December 29, 2022

UK beef output in November highest this year

UK beef and veal production in November 2022 reached 84,100 tonnes, 3.1% higher (2,500 tonnes) compared to October and 6.1% (4,800 tonnes) higher year-on-year, UK Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board reported.

The number of prime cattle slaughtered was 177,600 head, up 5.2% (8,800 head) from last year and 2.6% (4,600 head) from last month. For the fifth consecutive month, average carcase weights decreased slightly to 340.7 kg on average. This was 200 g (less than 0.1%) heavier than October weights and 1.6 kg (0.5%) lighter than November averages from the previous year.

The number of cattle slaughtered stood at 74,100, the highest monthly cattle throughput since November 2016. There was an increase of 5.1% (3,600 head) from October to November as well as an increase of 11.4% (7,600 head) from November of the previous year.

The pre-Christmas slaughter and producers attempting to relieve pressure on feed stocks as cattle are housed for the winter support throughput increases during the months of October and November. But a number of factors, including historically high cow prices that offer attractive returns, high input costs that squeeze margins, and regional forage pressures, may very well account for the higher kill rate this year.

An estimated 831,500 tonnes of beef have been produced in the UK so far this year (January to November), an increase of 1.4% from the same time last year. 1.82 million head of prime cattle were slaughtered, up 0.9% from the previous year, and 612,900 head of cows, up 4.8%.

-      UK Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board