Irish Beef Farmers, Caught in a Trap?

Irish Beef farmers in the midlands have told Irish Nuntii that the hyper inflated price of beef in Ireland over the last few years, and especially over the last few months, has never been heard tell of in this country before. 

Since the start of 2025 alone, factory quotes for finished beef cattle in Ireland have increased by over €1/kg, with prices continuing to rise and even talks of beef hitting €8 a kilo in the near future. Throughout living memory, farmers would have been familiar with beef prices fluctuating daily or weekly by generally 3 to 5 cents in either direction, but the levels at which they are surging these days, are absolutely unparalleled. This is not just an Irish phenomenon, and prices have skyrocketed at an increase of over 100% across the EU over the last few years.

There are several interconnected factors which may be causing the price of beef, particularly here in Ireland, to surge, with the main one being the declining cattle numbers in the country which has subsequently created a tighter supply and bigger demand for beef cattle. 

The declining herd is said to be attributed to a number of factors including an increase in live exports which according to the Department of Agriculture were running at 31% higher for the first seven weeks of 2025 than they did in 2024. Other factors include increased UK imports of beef from Ireland, increased cow slaughtering's,  fewer suckler farmers, escalating costs, ludicrous green environmental policies, diminished subsidies, expensive feed costs, higher labour costs, and souring energy, fuel and transportation costs. The decrease in the cattle herd may also be attributed to the rising levels of bovine tuberculosis in Ireland in recent years.

The scarcity of livestock has driven the prices of beef up to record highs not just in the Irish cattle marts, but simultaneously in the meat processing factories. Unfortunately though for the farmers, despite the factories  paying out these astronomical prices to them, due to huge input costs, squeezed profit margins and high interest overdraft repayments, most farmer's won't necessarily financially prosper from this oddity. In fact, they could actually be smack bang in a situation where they're exposing themselves to even more debt. 

If for any number of possibilities, such as a foot & mouth breakout, or  the repercussions of the impending EU-Mercosur agreement, it mightn’t be long before Irish beef prices plummet, causing plenty of farmers to potentially find themselves in big trouble.

If prices were to drop significantly, farmers would face huge financial losses when they go to sell their cattle in the coming seasons. Unless they're stuck together with money of course. Regardless, take for example a farmer who buys a yearling for €2,000 today, well, if prices return back to say even, €5 a kilo in 12 to 18 months, then, he’d be lucky to get his €2,000 back that he paid for the animal in the first place. He wouldn’t even break even and could potentially find himself bankrupt, especially if he had bought, outside of his means, a significant amount of  €2,000 yearlings during the “beef boom”. 

Some people might argue that farmers don’t have to be buying cattle at these extraordinarily high prices, but in order for the farmers to qualify for yearly farming payments and stay in existence, their minimum stocking requirements must be met. 

One local beef farmer in the midlands told the Irish Nuntii “It’s almost like the perfect storm is brewing where farmers could find themselves in an awful dangerous situation financially, in the near future”. He said “It's nearly like the housing situation where there's this paranoia or anticipation that the cattle are just going to keep getting more and more expensive so they just keep buying and buying and hoping for the best”. He also said “more than likely some of them are cleverer than they’re given credit for, and it could be a reflection of the lack of faith farmers have in the value money holds these days. Perhaps they'd rather have tangible assets like cattle in the field rather than funny money depreciating in value in the banks. That could be a big motivation too”.

While retail prices for beef in the supermarkets are somewhat higher than they were a year ago, the rate of increase has been relatively low and has not yet been fully passed on to the consumer. This discrepancy between rising farmgate prices and slower increases in retail prices may be due to a lag associated with contracts that have been done between processors and retail suppliers and it could be that the supermarkets and meat factories are absorbing some of the increased costs.

