A new app launched by the Department of Agriculture provides detailed information on factory prices for use on mobile devices. The Minister for Agriculture Simon Coveney T.D has launched the new “Beef PriceWatch” App. The application, developed by his Department for smartphones, tablet computers and other mobile devices, will provide users with up-to-date information on the average price paid for animals in 24 of the DAFM approved meat factories throughout the country.
The App is Available At: https://publicapps.agriculture.gov.ie.bpw
Speaking at the launch of the app, Minister Coveney said “I’m very pleased to make the new PriceWatch App available free of charge to Irish beef producers and the wider sector. This App takes much of the existing price information already available and makes it more user-friendly.”
“Now, at the click of a button, farmers can immediately see the prices paid for different categories of cattle in their factory of choice for the most recent week. This information on prevailing price trends means that Ireland is now one of the most transparent EU Member States when it comes to providing accessible information on prevailing price trends”.
The development of this App was one of the key commitments the Minister made arising from the Beef Roundtable discussions that he chaired during the year. “Of course, it is only one small piece in the jigsaw, but I’m convinced that the added transparency provided through the App will be welcomed by everyone in the sector. As in any business, beef producers need access to current data on market developments and the App will be the conduit for this information. Today’s announcement marks another milestone in the list of commitments arising from the Beef Roundtable”.
Carcase Grades
The “Beef PriceWatch App” provides, each week, the average price at national and individual factory level for Steers, Heifers, Cows, and Young and Old Bulls. It presents beef producers with a comparison for a representative group of animals in each category, such as the average R3 price for Steers and Heifers, and the average U3 price for Young Bulls. Behind these representative prices, the user is one click away from detailed information, at factory level, for prices across the entire 15 x 15 beef carcass classification grid.
Minister Coveney explained that “the app essentially gives farmers access to data across 225 different carcase grades, and shows the prices paid for all of the different grades slaughtered in each factory, each week. The information for the previous week will be updated on the App every Wednesday night”.
Meat Factories
Acknowledging the meat factories’ role in making this information available, the Minister added “I am particularly pleased that, for the first time, we are now in a position to report detailed information on the price paid for young bulls at each of the different factories. The production of young bulls, which would not have been traditional practice in Ireland, has experienced some difficulties in recent times. This additional information will go a long way to improving transparency for those farmers operating young bull production systems”.
(Source – Irish Farmers Journal – Maura Fay – 13/10/2014)