Premium beef prices remain steady despite cattle backlog

Saleyard prices for cattle have plummeted to crisis levels but consumers will pay no less for their favourite cuts of beef, say meat industry groups.

Cattle farmers in north-eastern Australia are struggling with hundreds of thousands of excess livestock, caused by the high dollar and a downturn in exports to Indonesia, that has resulted in the animals' worth plummeting.

While an ideal price for a steer is $500, desperate cattle owners were selling drought-affected cattle for as low as $20 a head, or 10¢ a kilogram last week in Queensland.

Overseas buyers are in a frenzy snapping up bargain cattle. A record 308,000 tonnes of beef was exported between January and April, but the chief economist at Meat and Livestock Australia, Tim McRae, said domestic retail prices would remain stagnant.

"There is a backlog of beef in the Australian market, so price changes won't be happening," he said. "Also, the consumers want good quality beef, a different standard to the cattle bred for export."

Dean Smith, a meat trader at wholesaler Murray Valley, said if any price changes occurred it would be limited to lower quality beef. "In Sydney, the bottom end of the market is softening but the top-level, premium end will remain firm,'' he said.

Joe Drago, owner of AC Butchery in Leichhardt, said prices of his ''better cuts of good quality'' beef would remain stable.

''I have noticed more wholesalers ringing up in the last couple of weeks asking if we want an order. They must have a lot of stock,'' he said.

Regular customer Siobhan Clarke, a mother of two from Croydon, said she preferred to see consistent prices.

''But I hope farmers can benefit from that - supporting them well through the good years to help them when it gets really tough,'' she said.

Colin Garrent, owner of an Illawong butchery, said he had paid similar amounts for wholesale meats for the past six months.

"If there is a problem it would affect the budget butchers first and make its way up to higher end butchers," he said.