Sheep farmers are grappling with high input costs, low lamb prices and the impact of a wet summer, with a number risking carrying additional light stores into the autumn.
Calling for Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue to “wake up” to the challenges facing the sector, Kerry sheep farmer Eamon Horgan said the “markets are a joke at the moment and I don’t know what’s gone wrong”.
“We have lambs fit to sell but sure we’ve no market for them. You’ve a scenario where farmers aren’t feeding lambs because they’re fearful the market isn’t there for them.
Mountain lambs are back €30/head on where they were last year anyway. There’s no market in the world for them.
Sheep farmers have grappled with wet weather and high input costs this summer. \ Donal O'Leary
“The Scotch lamb, they’re a light lamb. If you’ve them at 26kg or 27kg, he’ll only make €50,” said the Kenmare man.
Weather
Like other sectors, the wet summer also hit sheep farmers, with a significant impact on lamb thrive and killout weights.
“The lambs don’t seem to have done near as well for me. Sure, they were wet for nearly the whole month of July,” said Galway sheep farmer David Harney.
While Roscommon sheep farmer Michael Glennon has just sold his last February-born lambs, he said they were two weeks slower finishing than normal.
“They got stunted in the wet weather. They’d be sheltering under a ditch. Nearly everyone was the same,” he said.
Edward Earle, who runs sheep outside Gorey, Co Wexford, said the wet grass is less digestible and is “running through” his lambs.
“The lambs are a lot dirtier. You’re dagging them a lot more this year. Grass is passing through them before they get the energy out of it. It’s been a challenge. You’re adapting to the weather the whole time,” he said.
Earle explained that he has moved about 50 fewer lambs off farm this year, compared to the same week in 2022, due to their reduced thrive.
Meal costs
In Galway, Harney explained that the poor weather has left him with no choice but to introduce meal to weaned lambs, despite the cost.
“I don’t feed any meal as I couldn’t justify it with the cost. But with current lamb prices, I’ll have to go meal feeding to get them up in weight.
“I’ll have to sell them and take the hit. It’s a loss-making exercise for sheep at the current prices. You’d be doing extremely well to break even,” he said. Earle concurred, stating: “It doesn’t pay to feed meal to lambs with the price of it.”
Prices
Carlow sheep farmer Marian Dalton said her lambs have gone to Tullow Mart twice recently but they were brought home both times. At 36kg, they were making just €102.
“We’ve quite a lot still left to go. It’s been a bad year for sheep. We’d be selling as stores. They’re back that little bit. We’re not feeding them the meal because it’s too dear,” she said.
The Borris farmer said she is concerned that there will be “a lot of lambs left in the autumn”, adding that she will definitely have more left over compared to last year.
Lamb growth rates not
being met
– Teagasc
Teagasc sheep specialist Ciaran Lynch advised farmers to “double down on the basics” to combat the challenges of wet weather, poor prices and meal costs.
Grass is running through store lambs at present.
He said farmers should keep managing grass supplies, monitoring lamb parasite burdens, keep lameness at bay and supplement cobalt where and when needed.
Lynch estimates that there are approximately 40,000 fewer spring-born lambs finished to date, compared to 2022.
Challenge
“This poses a challenge for farms as we head into the autumn carrying larger numbers of potentially lighter lambs,” he said.
The Teagasc representative said much of the finishing delays have been down to lambs not achieving their typical growth rate of 200g/day, declining to 150g/day, or a 1.5kg to 1kg gain per week from July through to early September.
“Perhaps unsurprisingly given the recent weather conditions, these growth rates are not being met,” he said.
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Sheep farmers are grappling with high input costs, low lamb prices and the impact of a wet summer, with a number risking carrying additional light stores into the autumn.
Calling for Minister for Agriculture Charlie McConalogue to “wake up” to the challenges facing the sector, Kerry sheep farmer Eamon Horgan said the “markets are a joke at the moment and I don’t know what’s gone wrong”.
“We have lambs fit to sell but sure we’ve no market for them. You’ve a scenario where farmers aren’t feeding lambs because they’re fearful the market isn’t there for them.
Mountain lambs are back €30/head on where they were last year anyway. There’s no market in the world for them.
Sheep farmers have grappled with wet weather and high input costs this summer. \ Donal O'Leary
“The Scotch lamb, they’re a light lamb. If you’ve them at 26kg or 27kg, he’ll only make €50,” said the Kenmare man.
Weather
Like other sectors, the wet summer also hit sheep farmers, with a significant impact on lamb thrive and killout weights.
“The lambs don’t seem to have done near as well for me. Sure, they were wet for nearly the whole month of July,” said Galway sheep farmer David Harney.
While Roscommon sheep farmer Michael Glennon has just sold his last February-born lambs, he said they were two weeks slower finishing than normal.
“They got stunted in the wet weather. They’d be sheltering under a ditch. Nearly everyone was the same,” he said.
Edward Earle, who runs sheep outside Gorey, Co Wexford, said the wet grass is less digestible and is “running through” his lambs.
“The lambs are a lot dirtier. You’re dagging them a lot more this year. Grass is passing through them before they get the energy out of it. It’s been a challenge. You’re adapting to the weather the whole time,” he said.
Earle explained that he has moved about 50 fewer lambs off farm this year, compared to the same week in 2022, due to their reduced thrive.
Meal costs
In Galway, Harney explained that the poor weather has left him with no choice but to introduce meal to weaned lambs, despite the cost.
“I don’t feed any meal as I couldn’t justify it with the cost. But with current lamb prices, I’ll have to go meal feeding to get them up in weight.
“I’ll have to sell them and take the hit. It’s a loss-making exercise for sheep at the current prices. You’d be doing extremely well to break even,” he said. Earle concurred, stating: “It doesn’t pay to feed meal to lambs with the price of it.”
Prices
Carlow sheep farmer Marian Dalton said her lambs have gone to Tullow Mart twice recently but they were brought home both times. At 36kg, they were making just €102.
“We’ve quite a lot still left to go. It’s been a bad year for sheep. We’d be selling as stores. They’re back that little bit. We’re not feeding them the meal because it’s too dear,” she said.
The Borris farmer said she is concerned that there will be “a lot of lambs left in the autumn”, adding that she will definitely have more left over compared to last year.
Lamb growth rates not
being met
– Teagasc
Teagasc sheep specialist Ciaran Lynch advised farmers to “double down on the basics” to combat the challenges of wet weather, poor prices and meal costs.
Grass is running through store lambs at present.
He said farmers should keep managing grass supplies, monitoring lamb parasite burdens, keep lameness at bay and supplement cobalt where and when needed.
Lynch estimates that there are approximately 40,000 fewer spring-born lambs finished to date, compared to 2022.
Challenge
“This poses a challenge for farms as we head into the autumn carrying larger numbers of potentially lighter lambs,” he said.
The Teagasc representative said much of the finishing delays have been down to lambs not achieving their typical growth rate of 200g/day, declining to 150g/day, or a 1.5kg to 1kg gain per week from July through to early September.
“Perhaps unsurprisingly given the recent weather conditions, these growth rates are not being met,” he said.
Read more
Lambs this year are proving to be skinny
Price cuts wipe €10m off sheep farmer incomes in 2023 - IFA
Sheep Trends: factory price finally stabilises with quotes maintained
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