed. 4 Kgs of ration since middle of June. All bullocks. 500 to 700kgs. Very mixed bag but fleshy stock.

Bass Reeves

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117786844#Comment_117786844

The Grid but pick your factory and bargain like f@@k

Good loser

The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away! As does the Market.

morphy87

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117786425#Comment_117786425

If cattle have gone up in the Marts it’s hard to see a drop comming this week? All the agents will tell you stock are scarce on the ground

Dunedin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117787351#Comment_117787351

But that’s the **** we’re up against with the factories. All the talk of cattle scarce but they’ve pulled them 3 weeks in a row. Back another 5 cent this week in the midlands.

morphy87

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117787417#Comment_117787417

What price are you been quoted this week coming?

DukeCaboom

Our factory are killing a day less this week and have pushed some of last weeks kill on to this week.

kk.man

See the price of offal has had a good increase in value. The bid guys are creaming it when this happens as retailers/wholesale couldn't care less what the offal value is.

Dunedin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117787433#Comment_117787433

€4.10 bullocks €€4.15 heifers

kk.man

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117788109#Comment_117788109

Total offal is worth 170e I saw it quoted somewhere.. The hide would be a good proportion of that.

morphy87

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117790612#Comment_117790612

Did you let them off at that price? Do you reckon you could squeeze the 4.15 if you put the pressure on? Just seen some photos from Carnew been put up it’s hard to see them cutting them prices in carnew, another poster also said factory cattle have risen in the Marts also

morphy87

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117790720#Comment_117790720

This week will be interesting to see will they cut them again,

Anto_Meath

Planning on sticking my head in to Carnaross tomorrow for a look, it was on fire there for a few weeks, lots of northern lads buying on line but was back €50 - €100 ahead for the two week by what I could see on line.. but it can be a bit hard to judge trade right on line when you are looking at it after the sale.

Dunedin

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117790900#Comment_117790900

No. Have a few which are fit to go but there’s room in them. Weather is promised good and I’ve plenty of grass so going to chance it for a week or too.

Bass Reeves

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117790720#Comment_117790720

First bullock made 140-180 above factory value at 4.15 base, he made the equivalent of a 4.5 base. Second lads. Lighter bullock made 120 above factory price, 4.5/4.6 base depending on if he graded R or O+.

Them prices were hotter for AA than Gortnalea