Pig market: 21/08/2017

Prices reported to IFA

Comment: Chair of the IFA pigs committee Tom Hogan said the Irish pig price remained relatively unchanged this week. Quotes from processors remain settled in the range of €1.64/kg to €1.68c/kg, with the majority of pigs moving into the main export plants at €1.66c/kg. Spot loads of pigs and the smaller domestic abattoirs are buying pigs around €1.70c/kg and up to €1.72c/kg for select lighter pigs. Demand from the Northern Ireland plants for Irish pigs remains strong, despite the weakness of sterling. The vibes across Europe are much more positive in the past 10 days, with all main pig processors more anxious to build stocks of pork and bacon as the new academic year approaches and demand is expected to rise. German prices, which are indicative of the EU average for the past six months, remain stable at €1.70c/kg for the past number of weeks, but a rise is expected in the near future.