Weekly pig prices and slaughter data for Great Britain.
After losing 1.25p last week, the EU-spec SPP has bounced back, gaining 1.76p to stand at 180.15p/kg during the week ended August 29.
The SPP is now at virtually the same level as it was in late-April/early-May, following a series of weekly ups and downs. The weekly yo-yo may be partly explained by the fact that some processors are running alternative weekly killing patterns, according to people involved in the trade.
The price index is now 27p below where it stood a year ago, on the back of an imbalance of supply and demand, compounded by low EU prices.
The latest Tribune roundup of EU prices showed notable gains for the second week in a row in France and Spain, with prices again holding steady elsewhere.
The recent EU price gains have narrowed the gap between the headline UK and EU reference prices. The EU reference price (S-grade) was up by another 3p to 144.4p/kg during the week ended August 23, meaning it has gained nearly 10p in the space of a month. As a result, the gap to the UK reference price has narrowed to 40p, back from 49p in early August.
AHDB’s estimated GB clean pig slaughterings had been trending well above year-earlier levels during August. However, at 162,254 head during the week ended August 29, estimated slaughterings were 4,000 head down on the previous week and 3,500 head below the 2025 figure, although this might have had something to do with the timing of the bank holiday.
Average carcase weights continued to rise, gaining 0.13kg to stand at 90.88kg in the SPP sample, the fourth weekly increase in a row during which the average has increased by just over 1kg. Carcase weights are still just under 5g below the recent April peak and 1kg above year-earlier levels.
London feed wheat futures were quoted by AHDB on September 2 at around £219/t for November and January, £9 and £8 up on last week, respectively.