THOUSANDS of sheep farmers across the western region are facing into a severe income crisis with lamb prices down by around €1 per kg, as compared to this time last year.

The drop in prices – which started to click in since mid-December – has also coincided with a steep rise in input costs, especially feed and ration over the past year.

Farm representatives have called on the factories to show ‘a responsible approach’ in trying to keep a floor on prices as the downward trend continues to bite through the first half of January.

IFA National Sheep Chair, Kevin Comiskey, said the Department’s Annual Review and Outlook 2022 had clearly set out the crisis facing sheep farms as market prices failed to reflect the higher production costs on farms.

Lamb quotes at the factories in mid-January have been coming in at around the €6.20/€6.30 (tops) per kg – this time last year the equivalent figure was €7.20/€7.30 per kg.

According to IFA representatives, demand for lamb at the meat plant seems ‘slow’ with a surplus of New Zealand lamb cited as one of the reasons for the lull in the market.

Galway IFA Chair, Stephen Canavan, told the Farming Tribune, that on average, lamb prices were back by around €20 per head, as compared to this time last year.

He said that the sluggish market for lambs in Ireland was being mirrored in the UK, but French farmers were enjoying a buoyant trade with average prices of €8 per kg.

For more, read this week’s Connacht Tribune.

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