Whilst the bigger supermarkets may be in a position to absorb these increased costs for the moment, the smaller retail outlets like traditional local butchers, certainly aren’t. This comes as a midlands butcher, Shane Maher Butchers in Moate, Co. Westmeath, announced that he is closing down his business at the end of this month due to the continually rising supplier and utility costs. Mr. Maher told Midlands103 during the week that “it looks like traditional butcher shops like his are on the way out”. 

It could also be the case that the meat factories are already struggling to keep up and pay out these astronomical prices for beef, especially the smaller ones with Troy Meats which is based in Tyrrellspass, Co Westmeath,  being called on to pay farmers what they owe for cattle. 

The Irish Farmers Journal reported on 1st March that three farmers told them about how they're owed over €130,000 between them. One farmer said he is owed €59,000 from the meat processor for cattle that he sent for slaughter back in mid-January.  “I’m still waiting, They won’t answer the phone or tell us when we’ll be paid”. I’ve bills to pay like everyone else. I’m considering speaking to a solicitor on the matter”. Another farmer from the midlands said he is owed almost €30,000 from the company for the cattle he sent there at the end of January and a third farmer reported that he is owed €50,000. 

It was also reported in the Irish Farmers Journal this month that “the livestock chair of the Irish Farmers Association, Declan Hanrahan, advised farmers to be “assured of the terms and conditions of payment for cattle at all factories and to insist on payment on the day of delivery”. Of course, Declan Hanrahan's advice could just be overly airing on the side of caution, however, the truth is, few really knows what's going on behind the scenes and things could all change pretty quick for beef farmers and factories alike. 

A local beef farmer told Irish Nuntii that “while most beef farmers seem to be distracted by the unprecedented prices being paid out for beef today, few seem to be talking about the major risk facing Irish farmers in the coming year or so, which is the consequences of the upcoming EU-Mercosur agreement”. This agreement has the capability to throw the Irish beef industry to the wolves and when implemented, perhaps in the next 12-18 months, would allow for an additional 99,000 tones of beef from Mercosur countries to enter the EU. This deal will effectively dictate that Irish farmers set aside land for nature restoration while importing cheap, lower quality beef from Mercosur countries such as Argentina and Brazil.

It has been predicted that the Irish beef sector would be hit for between €100m and €130m, which would undoubtedly have a severe impact on the beef industry in Ireland, potentially increasing the chances of putting a sizeable amount of Irish farmers and factories out of business. A local farmer told Irish Nunti that “the Germans are willing to sacrifice the farmers of Europe so they can try to save their automotive industry”. 

If enough beef farmers and factories in Ireland were to go bankrupt, the rural areas where many of these plants and farms are located, would be devastated financially, especially if the farmer's didn’t have the means or knowledge to switch to other forms of agriculture, and the reality of it is, most of them wouldn't.  

Such a decline in the indigenous beef industry would suit the climate alarmism cult perfectly and the powers that be would probably celebrate this shift away from livestock beef farming. The rural depopulation and the further erosion of rural communities that would undoubtedly occur if this were to happen, would also suit their agenda ideally.

While a complete collapse of the beef industry is unlikely, the long-term impacts of any sort of a major blow, could decimate a significant part of local economies in Ireland and completely reshape the Irish agricultural and rural landscape, potentially making way for other markets to become established such as lab grown meats and artificial foods.

Let us call on the intercession of St. Isidore, the patron saint of farmers and rural communities, whilst we ask God for His blessings. 

God of all Creation, we give you thanks for those who cultivate the earth, for those who wake before dawn and labor in the fields, for those who care for livestock, for those who plant and tend with care. We pray they know they are appreciated beyond measure.

Too often, we overlook the gift of farmers as we grow ever more distant from the processes that bring food to our tables. We pray that we see and know those who do the planting, tending, and harvesting. They are a community of sowers on whom our survival and flourishing depend.

So for farmers who keep food on the shelves and make plenty a possibility, we give thanks. Guide them and bless them, O God of Abundance.

Amen.