Spring lamb prices

Green farmer

ganmo wrote: »

10,000 more lambs killed last week than the previous year

Their not coming from Irish Marts anyway. Roscrea was half empty today. Auction lasted just over an hour, start to finish.

sheepfarmer92

The ifa could do their job and maybe try to stop uk lambs coming here to be slaughtered thats what they could do!

Green farmer

Regardless of what they can or can't do, it appears from the outside that the unions and government organisations are turning a blind eye and letting the factories carry out whatever behaviour they want.

ganmo

sheepfarmer92 wrote: »

The ifa could do their job and maybe try to stop uk lambs coming here to be slaughtered thats what they could do!

How?
With the Brazilian beef imports they used DNA to identify zebu beef labelled as Irish which they can't do with uk lamb as the our national flock is closely related so that avenue is closed. Hell they could even be selling back to the brits labelled as British.

If they block the border what would that do to our exports? With the uk taking about half of our exports!

Willfarman

Green farmer wrote: »

Something's amiss when we're a few days before Easter, sheep are scarce on the ground, demand is growing, yet prices are low and even falling back abit.

As I posted on this before. Early lamb and Easter market demand is extremely outadated ****e still being spielled out by teagasc and the farming publications year after year.

Watch the Muslim festivals for peak demand. The end of the ramadam fast is the next..

sheepfarmer92

ganmo wrote: »

How?
With the Brazilian beef imports they used DNA to identify zebu beef labelled as Irish which they can't do with uk lamb as the our national flock is closely related so that avenue is closed. Hell they could even be selling back to the brits labelled as British.

If they block the border what would that do to our exports? With the uk taking about half of our exports!

Half off the kill in icm is uk sheep almost every day theyre killing, and im sure kepak isnt much different, it is fairly obvious that this is a major factor in keeping prices down here all year, ni is part of the uk, let them be slaughtered in the uk, i am talking live lambs, not packaged meat ir carcases, the icsa had a small protest outside the factory, granted it didmt do any good but i havent seen the ifa once do anything to try and put a stop to it, even reduce the level of lambs coming in.

Green farmer

Just read an article in the farming independent, where john Brooke from the ICSA is attempting to highlight imports from England, if anyone knows how to copy link. At least someone is trying to do something.

IH784man

http://www.independent.ie/business/farming/sheep/traceability-at-risk-from-uk-sheep-imports-warn-icsa-35610708.html

Is this it?

Green farmer

Yep, thanks, hope bord bia wake up and keep an eye on what meat their q.a badge gets stamped on.

Willfarman

I happened to text our local radio station this morning to inform them that this years Easter lamb was not being produced by happy farmers but farmers being treated with utter contempt and disrespect with uk sheep being imported to undermine our livelihoods and it was graciously read out, and I was then rung by their agricultural reporter!
After outlining the issue he asked would I go on air but he laughed when I explained how I feared the repercussions of being the individual slating the local plant!

Green farmer

Willfarman wrote: »

I happened to text our local radio station this morning to inform them that this years Easter lamb was not being produced by happy farmers but farmers being treated with utter contempt and disrespect with uk sheep being imported
After outlining the issue he asked would I go on air but he laughed when I explained how I feared the repercussions of being the individual slating the local plant!

Maybe get him to contact the ICSA guy , who'd be delighted for the airtime

ganmo

Willfarman wrote: »

I happened to text our local radio station this morning to inform them that this years Easter lamb was not being produced by happy farmers but farmers being treated with utter contempt and disrespect with uk sheep being imported to undermine our livelihoods and it was graciously read out, and I was then rung by their agricultural reporter!
After outlining the issue he asked would I go on air but he laughed when I explained how I feared the repercussions of being the individual slating the local plant!

there was just a bit on the news about it

Tigerandahalf

Just came across this thread. Just wondering what farmers would expect people to pay for a half leg of lamb in the supermarket.

I like lamb but find it expensive enough. €10 roughly for a half leg in Aldi. We would normally buy it in the weekly shop and I find the lamb there to be of great quality.

We would also buy a small chicken which comes in around €3.20. Very cheap and again I find the chicken to be of very good quality.

Is it that the factories are taking too large a chunk?

Willfarman

Green farmer wrote: »

Maybe get him to contact the ICSA guy , who'd be delighted for the airtime

I told him about the piece in last farming indo so hopefully.

ganmo

Tigerandahalf wrote: »

Just came across this thread. Just wondering what farmers would expect people to pay for a half leg of lamb in the supermarket.

I like lamb but find it expensive enough. €10 roughly for a half leg in Aldi. We would normally buy it in the weekly shop and I find the lamb there to be of great quality.

We would also buy a small chicken which comes in around €3.20. Very cheap and again I find the chicken to be of very good quality.

Is it that the factories are taking too large a chunk?

thats the problem in a nutshell

Willfarman

Tigerandahalf wrote: »

Just came across this thread. Just wondering what farmers would expect people to pay for a half leg of lamb in the supermarket.

I like lamb but find it expensive enough. €10 roughly for a half leg in Aldi. We would normally buy it in the weekly shop and I find the lamb there to be of great quality.

We would also buy a small chicken which comes in around €3.20. Very cheap and again I find the chicken to be of very good quality.

Is it that the factories are taking too large a chunk?

I expect consumers to get a good deal but intensive chicken vs grass fed lamb is akin to white sliced pan compared to whole meal brown bread.
But yes the processers and retailers are definately getting too large a chunk.
Your half leg of lamb is sold to you on promotion @ roughly €10 a kilo. The processers paid the farmer 5.10 a kilo for it. They pay nothing for the hide liver heart or head which combine to cover a good part of their processing costs.. Loin chops retail at 22€ a kg. you will find no lamb retailing under 7€ a kilo.

