AHDB: Lower production for beef and lamb in 2023
Prime slaughter fell 1.3% for 2023 to total 2.04m head, as throughputs for December fell by 14% year on year to 150,800 head. This is the lowest December prime kill for over 5 years, as reports of wet weather have impacted ability to finish cattle and caused wider disruption. Cow kill also dropped for 2023, down by 16,000 head to total 612,000 head. Cow kill remained tight in the second half of the year, with December kill standing at 49,500 head, a fall of 17% from 2022.
Sheep meat production in the UK totalled 286,000 tonnes for 2023, a fall of 5,300t (-1.8%) from 2022. Average clean sheep carcase weights for 2023 fell by 0.4kg from 2022, to 19.8kg. Carcase weights in the final quarter of the year were down on 2022, as weather and higher feed costs impacted on finishing.
Clean sheep slaughter grew by 20,000 head (+0.2%) to reach 12.28m head for 2023, despite a lower kill in December at 1.14m head. This is the lowest December kill since 2019, with reports of wet weather making it harder to finish. Adult sheep kill fell by 2.5% to 1.65m head for 2023, as census data shows contraction in the total sheep flock for June 2023. Throughputs for December 2023 stayed pretty level from November at 129,500 head, marking the first period without growth between these months since before 2018.
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