The 2026 Irish beef kill numbers are running over 5,000 head/week below last year's, latest figures from the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM) show.

Just over 175,000 cattle (excluding veal) have been slaughtered at DAFM-approved factories in the first six weeks of this year.

This figure is almost 31,000 head below the same time period of 2025 when just over 206,000 head of cattle had been slaughtered.

The table below outlines the details of cattle supplies in the week ending Sunday, February 8, compared to the same week of last year, and the cumulative kill-to-date this year compared to last year:

As the table above indicates, the cumulative kill-to-date this year has fallen by 30,874 head.

The steer kill has fallen by 10,600 head, the heifer kill has dropped by 9,500 head, and the cow kill has declined by 10,063.

The graph below shows how weekly beef kill numbers have been comparing to last year:

Farmers generally hail tight cattle supplies as positive news for the trade and associate the trend with potential for a beef price increase.

While this may be true in some cases, the trend has become more concerning in recent times with news this year of two separate beef cutting and deboning facilities in the Republic of Ireland announcing potential redundancies.

In addition, in Northern Ireland, a beef retail packing facility confirmed its intention to cease operations with over 300 jobs at risk.

While the supply-demand dynamic is important as far as price is concerned, when supplies drop below a critical threshold, the viability of the facilities that transform beef cattle into saleable meat and deliver money to farmers becomes more at risk.

The decline in beef cattle supplies is a cause for concern and a threat to the viability of many processing facilities across Ireland.