Ireland: Lamb prices on the rise again this week

This week’s sheep trade has seen continued positivity with as much as 10c/kg added to last week’s factory price quotes. Weekly sheep kill numbers have fallen off significantly since late September at a time when continued firm demand is underpinning prices currently being achieved in the sheep trade. At the higher-end of the price scale, up to €8.50/kg is being paid for Quality Assured (QA) lambs and fat ewes are making up to €4.30/kg and more in cases. Irish Country Meats (ICM) is quoting €4.00/kg for fat ewes and €8.10/kg plus a 20c/kg QA bonus for lambs up to 23.5kg leaving €8.30/kg on offer here. Kildare Chilling has no official quote for lambs but is quoting €4.00/kg plus a 10/kg QA bonus for ewes with carcass weights from 35-43kg leaving €4.10/kg on the table here. Other outlets are quoting €8.05/kg plus a 15c/kg QA bonus leaving €8.20/kg on the table in these cases. Sheep trade: Butcher lambs hit €208/head at Kilkenny Mart Kilkenny Mart hosted its weekly sheep sale on ...