Tuesday, 10 September 2019 07:55

Lamb cracks $8/kg

Written by  Sudesh Kissun
ASB senior rural economist Nathan Penny. ASB senior rural economist Nathan Penny.

Lamb prices have cracked the $8/kg mark for the second successive year and things could get even better.

ASB senior rural economist Nathan Penny believes there’s a “50/50 chance” of a record.

“At this juncture, we think there is a 50/50 chance that lamb prices will set record highs over spring, particularly as current prices ($8.25/kg) are neck’n’neck with this time last year,” Penny said in ASB’s Commodities Weekly report.

Nationwide prices last year topped out at $8.43/kg.

NZ lamb exports to China are booming because African swine fever has butchered the Chinese pork industry, leading consumers to seek other proteins.

Rabobank animal protein analyst Blake Holgate also expects lamb prices to end the season on a high.

And he notes that prices in the North Island and South Island have crossed the $8/kg mark. In late August the NI slaughter price averaged $8.35/kg and the SI averaged $8.10/kg.

Holgate says export market sentiment remains positive but key markets are performing differently.

“While China’s strong demand and pricing show no sign of waning in the immediate future, there are reports of some weakening of demand in the UK, Continental European and the US,” he said.

“At this stage, pricing has not been materially impacted in any of these markets, in part due to the limited volume of product available out of NZ.”

Penny notes that lamb export supply remains relatively tight in NZ and Australia. 

The rise in conversions of sheep/beef land to forestry will reduce lamb supply in the next few years. 

“While not necessarily a great development for the sheep industry, these conversions will nonetheless underpin lamb prices for an extended period,” said Penny.

More like this

Featured

Australia develops first local mRNA FMD vaccine

Foot and Mouth Disease outbreaks could have a detrimental impact on any country's rural sector, as seen in the United Kingdom's 2000 outbreak that saw the compulsory slaughter of over six million animals.

NZ household food waste falls again

Kiwis are wasting less of their food than they were two years ago, and this has been enough to push New Zealand’s total household food waste bill lower, the 2025 Rabobank KiwiHarvest Food Waste survey has found.

Editorial: No joking matter

OPINION: Sir Lockwood Smith has clearly and succinctly defined what academic freedom is all about, the boundaries around it and the responsibility that goes with this privilege.

DairyNZ plantain trials cut nitrate leaching by 26%

DairyNZ says its plantain programme continues to deliver promising results, with new data confirming that modest levels of plantain in pastures reduce nitrogen leaching, offering farmers a practical, science-backed tool to meet environmental goals.

National

Machinery & Products

Tech might take time

Agritech Unleashed – a one-day event held recently at Mystery Creek, near Hamilton – focused on technology as an ‘enabler’…

John Deere acquires GUSS Automation

John Deere has announced the full acquisition of GUSS Automation, LLC, a globally recognised leader in supervised high-value crop autonomy,…

Fencing excellence celebrated

The Fencing Contractors Association of New Zealand (FCANZ) celebrated the best of the best at the 2025 Fencing Industry Awards,…

» Latest Print Issues Online

The Hound

A step too far

OPINION: For years, the ironically named Dr Mike Joy has used his position at Victoria University to wage an activist-style…

Save us from SAFE

OPINION: A mate of yours truly has had an absolute gutsful of the activist group SAFE.

» Connect with Rural News

» eNewsletter

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter