The recent reprieve to factory lamb price pressure was short-lived in most plants.

The two Irish Country Meats plants have cut their base quote by 30c/kg to €6.70/kg plus their 20c/kg quality assurance (QA) payment.

Reports indicate other plants not quoting have also dropped to a similar level.

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This is in sharp contrast to Kildare Chilling which is quoting a base of €7/kg plus 10c/kg QA and Ballon Meats quoting an all-in price of €7.10/kg for Thursday.

This has opened up a 30c/kg differential between prices paid between factories and again is reinforcing the importance of retaining Kildare Chilling in the marketplace.

Price paid to individual sellers range from €6.85/kg to €7.10/kg, with regular sellers and groups trading anywhere from €7.00/kg to €7.15/kg and higher when conformation bonuses are included.

Quotes are running 10c/kg lower to 20c/kg higher than the corresponding week in 2022.

Factories are blaming price pressure in export markets for this week’s cut.

The availability of higher volumes of cheaper New Zealand, Australian and British lamb has been cited by a number of factories, with the consequences of Brexit and recent associated free trade agreements raising growing concerns.

IFA sheep chair Kevin Comiskey said: “Most of the blame for the situation sheep farmers find themselves in rests firmly at the feet of Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue.

“We are seeing our key markets in the UK and in the EU undermined by Brexit trade deals, while the Minister refuses to recognise the impact of Brexit on sheep farms.”

Last week’s sheep kill was recorded at 52,725 head. This includes 43,375 lambs, 1,874 hoggets and 5,473 ewes. Hogget throughput was 150% higher than the corresponding week in 2022, with year-to-date throughput running over 82,000 head higher.

Most plants have finished quoting for hoggets due to low numbers.

The two ICM plants are quoting a base of €5.80/kg plus their 20c/kg QA payment, with €6/kg the general price being paid for in-spec lots. Hoggets falling out of spec are being quoted as low as ewe prices.

The cull ewe trade is unchanged, with quotes ranging from €2.90/kg to €3.00/kg in the larger processing plants, with farmers facing challenges in securing significantly higher prices. Ballon Meats is well ahead with its all-in ewe quote of €3.40/kg.

Northern trade

Factories in Northern Ireland have been struggling to get prices back and have paid £5.70/kg to £5.80/kg (€6.57/kg to €6.69/kg) on Wednesday to secure sales.

This is not stopping them pushing for further cuts, with base quotes for Thursday at £5.60/kg in some plants, the equivalent of €6.45/kg at 86.7p:€1 and excluding VAT. Prices in Britain are £5.90/kg to £6.00/kg this week.