Beef / Lamb & Pig Price Tracker

[Top Tip.]

Just what I was told, last few weeks they are struggling to make it pay at the high price we have now

Told last night they’re blowing £20 a lamb on them.

 

[gone up the hill]

Just what I was told, last few weeks they are struggling to make it pay at the high price we have now

Utter Rubbish, of course they can are selling it at these prices and if they cannot its not the farmers problem!

And if they cannot then take less profit and get another part time job in the evenings/ night time like everyone else is so keen to tell farmers to do if they cannot make farming pay!

Reality is that with the current very high input prices + loss of subs for livestock farms + current weather patterns means beef will need to be more like £6.50/£7 a kilo and lambs £10/11 a kilo at the farm gate if the supply chain after the farm gate wants a steady and all year round supply of high quality high welfare British beef and lamb.

Also if we are forced to do GFC by the RT/ NFU/ AHDB which looks very likely that will cost a 300 acre farm at least £5000 a year to do so that will mean we will need even more than the prices i quote above to cover this cost and keep people in the job.

Nearly every beef/sheep farmer you talk to around here are all talking about either cutting numbers drastically or quitting the job altogether over the next 3/5 years!

 

[Northeastfarmer]

Well said ! We have been royaly shafted for decades ! A good long pay day is well over due.

Everyone wetting themselves atm because they are getting £150 for hoggs….thats only because they aren’t used to it….its only where they need to be

 

[gone up the hill]

Everyone wetting themselves atm because they are getting £150 for hoggs….thats only because they aren’t used to it….its only where they need to be

Yep £150 for hoggs is nothing to get excited about in this day and age and at this time of year.

 

[Boydvalley]

What they mean is they can’t make it pay on current supply contracts. Which maybe true. The other way of looking at is the market price has been suspiciously constant for the last 9 months. Either that is good thing and given some certainty, or it’s bad thing as they’ve capped the price.
My gut feeling is supply is not meeting demand and they can’t control the market. Hence the Dairy Beef contract trying to lock in supply. For certain they think they can sell it at that. I’d take that as the new base.

 

[livestock 1]

I worked out what folks would need for stock when bps went and it was more than what we are getting now
Plenty of folks selling some of their land or farms a lot cutting back and getting a job instead they obviously aren’t excited about the prices yet

 

[gone up the hill]

What they mean is they can’t make it pay on current supply contracts. Which maybe true. The other way of looking at is the market price has been suspiciously constant for the last 9 months. Either that is good thing and given some certainty, or it’s bad thing as they’ve capped the price.
My gut feeling is supply is not meeting demand and they can’t control the market. Hence the Dairy Beef contract trying to lock in supply. For certain they think they can sell it at that. I’d take that as the new base.

Once beef goes just over £5 a kilo it will more than likely be £5.50 before long, it jumped quite a bit quickly when it hit £3 and £4 a kilo so no reason why it will not do the same at £5 a kilo.

Reality is everything the Gov has done the last few years and esp now with the EA / SFI etc is to get farmers to produce a lot less food so the days of cheap food will be over untill that policy changes!

Reported the other day that shipping costs of containers went up 300% overnight recently due to the problems with that group of rebels trying to blow up boats!

 

[Hawthorn]

Told last night they’re blowing £20 a lamb on them.

Heard this several times over, they’d simply go bust very quickly if they were losing like that with the numbers that they are dealing with

 

[livestock 1]

They shave saved some money from when they were buying it cheap for so many years

 

[Devil's advocate]

Why does it always come out with…
“lamb doesn’t want to get any dearer otherwise the butchers wont sell it and they won’t make it pay”

when lambs were making £40 did anyone come out and say….
“The farmers can’t make it pay we should give them some more”

did they fuk
Stock isn’t dear enough yet

100% agree

What I struggle with is when straw gets to a realistic price, beef finishers try to talk the market down.

 

[Top Tip.]

Heard this several times over, they’d simply go bust very quickly if they were losing like that with the numbers that they are dealing with

I think it means that now lambs are at £150 they were making £40 on them when lambs were at £90.

 

[aangus]

Dairy beef contracts for 2025 being offered at 550ppk !! Beef boys be buying the ski gear off the arable boys

Maybe thats why calves in carlisle have taken a big lift

 

[aangus]

Told last night they’re blowing £20 a lamb on them.

I was told that a week ago, but they are still buying them

 

[digger64]

I was told that a week ago, but they are still buying them

fill the fridges and then stop and wait is the gamble

 

[Optimus]

I was told that a week ago, but they are still buying them

Have no choice but to buy them, they'll make up for it with other products anyway.

 

[aangus]

Utter Rubbish, of course they can are selling it at these prices and if they cannot its not the farmers problem!

And if they cannot then take less profit and get another part time job in the evenings/ night time like everyone else is so keen to tell farmers to do if they cannot make farming pay!

Reality is that with the current very high input prices + loss of subs for livestock farms + current weather patterns means beef will need to be more like £6.50/£7 a kilo and lambs £10/11 a kilo at the farm gate if the supply chain after the farm gate wants a steady and all year round supply of high quality high welfare British beef and lamb.

Also if we are forced to do GFC by the RT/ NFU/ AHDB which looks very likely that will cost a 300 acre farm at least £5000 a year to do so that will mean we will need even more than the prices i quote above to cover this cost and keep people in the job.

Nearly every beef/sheep farmer you talk to around here are all talking about either cutting numbers drastically or quitting the job altogether over the next 3/5 years!

I put a 100 ewes away to winter and was told yesterday no more sheep. they are going down the route of herbal lays. So probably drop the numbers here unless I find somewhere else which will be doubtful

 

[e3120]

Maybe thats why calves in carlisle have taken a big lift

There's been a meat plant procurement manager active at the ring this past couple of weeks. "To secure supply". Causing/receiving a bit of bother for/from the regulars.

 

[aangus]

There's been a meat plant procurement manager active at the ring this past couple of weeks. "To secure supply". Causing/receiving a bit of bother for/from the regulars.

Who? or would you rather not say, I'm not in that ring often, it was a mate telling me about the lift in prices

 

[Top Tip.]

Did they really think that they could take £620 million out of the rural economy and that food prices would remain the same.

 

[Northeastfarmer]

I put a 100 ewes away to winter and was told yesterday no more sheep. they are going down the route of herbal lays. So probably drop the numbers here unless I find somewhere else which will be doubtful

I was told there’s a lot of landlords kicking tenants off now so they can plant herbal leys as it’s more lucrative….very short sighted of them imo