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Agriland
23-05-2025
- Business
- Agriland
Sheep farmers dealt a ‘crippling blow'
The Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers' Association (ICSA) has said that sheep farmers have been dealt 'another crippling blow' this week as factories have cut prices for hoggets, 'slashing a further 50c/kg off the price'. ICSA Sheep chair Willie Shaw said: 'This equates to a drop of over €11 on a typical 23kg carcass – but that is not the full story. 'Compared to this time last year, prices are down by €2/kg and the carcass weight paid has dropped from 24.5kg to 23kg. 'That means farmers are currently receiving just €172.50/hd (23kg x €7.50/kg), compared to €232.75 (24.5kg x €9.50/kg) last year, which is a staggering difference of over €60/hd. 'This kind of wipe-out is nothing short of disastrous. Sheep farmers cannot continue to absorb these kinds of losses while input costs have soared across the board,' he added. The farm organisation has stressed that it is no longer a case of tightening the belt for farmers, but at this stage is a case of not being able to survive, claiming that there is simply no margin left. Shaw said what is making matters worse is that processors are continuing to ramp up imports, compounding the pressure on local producers. 'Based on CSO [Central Statistics Office] figures for January and February of this year, we are looking at total imports rising to over 10,200t for 2025 – that is 600t more than last year, with the bulk of that increase coming in carcass form,' the Sheep chair said. 'It's clear that processors are using carcass imports to make up for shortfalls caused by restrictions on live imports, and in doing so, are keeping a lid on prices and undermining Irish suppliers. 'We need full transparency across the food chain now more than ever, as it is the only way to give farmers a fighting chance. 'We must ensure that the Agri-Food Regulator has all the necessary powers to compel cooperation from processors and retailers and to strip away the smoke and mirrors that allow the big players to hide their margins and spin their import strategies,' he stressed. The ICSA has said that the lack of both price certainty and transparency is 'killing confidence' in the sector. It added that the sheep sector is already struggling to attract a younger generation, and ongoing unfairness in pricing is 'just another nail in the coffin'.
Irish Independent
20-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
Red flag for sheep sector as hogget price falls below beef
The ICM group drop down to €7.80+20c/kg quality assurance for hogget but their quote for spring lamb is unchanged at €9.00+20c/kg QA, with cull ewes continuing at €5.50/kg. Willie Shaw of ICSA said: 'The failure of the shipping trade to get going in the run-up to Eid Al Adha (on June 6) has had a major impact on the trade. 'Hogget numbers in the south and the east have are all but gone and factories are switching over completely to springs.' Considerable numbers of hoggets remain in the north-west but these too will probably have disappeared in two weeks. And they are making over €1.20/kg less than this time last year, when the market was been driven by the shipping trade. Back then hoggets were being quoted at €900-9.10/kg plus bonuses, while factory quotes for bullocks and heifers ranged from €5.05-5.10/kg. 'I have never in my lifetime seen the price for hogget fall below what's being offered for beef,' Mr Shaw said – at an all-in price of €8.00/kg, hogget is 10-20c/kg behind what beef farmers can expect for Angus and Hereford cattle at €8.10-8.20/kg. The ICM quote for spring lamb is only 30-40c/kg behind where the trade was at 12 months ago, while cull ewes are up to €1.50/kg ahead of May 2024. A factory rep explained: 'You will always have a trade for mutton from Muslim population. 'Mutton does not tend to fall apart like lamb and today we can do more with it.' IFA sheep chair Adrian Gallagher added: 'Lamb numbers continue to tighten, with factories needing to dig in for supplies. ADVERTISEMENT 'Total throughput is back 17pc to date and no surge of lambs is expected in the coming weeks 'Supplies are not matching market demand in the run-up to Eid al Adha.' He said factories are offering deals of up to €8.30kg for hoggets and €9.50kg for spring lambs, with cull ewes ranging from €5.50kg to €5.80kg. On the mart front, Eilish Curley's of Ballinasloe said 'trade for all classes of sheep has fallen by €20-25/hd over the last couple of weeks'. This translated into 44kg spring lambs selling from €170-175hd on Thursday. Yesterday's sale in New Ross had 650 sheep presented. Hogget numbers were small, with prices down around €30/hd in two weeks. There was a good trade for lamb, with better Texels at 50.6kg selling to €201/hd. In Raphoe yesterday 43-50kg lambs made €180-200/hd, with 38-43kgs at €150-180/hd and ewe hoggets at €200-278/hd. There is good demand for ewes with lambs at foot, especially where the lambs are strong – prices hit €400/family in both Ballinasloe and Baltinglass last week. Around the marts Ballinasloe mart All classes of sheep have fallen by €20-25/hd over the last couple of weeks. On Thursday 44kg spring lambs made €170-175hd, with 47kgs at €180/hd and 40kgs at €156/hd. Among the hoggets 60kgs made up to €215/hd, with 57kgs selling for €211/hd, although a batch of 61.5kgs made just €170/hd. Cull ewes were also easier, with the best 100-102kgs selling for €278-292/hd. On the breeding side second- and third-crop ewes topped at €400/family for those with twins at foot. Tullamore mart Trade held steady at Wednesday's sale of 1,300 sheep . The spring lambs and hoggets included a top call of €212/hd for 63kgs, with 53kgs reaching €200/hd and 47-48kgs making €193-195/hd. On the cull ewe side, the top call was €306/hd for 121kgs, with 104-108kgs at €282-297/hd. On the feeder side 75-77kgs made €195-226/hd, with 64-70kg selling from €168-192/hd. New Ross mart Yesterday's sale had 650 sheep, with hogget numbers continuing to fall; they made €152 to €181/hd for 56kgs. Lambs were a good trade, with 37-44kgs selling from €144-172/hd and 44-47kgs at €170-192/hd, while better heavier continentals made €194-201/hd. Heavier cull ewes made €220-330/hd, with feeders selling for €110-200/hd. Raphoe mart Numbers reached 500 yesterday, with 43-50kg spring lambs making €180-200/hd and 38-43kgs at 4150-180/hd. Ewe hoggets made €200-278/hd, while two ewes with four lambs at foot sold for €150/family and two lambs with singles €226/hd. Cull ewes sold for €120-290/hd. Baltinglass mart Trade for hogget eased on Saturday but there was a very strong trade for ewes with lambs at foot, especially stronger lambs – they made €150-400/family. Cull ewes sold from €140-214/hd.
