Factories have moved this week to take the heat out of the sheep trade and quell recent upward momentum. Base quotes have been reduced by 10c/kg to 20c/kg, with agents given the instruction to hold firm in their stance and also given less leeway to compete in mart sales.
Factories have moved this week to take the heat out of the sheep trade and quell recent upward momentum.
Base quotes have been reduced by 10c/kg to 20c/kg, with agents given the instruction to hold firm in their stance and also given less leeway to compete in mart sales.
Ballon Meats is the exception, with its all-in quote of €9/kg remaining unchanged on last week.
The two Irish Country Meats (ICM) plants in Camolin and Navan reduced their base quote by 10c/kg to €8.90 plus their 20c/kg quality assurance (QA) payment, while other plants have reduced their quote by 15c/kg to 20c/kg.
Kildare Chilling is quoting a base of €8.90/kg plus 10c/kg QA payment and this is reported to be in line with plants not officially quoting.
Factories remain relatively keen for sheep, despite talk of reduced kill days. The reality is that plants may be operating on fewer days, but the kill is at such a low level there is plenty of scope to manage throughput.
Reduced demand in key export markets and price resistance is being blamed for the pressure on the trade.
A number of factory procurement officials comment that the middle to end of January is frequently a challenging time for sales, with consumer spending stretched after Christmas.
Numbers remain very tight and this is reflected in last week’s kill figure of 40,404 head. This is 11,652, or 22%, lower than the corresponding week in 2024, which in itself was significantly lower than in 2023.
Year-to-date throughput is running at just 110,678 head, equating to a fall of 45,000, or 29%, after just three weeks.
Hogget and ewe throughput are both under pressure, with just 3,536 ewes and rams killed last week.
This is despite the recent jump of 50c/kg in cull ewe quotes.
Top prices remain upwards of €5/kg, with Ballon Meats and the two ICM plants both quoting €5/kg, while Kildare Chilling is quoting €4.90/kg plus 10c/kg QA for standard ewes and €5.20/kg for U2/U3 and R3 grading ewes.
Ewes less than 25kg carcase weight are quoted at €4.40/kg.
Northern Ireland
The trade is Northern Ireland has also followed a similar pattern this week, with base quotes pulled by 10p/kg and falling below the £7/kg mark at £6.90/kg (€8.17/kg).
There are only small numbers of hoggets moving at this level, with the majority of sellers continuing to secure returns of £7/kg and regular sellers and groups securing 10p/kg to 20p/kg above quotes.
The number of sheep exported south for direct slaughter in plants in Ireland was recorded at 6,840 head in the first week of the year, with no data released yet for last week.
Reports indicate figures are at least equivalent, with some reports of less activity from agents purchasing sheep for live export to Britain and further afield.
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