The sheep kill figures for the week ending 9 April have shown a steady increase compared to the previous week, according to the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine (DAFM).
The figures indicate that there is a strong demand in supply ahead of Easter weekend and with Ramadan ongoing and continuing until 1 May. Numbers have now surpassed 60,000 head.
The actual figure for the week stood at 61,978 sheep that were processed, an increase of 3,093 head from the week before. The number of hoggets slaughtered last week came to 55,087 head, which is an increase of 1,434 head from the week prior. Ewe and ram throughput also witnessed a marginal increase from the previous week, totalling 4,195 head, while 2,696 spring lambs were processed last week, an increase of 1,572 head on the previous week.
The figures reported by DAFM regarding the week-on-week sheep kill (week ending April 9) are as follows:
- Hoggets: 55,087 head (+1,434 or +2.67%);
- Ewes and rams: 4,195 head (+117 or +2.86%);
- Spring lambs: 2,696 head (+1,572 or +140%)
- Total: 61,978 head (+3,093 or +5.25%).
Taking a look at this year’s throughput figures to date, 729,741 sheep have been processed so far. Of that figure, 654,219 have been hoggets, 5,060 were spring lambs, with the rest made up of ewes and rams (70,436) and a small portion of light lambs (26 head).
Compared against the same period in 2021, the total number of sheep slaughtered is up by nearly 93,000.