Weekly pig prices and slaughter data for Great Britain.
The EU-spec SPP has recorded its biggest increase since the start of 2023, gaining 2.1p to stand at 178.54p/kg during the week ended November 7.
This represents a much-needed mini recovery, after the SPP reached a new low for the year, 176.38p/kg, during the week ended October 24. It remains more than 23p below the same week last year.
The SPP sample stood at 49,273 pigs, with virtually all weight categories recording notable increases, particularly in the bands up to 90kg.
As well as an imbalanced domestic market, the UK pig price has come under pressure in recent months from falling EU prices.
The latest Tribune EU price roundup shows further finished pig reductions in Spain and Ireland, with pig prices unchanged elsewhere, including headline prices in the Netherland and Denmark well below £1/kg. The big headline, however, was another big drop in the sow price.
The headline UK-EU price gap continues to widen. The EU reference price (S-grade) was down by a further 3p to stand at 128.21p/kg during the week ended November 1, meaning it has lost more than 20p in the space of seven weeks. This increased the gap to the equivalent UK reference price to nearly 57p, compared with 37p in mid-September.
AHDB’s estimated GB clean pig slaughterings trended below year-earlier levels during October, bar the final week. At 163,194 head, the estimated figure for the week ended November 7 was 7,000 head down on the previous week and 8,000 head down on the year-earlier figure.
Average carcase weights increased by 0.67kg to stand at 93.61kg in the SPP sample, recovering some of the ground lost the previous week. The average carcase weight is now 0.8kg above year-earlier levels.
London feed wheat futures were quoted by AHDB on November 11 at £191/t for November and £195/t for January, similar to last week.