Factory agents are putting out the word that prices are coming under pressure. Agents claim that they are facing tough competition in France from UK suppliers who are using a weaker sterling to their advantage selling lambs.
On the other hand, they are still keen for numbers and are doing deals to hold on to supply. Farmers have been paid €4.70kg to €4.80/kg for quality assured (QA) lambs.
Producer groups have secured up to €4.85/kg in deals for their lambs. A number of farmers have also secured weight limit increases to 22kg to ensure their custom. Farmers are encouraged to shop around to make sure they are securing the best deal available.
Factory quotes are varied for Thursday. Ballon Meats leads with its all-in quote of €4.80/kg, which is steady on last week. Kepak has reduced its quote by 10c to €4.65/kg plus 5c QA bonus. Kildare Chilling has reduced its quote by 5c to a base of €4.65/kg. Irish Country Meats has also reduced its quote by 5c/kg to €4.55/kg. Moyvalley held its all-in quote of €4.60/kg.
The kill figures are holding steady, with the total kill at 68,913 head last week. Of those, 55,758 head were made up of lambs. Numbers are expected to tighten next week as the National Ploughing Championships get under way.
The clean livestock policy continues to be an issue in factories. A number of lambs are being rejected for slaughter because they are showing up as category C. The Department has a three-category system to classify sheep for slaughter. Category A is clean, category B is acceptable and category C means sheep cannot be slaughtered.
According to factory agents, transit is one of the main causes of rejection because lambs’ fleeces are being contaminated with excrement. Agents are asking farmers to fast sheep prior to transit to avoid issues. Another common issue is faecal contamination around tails. Farmers are advised to remove any daggings present prior to slaughter.
Cull ewes
Farmers have secured up to €2.70/kg for ewes, but base quotes have come under pressure this week. Irish Country Meats and Kildare Chilling have dropped their quotes by 10c/kg and 5c/kg to a base of €2.50/kg and €2.55/kg respectively. Ballon Meats lead with their quote of €2.70/kg.
The northern sheep kill is steady at 11,127 lambs and 661 ewes and rams. Northern plants have reduced quotes for Thursday by 5c/kg to £3.85/kg or the equivalent of €4.56/kg at 89p to the euro and including VAT at 5.4%.
The number of sheep imported south for direct slaughter is also steady at 9,135 head, with year-to-date volumes at 281,174 sheep running 28,055 above 2017 levels.