Irish Sheep Trade & Prices: Uplift in Base Quotes
Quotes
Base quotes from the major processors have improved this week with €7.30/kg – €7.40 for well finished lambs (+QA bonus) on offer, with tightening lamb numbers contributing to this uplift. The improvements in the trade are also being supported by stable demand from both the domestic and export markets.
Tighter lamb supplies are also a feature in other key lamb producing regions of Europe and the UK with the latest production and forecast figures indicating a contraction in flock sizes and lamb availability for slaughter.
Prices
Last weeks reported deadweight price increased by 8c/kg to €7.31/kg, reflective of the improvement in quoted prices from the major lamb processors in the last few weeks. In the corresponding week in 2023 the reported deadweight price was €6.23/kg. The deadweight trade has also improved across the UK regions.
Reported spring lamb prices in mainland GB were the equivalent of €7.43/kg last week (+5c/kg) while in Northern Ireland there was a notable improvement in the trade to €7.15/kg (+14c/kg). Relatively tight supplies of lamb for slaughter in Northern Ireland combined with competition from the live export trade to both mainland GB and ROI has contributed to this firming in the trade.
Southern Hemisphere prices remain well below European prices however in more recent months there has been a narrowing in the price differential with the EU. The lead time on product shipments and this recent improvement in deadweight prices should impact their competitiveness on EU markets in the short to medium term.
Prices this week slipped slightly and are at €5.01/kg and €4.36/kg for Australia and New Zealand respectively (decreasing by 3c/kg and 1c/kg). Thhhis decline follows on from a 10 week period in which week on week increases were recorded in deadweight prices.
Throughput
There was a notoble decrease in the total sheep kill in DAFM approved plants last week to 49,526 head, compared to 57,499 the same week in 2023. Tighter supplies has been a feature of the 2024 lamb season to date with a smaller lamb crop, a difficult lambing and changeable grass growing conditions all impacting lamb availability for processing.
Total TYD slaughter is down 9% on 2023 to total 2,096,153 head.