Irish Independent
29-04-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
Factory cuts questioned as numbers continue to drop off
Kildare Chilling and Dawn Ballyhaunis appear to be taking it in turn to quote from week to week; Dawn return on €9.00+10c/kg QA for springs and €5.40-5.60/kg for culls. They did not quote for hogget. The factories say the trade has flatlined since Easter, with Ramadan before that not as vigorous as other years. By contrast, IFA sheep chair Adrian Gallagher said last week that while 'Easter and Ramadan did drive strong prices, tighter supplies on the ground should keep prices strong for farmers. 'The recent move by factories to cut prices is at odds with the market conditions. Throughput has continued to drop off with numbers well back from this time last year, and a further drop expected.' Department of Agriculture figures show that factory slaughterings in the week running up to Easter Sunday (April 20) totalled 45,341 – this was up 10,811 on the same week last year but back 13,702 on Easter week for 2024. The total kill for the year is back 18pc or 148,769 on the same period last year at 656,669. Imports from the North for direct slaughter in the Republic fell by around to 10,000 during March to just over 30,000; the Livestock and Meat Commission put number of sheep exported for slaughter to the Republic for the year to mid-April at 86,618. Meanwhile trade in the UK continues to fall further behind the market here, with deadweight lamb prices averaging €8.25/kg there for the week ending April 19. As to what is being paid on ground here, ICSA sheep chair Willie Shaw said spring lambs in general are still being bought at €9.20/kg, while bigger operators and groups were struggling into a top of €9.40/kg. He said hoggets are mostly making around €8.65/kg, with the very top at €8.90/kg, again for those with bigger numbers, while culls continue to range from €5.50-5.65/kg. ADVERTISEMENT Learn more Marts reported smaller numbers last week, with prices softening on the back of reduced factory prices and a wet and cold week: returns in some areas were back €30-40/hd across all sections when compared to pre-Easter. However, Ennis mart manager Martin McNamara was upbeat about yesterday's sale, describing it as 'better than expected', with spring lambs averaging €4.35/kg. George Candler, though, described the trade in Kilkenny yesterday as 'very disappointing, especially for spring lambs, with a difference of €10-20/hd on last year's returns. 'Current prices would not offer a lot of encouragement for those who would be interested in expanding their numbers.' What many in the business cannot get their head around is that while beef is making up to €8.20/kg, sheep are struggling in a market where numbers have all but collapsed. In Kilkenny, butcher's hoggets peaked at €210/hd for 68kgs, although better types at 58-59kg made €2.06-207/hd, with eleven at 52kg selling for €196/hd or €3.77/kg. On the spring lamb side, the top call was the €218/hd or €3.96/kg paid for ten 55kgs. 44-45kgs sold for €187-188/hd or €4.07-4.18/kg, while 43-44kgs made €186-87/hd or €4.25-4.33/kg. The top call among the factory hoggets was the €180/hd for 47kgs, with 45-46kgs making €170-178/hd and 42-43kgs at €170-173/hd. Cast ewes sold for €110-320/hd. Around the marts Ennis mart Trade was 'better than expected' at yesterday's sale of 510 sheep, according to Martin McNamara Spring lambs averaged €4.35/kg, with a batch of 52.5kgs making €237/kg and 43.5kgs reaching €212/hd. Hoggets averaged €3.45/kg to a top of €3.95/kg. Ten 46kgs sold for €182/hd. Cull ewes averaged €2.59/kg, with heavy ewes selling to €3/kg. Ewes with singles at foot sold to €370/hd, while those with doubles made up to €415/family. Enniscorthy mart Kevin Murphy attributed last week's smaller numbers to falling factory quotes, and spring lambs prices were down here: 40-44kgs generally made €186-198/hd. Seven 101kg cull ewes made €275/hd and 90kgs sell to €272/hd, but even these prices were back €30-40/hd on three weeks ago. 70-72kgs sold from €168-172/hd with 77kgs making €202/hd. 'Poor factory pricing is encouraging farmers to keep sheep on hand' Kevin said. Ballinrobe mart Numbers were reduced on Thursday, with prices also softening. Hoggets ranged from €162-202/hd or €3.36-4.25/kg, averaging €3.57/kg. Cull ewes made up the bulk of the sheep on offer, making €90-296/hd (€1.91-3.30/kg) and averaging €191/hd or €2.75/kg. Ewes with lambs at foot sold from €200/unit to €340/unit for one with twins at foot. Fermoy mart Numbers here were down to 260 last Monday. Spring lambs sold for €190-210/hd. Sean Leahy reported trade for hogget as being 'sticky enough', with 52-53kgs making around €200/hd and better quality at around €220/hd. Numbers of cull ewes were strong with their trade no less so: 100kg types generally made €300/hd, with the top at €306/hd. Lighter culls from 70-80kg made €255-260/hd, but 85kg Texels sold for €280-285/hd.
