The January Market Bulletin looks at cattle, sheep and pig slaughter and production trends in the UK for 2025, following the recently released throughput figures from Defra.
Key points:
- Cattle throughput decreased on the year. This led to lower domestic beef production – down 4% year-on-year, and 3% below the five-year average.
- Looking to 2026, ongoing supply constraints are likely to continue supporting firm cattle prices in the short term and the potential supply of cattle in the UK will likely remain tight.
- Sheep and lamb throughput levels in the UK fell by around 2% on the year.
- A reduced sheep breeding flock, coupled with last year’s lamb crop reaching a historically low level suggests that supply will likely remain constrained moving forward.
- Pig slaughter levels increased by 1% on the year, whilst pigmeat production was up 2%.
For the full analysis, click HERE to read January’s Market Bulletin. It also includes a monthly market round-up on recent prices and December throughput data for cattle, sheep and pigs.