Google Larry goodman and have a look at his pedigree on Wikipedia and see an example of a meat baron sociopath given free reign to plunder farm families and rural economies.

Tigerandahalf

I know prices for farmers are very tight.
But for many people paying €10 for a single piece of meat in the weekly shop is a big push.

We would normally do a lamb curry on the 2nd day so get 2 days out of the lamb. The kids are young so lamb curry doesn't always work for them.

Like this week we didn't use the leftovers so it becomes an expensive buy for a single dinner.

I have driven and cycled over many of the hills where sheep are reared and it is fantastic to see but a lot of people have limited cash to spend on meat in their weekly shop.

We would buy farmed salmon/chicken in our weekly shop which would be reared on a small scale size and margin and I think that is the margin you are competing with.

I only saw an article on the farmers journal recently where they mentioned a saudi dairy farm with 46,000 cattle all housed indoor and on I'd imagine a much smaller physical space.

If that is the future the model in Ireland is under pressure.

I saw a video recently of a dairy farmer in NZ milking 600 cows but his wife has to work to pay the bills and he has to hire 2 Filipino workers to keep the costs down.

Willfarman

Tigerandahalf wrote: »

I know prices for farmers are very tight.
But for many people paying €10 for a single piece of meat in the weekly shop is a big push.

We would normally do a lamb curry on the 2nd day so get 2 days out of the lamb. The kids are young so lamb curry doesn't always work for them.

Like this week we didn't use the leftovers so it becomes an expensive buy for a single dinner.

I have driven and cycled over many of the hills where sheep are reared and it is fantastic to see but a lot of people have limited cash to spend on meat in their weekly shop.

We would buy farmed salmon/chicken in our weekly shop which would be reared on a small scale size and margin and I think that is the margin you are competing with.

I only saw an article on the farmers journal recently where they mentioned a saudi dairy farm with 46,000 cattle all housed indoor and on I'd imagine a much smaller physical space.

If that is the future the model in Ireland is under pressure.

I saw a video recently of a dairy farmer in NZ milking 600 cows but his wife has to work to pay the bills and he has to hire 2 Filipino workers to keep the costs down.

A pint is 4.40 if your lucky or 20 cigs are a tenner. A lot of very expensive processed crap going into trollies with little nutritional value. But non the less a rise in retail price is not what's being asked for here. We have seen 7.00 a kilo being paid for lamb at this time of year with retail price similar to now!

Tigerandahalf

Willfarman wrote: »

A pint is 4.40 if your lucky or 20 cigs are a tenner. A lot of very expensive processed crap going into trollies with little nutritional value. But non the less a rise in retail price is not what's being asked for here. We have seen 7.00 a kilo being paid for lamb at this time of year with retail price similar to now!

I don't smoke anymore and what I drink is a beer or a bottle of wine at home.
I would imagine many young families are similar.

I understand what you are saying.
But with a wife and husband now normally working outside the home the time to cook lamb is limited. I cook it for about 2.5 hrs - slow and falling off the bone and beautiful to eat. But unless you do it on a Saturday or Sunday time is tight.

A piece of salmon is 20 mins and a chicken is 1.5hr so you are under pressure on that side too.

Willfarman

Lamb chops under the grill are the business midweek, but yes like yourself the roasts are a weekend job. I'm not singling you out. I don't doubt that you know the value of a euro! But I am always nosy parking trollies if I'm shopping and I often observe trollies full if frozen pizzas crisps frozen processed microwaveable ****e and all people that would blow 20 quid on a takeaway without a care but if grass fed red meat is dearer than intensively forced opaque tasteless chicken breasts it's too expensive!

Tigerandahalf

Well I think we agree that the time to cook is an issue.
If you have the money you might eat out at the weekend.
If you don't you get a takeaway.

Loin chops are very nice but very expensive for what you get. Little meat on it.

My mother would offer me an extra kidney or an extra chop and I would take the kidney.

ganmo

Tigerandahalf wrote: »

Well I think we agree that the time to cook is an issue.
If you have the money you might eat out at the weekend.
If you don't you get a takeaway.

Loin chops are very nice but very expensive for what you get. Little meat on it.

My mother would offer me an extra kidney or an extra chop and I would take the kidney.

try giggot chops, plenty of meat on them

charolais0153

ganmo wrote: »

try giggot chops, plenty of meat on them

Would they come from the 22kg/DW lamb or would he have to be heavier. There isn't half enough eating in the small chops IMO and I'm not a one for eating off the bone

ganmo

charolais0153 wrote: »

Would they come from the 22kg/DW lamb or would he have to be heavier. There isn't half enough eating in the small chops IMO and I'm not a one for eating off the bone

yup
It all depends on how the lamb is butchered. I think they're taken off the leg or in that general area

orm0nd

heard factories are quoting 5.90 for springs this morning,

in other words . they don't want them

Willfarman

orm0nd wrote: »

heard factories are quoting 5.90 for springs this morning,

in other words . they don't want them

Any quote for hoggets?

Green farmer

Willfarman wrote: »

Any quote for hoggets?

Unchanged from last week at €5-10 inc qa up to 22.5

charolais0153

Talking to an agent and he says he doesn't expect the lamb to rise above 6.20....

rangler1

charolais0153 wrote: »

Talking to an agent and he says he doesn't expect the lamb to rise above 6.20....

No reason for it to rise now with easter over and still hoggets around

Green farmer

Here's hoping the Muslim festival in May keeps a bit of pressure on them.