Lamb prices under pressure


By James Garner


LAMB prices came under pressure this week, renewing fears that the market is about to spiral into decline.

But analysts say there are too many unknowns to judge which way prices will go.

Last week, the private storage aid (PSA) scheme was deemed unattractive by processors, with only seven tenders out of 71 being accepted.

This means just 140t will go into freezers for seven months.

“That will make no difference at all to the market,” said the Meat and Livestock Commissions Brussels manager Peter Hardwick.

With PSA discounted as a market support mechanism, focus is on the one-off lamb buy-up scheme and successful retail promotions to remove light lambs.

More lambs are coming on to the open market following Defras recent announcement on autumn sheep movements

But the recent influx has wiped between 10p and 20p/kg off prices for lambs in the last two weeks, and Kevin Pearce, the NFUs head of livestock, said there were still many lambs to come off the hill.

Terry Bayliss, head of Farmers First, disagreed with the gloomy forecast: “Come February or March we will be short of lambs.”

“As soon as the export ban is lifted, our French buyer would take up to 18,000 carcasses and our Italian contact 10,000.”



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