Sheep price update: trade solid with top prices of €5.60/kg to €5.70/kg

The sheep trade remains vibrant, with factory prices 5c/kg to 10c/kg stronger in cases, while there was a firmer tone to the mart trade over the weekend and on Monday.

Kildare Chilling continues to set the pace with a 10c/kg increase bringing its base quote to €5.50/kg plus 10c/kg quality assurance (QA).

This leaves sellers with QA lamb in a good selling position and securing returns of €5.60/kg without any negotiations.

Differential

The two ICM plants and other plants in the west have also increased quotes, but a significant differential remains, with quotes of €5.30/kg running 20c/kg lower.

While base quotes have increased, there is resistance to movement at the upper end of the market, leading to a tighter differential in prices paid.

Individual sellers handling small numbers are trading anywhere from €5.45/kg to €5.50/kg in plants with a lower base quote to as high as €5.60/kg in Kildare Chilling, as already discussed.

Regular sellers and groups are securing returns of €5.60/kg to €5.70/kg, while top group prices will now rise 5c/kg to 10c/kg higher for U grading lambs in many cases by means of base quotes increasing.

Sharper mart trade

There is also a sharper tone to the mart trade, with butchers and wholesalers increasing activity and competing with factory agents.

Fleshed lambs weighing 50kg to 54kg are trading on average from €121 to €126, with heavier lambs and top-quality U grading butcher-type lambs rising to €130 and in isolated cases exceeding this mark.

Lambs weighing 50kg to 52kg but lacking flesh are selling from €116 to €120.

Northern trade

The trade in Northern Ireland is also lively, with factories trying to keep lambs north of the border and ward off interest from agents purchasing sheep for direct slaughter in southern plants.

Quotes remain in the region of £4.65/kg to £4.70/kg or the equivalent of €5.19/kg to €5.25/kg at Monday evening’s exchange rate of 89.5p to the euro.

Top prices are rising to £4.80/kg (€5.36/kg), with some sellers holding out for higher.

The trade in Britain is also creeping upwards, with the AHDB reporting the standard quality quotation (SQQ) liveweight price increasing by over 2p/kg on Monday to average £2.17/kg.