FARMERS were warned yesterday by the Minister for Agriculture that the day of rearing, "elephant sized" bullocks was over.
Mr Yates told beef producers that in future the EU would not accept bullocks over 700 kg live, weight into intervention and they must now concentrate on finishing smaller animals.
The announcement, made at the launch of the Craft Butchers of Ireland, has major implications for the beef trade because 48 per cent of the country's bullocks are over this weight.
He repeated the warning when he opened the RDS Kerrygold Horse Show because of the issue's importance to the industry and for those buying animals for the winter.
"I want to let farmers know now before they go out and buy animals for the winter that this is the scenario they will be facing this autumn," he said.
"We are facing lower carcass weights for intervention this autumn and the message has to be got over loud and clear to those involved in the industry that this is happening," he said.
Mr Yates said he would support the proposal to cut back the upper limit on carcass weight when it came before the meeting of farm ministers later in the year.
Mr Yates said the change in the weight limit may involve switching back to lighter breeds but he saw the reduction in the weight limit as being the least painful way of reducing surplus beef stocks.
The Minister added that it might not be in Ireland's interest to have vast quantities of beef in intervention storage, because its customers for fresh beef were likely to look to Europe's intervention stores next year and buys their beef there at much lower prices.
At the launch of the Craft Butchers of Ireland the president of the Irish Butchers Association, Mr Noel O'Connor, said the consumer price of beef had dropped since the BSE crisis but the Irish market had recovered well.
Sirloin have dropped in price and people are buying beef because it is good value," he said.
Mr O'Connor said the price of stewing meat had dropped to £1.79 from £2.25 and round steak from £2.25 to £1.75.
He said that while there had, been a fall in beef consumption, it had been more than compensated for by the rise in lamb and pork consumption.
He said family butchers had estimated that sales of lamb and pork had increased by 15 per cent and as a result family butchers who could deliver a quality product with a guarantee would not go out of business.
Mr George Herterich, president of the Irish Master Butchers' Federation, whose organisation is amalgamating with Mr O'Connor's, said what was needed now was a promotion of beef by An Bord Bia to reassure consumers of its safety.
"We can give assurances to our customers and we can trace our animal back to the farms because we are at the centre of the trade here in this country," he said.
At the launch of the new organisation, which will formally come into being early next year, An Bord Bia, the food board, announced it has approved a major promotional programme for beef in Ireland.
Mr Paddy Moore of Bord Bia said details of the programme will be announced in early September.