Members of the Irish Farmers Association protesting outside Meadow Meats in Rathdowney in County Laois last month.
What is their beef?
We have literally no idea.
But we know a newspaper [The Irish Farmers Journal] that might.
Why are beef farmers protesting?
irish Farmers Journal: The simple answer is they are unhappy with the price being paid to them by beef processing factories.Recent analysis by Teagasc shows that farmers need a base price of at least €4.00/kg to be profitable. In the last week of October, farmers were receiving a base price of €3.65/kg for steers and €3.70/kg to €3.75/kg for heifers from beef factories. This means they are producing animals for slaughter below the cost of production.
When did the beef crisis start?
Beef prices began to slip from above €4 mark in late 2013. The problem became most acutely obvious in January of this year when factories began to impose penalties on carcases that were out of spec.
How does the Irish situation compare with the UK?
The difference between the beef price paid in the Republic of Ireland and the UK has reached a 10-year high.Take for example an R4 steer carcase weighing 360kg. Bord Bia analysis shows the UK farmer is being paid €369, or €1.03/kg more than the Irish farmer.
Why are beef farmers selling “out-of-spec” cattle though?
Factories insist their retail clients want beef animals finished at certain carcase weights so that beef cuts fit neatly into the plastic trays that we are familiar with seeing on supermarket shelves. Generally, price penalties can be imposed on carcases that are considered to be too big, i.e. carcases that weigh over 400kg, and therefore not within specification. The specifications over recent years have not changed. However, whether factories impose price penalties on “out-of-spec” carcases has.
It is clear that once cattle numbers increased, processors used carcase specifications as tools to reduce the prices paid for cattle, simply by adhering more strictly to the specifications and introducing a range of price penalties that were not previously imposed. For example, cattle aged over 30 months were penalised with a lower base price.
In most factories, price penalties of 10c/kg are being imposed, (a lot of price penalties are now being wavered such is the demand – carcase limits of 400kg are now gone to 430kg in some plants while others are not imposing right up to 470kg and even 500kg in places) along with the 12c/kg loss in bonus under Bord Bia’s Quality assurance scheme.
Take for example a 420kg carcase: If price penalties aren’t imposed by the factory (which has been the case largely during 2013), at current prices, €1,533 would be paid to the farmer. If penalties are imposed for that carcase being overweight, then €1,440 is paid to the farmer – a price cut of €93. It came as a big surprise to many farmers earlier this year that factories were imposing penalties for out-of-spec carcases.
What happens next?
The IFA have vowed that they will take more action from next week onwards if beef prices do not begin to rise.Meanwhile, Minister for Agriculture Simon Coveney has convened another “beef forum” meeting involving all stakeholders in the beef sector for November 12. Minister Coveney has said he expects significant progress to be made on the market price and specification issues in advance of this meeting.With prices rising in the UK by 30c/kg in the last few weeks, it will take a similar price rise here to appease farmers.
FIGHT!
More here: Understanding The Beef Crisis (IrishFarmersJournal)
(Eamonn Farrell/Photocall Ireland)
Thanks Maura Fay
Mmm… stakeholders.
Well done.
Rarefied genius!
I suppose beef processors had to find some way of making up the lost profits from putting horsemeat in burgers.
“Explainer”
A stupid word for stupid people who can’t source facts independently.
Spanner
+1
Great summary of the issue. Key point not stated is that most beef farmers spend approx 1.5-2 years rearing cattle. These changes in specification were introduced when the majority of stock are mid cycle or finishing.
Hang on, so the farmers get paid less for the cow being too big?!
So the farmer gets less because it doesn’t fit into those shitty little plastic containers in supermarkets?!
Am i missing something or does more really mean less here?!
No you’re not missing anything. The 400 gm plastic container is king. Slightly off topic, it’s why it’s impossible to buy broad beans i.e. the pods can’t be tray packed.
That’s crazy. I mean i get, but still!
I’m assuming this is a vastly cheaper way than vacuum packing it? Or any other alternate method?
I feel i’m treading into areas where my lack of knowledge is going to end up with a Broadsheet smackdown!
Jus sell it to the local butcher? He doesn’t care how big or small it is, he’ll chop and shop it.
And if you’re one of dozens of farmers who share the same butcher?
If there’s such a large difference in price between the UK & Ireland why aren’t Irish farmers selling to the British market? If theres a difference of 1.03eur per kilo (plus that extra 30 cent?) surely that would make shipping profitable?
I was wondering this. If you can get a better price from another source and the cost of transport is below the price difference then you ship it to where you can get that price. Common market and all that….
Livestock farming is completely outdated in Ireland but neither farmers nor the government want to acknowledge that. Mostly because they can’t comprehend anything that doesn’t comply with what their fathers did or their gandfathers did. Obsessed with breeding they are. There are better uses for land than just farting animals we don’t actually need, or it seems, want.
Tell more of these “better uses”.
Given they claim they’re making a loss almost anything. Crops, forestry, growing wind farms.
Wind farms!
Wind farms!
“In most factories, price penalties of 10c/kg are being imposed, … along with the 12c/kg loss in bonus under Bord Bia’s Quality assurance scheme.”
Just a second. Do I read that right? Bord Bia is also penalising farmers for not producing animals which fit neatly into the industry standard plastic tray?
Stupid questions alert !
Why don’t they export and sell to the British plants that are paying more ? Then Organise a mass boycott of the Irish plants till they match British prices ?
I believe there are restrictions on moving cattle
Would that not violate the idea of the common market or is it a foot and mouth thing? Or just some archaic leftover protectionism thing that hasn’t been gutted yet?
prices are up 20% over the last 5 years. there are too many unprofitable small farms in Ireland.
Jasus! the economy must be improving if the farmers are back moaning again. They stayed nice and quiet when they getting paid by the government to do nothing during the recession. Now that things are (hopefully) on the up and up, we can expect to see them complaining every week about sheep, milk, crops, pork etc.. Acting the hard working heroes even though the actual work is being done by the eastern European workers and illegal Brazilian slaughter men scamming the student/tourist visa for minimum wage (with room and board taken off).