Livestock and meat Commission (LMC) chief executive, Colin Smith has confirmed that the outlook for beef prices will remain strong throughout 2025.
He spoke at a recent beef and sheep webinar hosted by the Ulster Farmers’ Union (UFU) and the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE).
According to the LMC representative, a fall-off in finishing cattle numbers over the next 12 months will be the main factor, driving this market sentiment.
Significantly, he also confirmed that the trend is equally relevant in Ireland, the UK, the European Union and North America.
Currently 485,000 cattle are slaughtered in Northern Ireland on an annual basis.
“The vast bulk of this output, 80%, is destined for the UK, both Northern Ireland and Great Britain.
“The remaining 20% is sold on the European market. In Great Britain the target market is the high value retail and food service sector, commanding those high prices that we see relative to Europe.
“The EU market and those outlets that are further afield provide a critically important carcase balancing function,” he said.
Beef prices
Specification is a critically important aspect of all food markets.
He continued: “Where beef is concerned, this includes age at slaughter, carcase weight, grade, origin, residencies and the like.
“Larger carcases pose challenges for retailers in Great Britain. With price increases for consumers, we need to make sure that we are hitting a certain price point in pack, and those larger cuts of beef can be challenging in this regard.”
Prime cattle numbers are up 8% in Northern Ireland: 2024 vs. 2023. Where cows are concerned, the equivalent figure is +5%.
“We are seeing a combination of strong prices and equally strong beef supplies at the present time. Prime carcase weights in Northern Ireland have remained constant in both 2023 and 2024 at 329kg.
“Where cow weights are concerned, cow carcase weights have reduced by 2kg over the past 12 months. Strong prices have predominated during the second half of 2024,” he explained.
But it’s tightening supplies of cattle that will be the key driver for beef prices in 2025, and these numbers have already been accounted for, in terms of future market trends.
Allied to this, beef consumption trends are rebounding positively throughout the UK and Europe, particularly with young consumers.
Surveys are confirming that red meat is increasingly regarded as an important component of a healthy diet within all age profiles.
