Sheep trade: Price pressure stays but demand set to rise in Ireland

This week’s sheep trade has seen the price pressure which has been felt over the previous few weeks continue, but farmers are confident of a price-cut reversal over the coming week. The Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmers’ Association’s (ICSA’s) sheep chair Sean McNamara has told Agriland that he expects prices to lift again “before the end of the week”. He said that the Eid al-Adha festival, which traditionally leads to a surge in demand for Irish lamb, is set to take place at the end of this month (June) and will see sheep processors more anxious for supplies of finished lambs. Sheep trade – hoggets This week, Kildare Chilling is quoting €7.00/kg plus a 10c/kg Quality Assurance (QA) bonus, bringing its offering for hoggets to €7.10/kg. This outlet is paying up to 23kg carcass weight. Advertisement Irish Country Meats (ICM) is quoting €6.80/kg plus a 20c/kg QA bonus for hoggets, bringing its offering to €7.00/kg, up to 23kg carcass weight. Other outlets are quoting lower prices than ...