British Lamb Week a ‘success’ for sheep sector

British Lamb Week was a success and gives the industry something to build on for the future, according to the National Sheep Association (NSA).

It says the promotional campaign, which drew to a close on Monday (7 September), helped to persuade consumers they should support British sheep farmers and buy more lamb.

Phil Stocker, NSA chief executive, said: “It has been great to see the lamb price just a little stronger during British Lamb Week.”

See also: Depressed lamb prices continue to slide

“There are several other factors in play, of course, including the slight improvement in exchange rate and forthcoming religious festivals. However, we would hope and expect that some of the good promotional work being done, as well as the good-quality products on offer, is starting to have an effect.

“For a fledgling initiative, the feedback the NSA has had suggests British Lamb Week has been a big success and I hope it will have given us something constructive to build on in future years. It shows what can be done with an injection of enthusiasm and energy among the sheep farming community.”

The campaign largely focused on social media and the NSA said it had seen a fantastic response on Facebook and Twitter over the course of the week.

More than 7,000 people engaged with the Facebook content alone and there was consistent liking, sharing and retweeting on Twitter, it said.

According to AHDB Beef and Lamb, liveweight lamb prices peaked on 3 September when the GB SQQ price rose to an average of 161.1p/kg. However, by 7 September this had dropped back to an average of 150.9p/kg.

“These increases are likely to be a result of a number of factors driving some increase in demand. These include a recent strengthening of the euro against the pound, which will be helping the export situation,” it said.

“The upcoming Muslim festival of Eid-al-Adha (23 September) may also just be starting to have a positive influence on demand for lamb. However, the festival is three weeks away and so its effect on prices is likely to increase in the coming days.”