Lighter cattle and lower slaughter drives beef production decline in UK

Beef and veal production sat at 71,400 tonnes for February, according to the latest Defra production statistics. This is down 2,900t (3.9%) from January levels, and 1,400t (1.9%) down on production in February 2022. Month on month, lower slaughter figures are the main driver of lower production in February, as prime cattle slaughter levels hit 157,400 head, down 4,000 head (2.5%) from January. This is similar to slaughter seen in February 2022, down only 1,500 head (0.9%) and sits below the 5-year average by 2,300 head. Average carcase weights for prime cattle stood at 343kg/head in February, 0.7kg higher than January. Despite carcase weights recording little fluctuation month-on-month, there has been a fall of 7.8kg/head since February last year, driving the overall decline in year-on-year production. Cull cow slaughter levels show a different picture, with total slaughter for cows and adult bulls at 54,500 head, trending 8.7% (5,200 head) lower than the previous month. Slaughter ...