This is a subscriber-only article
The Muslim festival of Eid al-Adha underpinned the largest Irish sheep kill in 2021, with throughput rising by 19,510 to almost 78,000 head.
Demand for the festival also underpinned a sharp increase in activity in Britain.
The Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) reports that sheep slaughterings at British abattoirs were recorded at 268,300.
This represents an increase of 16% on the week before and 14% on the corresponding week in 2020.
Strong floor
The significant increase in demand has helped maintain a strong floor under the trade, with the average standard quality quotation (SQQ) deadweight price for the week ending 17 July recorded at 548.5p or €6.45/kg.
As is the case in Ireland, prices are running significantly ahead of previous years - 69p/kg (81c/kg) above the corresponding period in 2020 and 106p/kg (€1.24/kg) ahead of the five-year average.
Reports indicate that tighter supplies in the market this week and strong demand have edged prices up marginally.
Live trade
This situation is evident in the live trade. AHDB analyst Hannah Clarke reports that for the week ending 21 July, the average new-season lamb (NSL) SQQ liveweight price increased by 9.4p/kg on the previous week to average 260.7p/kg (€3.08/kg).
The increase was driven by tighter supplies, with total lamb throughput at British auction marts of 103,000 head estimated to be 17% lower than the previous week and some 28% lower than the corresponding week in 2020.
Although this figure is inflated due to the fact that the festival took place 10 days later in 2020 and this coincided with peak buying.
Strong market
The strengthening in the trade has persisted beyond Wednesday’s report, with the average NSL SQQ liveweight price recorded on Thursday at 268.6p/kg (€3.16/kg).
A strong market is a positive for producers, as it reflects the strong demand which is currently in the trade and also helps the competitiveness of Irish lamb in key export markets.
SHARING OPTIONS: