Pig farmers under pressure as factories impose further cuts
The announcement that the pig processors have cut prices to suppliers by a further four cents per kilogram is another example of the factories behaving in opportunist fashions, the chairman of the IFA Pig Committee, Tom Horgan, complains.
“While there is price pressure across Europe, other market factors that don’t apply to the Irish market are being used as an excuse to lower the price,” he said.
The actual reality is that there is appreciable demand for Irish pork product in Asian markets and this is particularly well illustrated by Bord Bia figures which indicates that China is now our largest export market and deliveries there have risen by 6% in the current year.
Beef farmers urged to source best price
It is evident that there is considerable demand for ‘supermarket-suitable’ beef product at the moment and farmers should be aware that it can be worthwhile to find out which factories or agents are paying the best prices at the moment.
The chairman of the ICMSA Livestock Committee, Des Morrison, said that in-spec Hereford and Angus cattle with a dead weight of between 260kg and 340kg were currently in strong demand and processors are experiencing pressure to fill orders for the supermarkets.
“I would be certain that premium flat-rate deals are being negotiated off-grid and processors are paying significantly more than normal quoted prices so I am urging farmers to go past their usual agents or factories and seek out those factories actively trying to fill a market that was certainly there,” he said.