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Hill lamb finishing budgets completed by Teagasc show potential margins of €25 to €30 per head for lambs purchased now and sold next spring.
Head of sheep programme Michael Gottstein said: “There is scope on many farms to utilise surplus grass and generate a valuable contribution to farm output. Some beef farmers have been forced to house animals earlier due to poor weather and there is a good opportunity in finishing hill lambs.”
Price presssure
The economics of the system are helped by hill lamb prices coming under significant pressure in recent weeks.
The trade for light Scottish Blackface lambs in particular has been difficult, with lambs selling anywhere from €1.15/kg to €1.45/kg.
Hill lambs can achieve very favourable performance during the finishing phase
The greatest potential is where a grazing period can be incorporated into the finishing phase – with the Teagasc budget for 27kg lambs purchased now at a price of €35, grazed for two months and finished intensively indoors for a three-month period, generating a margin of over €30.
This is based on a lamb price at the end of March of €5.30/kg and concentrate cost of €280/t.
Gottstein added that there is also potential for farmers who cannot incorporate a long grazing period, but can utilise additional shed space.
“Hill lambs can achieve very favourable performance during the finishing phase, with cross-bred lambs gaining 250g daily with a 5:1 food conversion efficiency, while Scotch lambs will gain in the region of 200g with a conversion rate of 6.5:1.”
Intensive finishing
The budget for this system starts with a similar cost of €35 for a 27kg lamb, which is then finished intensively indoors over a three-month period.
Lambs are slaughtered at the start of February at a lamb price of €4.90/kg and at a carcase weight of 22.5kg – with the potential to generate a margin of €26.85/head.
Farmers interested in exploring the system can crunch their own figures via the online Teagasc store lamb budget calculator.
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