IRELAND expects to export £830 million worth of beef to overseas markets by the end of the year despite the BSE crisis, which has had a severe impact on the most lucrative Irish beef export markets.
However, a report complied by the industry estimates that the value of exports will fall, even though the volume will remain close to last year's totals.
The latest estimate from the trade is that exports of beef to Britain by the end of the year will have fallen in value by £100 million and by nearly £150 million to Continental Europe.
This is being reflected in the falling value of beef as a product and can be most easily seen in figures published recently by the Irish Food Board which show a 28 per cent increase in the number of bullocks slaughtered this year compared with last year.
The figures, published in the board's Market Monitor weekly newsletter, show that so far this year, 745,592 buttocks were slaughtered at meat export premises compared with 580,050 to this date last year.
There was, however, a 13 per cent decrease in the number of heifers slaughtered, with this year's total standing at 254,968 compared to 292,919 in the same period last year.
Overall, however, the meat plants have processed over 9 per cent more animals so far this year compared with 1995. The totals are 1,301,297 for 1996 and 1,191,695 to the same date in 1995.
Live cattle exports fell dramatically by 52.3 per cent over the corresponding periods. By this time in 1995, 329,240 animals had been exported live. To date this year, this has fallen to 156,945.
In hard cash, beef exports to France are expected to drop from £148 million last year to around £80 million, the Italians will take £10 million less from us and the German market is expected to drop from £44 million to just £9 million.
However, there are some positive predictions from the trade, with new markets opening up for Irish beef in Scandinavia, where £36 million worth of beef is expected to be sold by the end of this year.
In addition, the Russian market is set to expand this year, from £140 million worth of Irish imports in 1995 to £260 million in 1996.
The reintroduction of EU intervention will take £100 million worth of Irish beef off the market. This is a new outlet for Irish beef because the system has not been used for some years.