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July lamb kill typical for time of year, while cull kill remains low
Thursday, 12 August 2021
By Rebecca Wright
During July, the UK lamb kill totalled 1,084,000 head, according to Defra data. This is in line with what we were expecting, and what was included in the latest AHDB sheep market outlook. Compared to year earlier levels, the kill was down 16% (200,000 head). Lamb slaughter in the second half of 2020 was elevated due to concerns over the future UK-EU trading relationship, bringing animals forwards out of 2021. The July 2021 kill was in line with typical levels recorded in other recent years.
The ewe kill was once again recorded at a low level, down 28% to 111,000 head. However, there have been some doubts over these numbers, most notably due to the differing trend between auction market throughputs and Defra recorded kill. You can read all about this on page 4 of the sheep outlook.
Carcase weights were typical for both lambs and ewes, at 19.6kg and 26.9kg respectively.
Overall production in the month reflected the lower level of slaughter, and was down 17% (5,000 tonnes) on the year, to stand at 24,200 tonnes.
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