Leading calf buyer warns current high calf prices 'not adding up'
One of the country's leading buyers of Irish calves has warned that the current prices being paid for calves "is not adding up".
Founder of Wicklow Calf Company, Seamus Scallan, said that farmers killing cattle at the factory at the moment "are losing €300-€400/head on them" in some cases.
He noted that factory beef price offers are in decline and said that he believes Irish base price for beef "is heading towards €6.50/kg".
He said: "When you look at what's happening in the current trade, things are just not adding up.
"Calf prices are up €200-€300/head from peak last year but calf exports are down. They can't sell the [Irish] calves out there [mainland Europe] at the price they're making."
Scallan said that he believes the farmers buying calves in the past 6-8 weeks "have been making a mistake".
Such is the level of calf price increases that "Jersey calves are even worth more than good calves were two years ago," he believes.
"Beef is back by €300/head and the calves are up €200-€300/head so that's between €500-€600 of a difference."
Scallan advised farmers to work out their own costings and said that no farmer knows what price beef will be in 2028.
"The people buying calves now, 70% of them will not buy them in two years time or even in a year when they see the loss they're going to have on this."
The farmers buying the calves at the high prices currently being seen "can't make money", Scallan said.
He added: "Calves have fallen €100-150/head last week and this week."
The Wicklow Calf Company founder said prices "could still come back another €100/head".
He advised farmers buying calves to "do your sums" and said that farmers buying calves at the current high prices "need to come back into reality".
"All the clever fellas didn't buy [calves] this year - they're not going to give these prices because they got burned before and they don't want to get burned again," Scallan said.
