Prices: For the week ending 21st March, the average reported deadweight price paid for Grade E pigs in Ireland increased by €0.01/kg to €1.72/kg (excluding VAT). Producer prices generally range from €1.74/kg-€1.78/kg across processors this week.
Current prices remain 16% lower than the same week last year, when prices averaged €2.07/kg. Across Europe, pig prices are showing signs of recovery, with consecutive price increases over the last 5 weeks. The EU average price for Grade E carcasses improved by €0.04/kg to €1.66/kg (excluding VAT) and is €0.19/kg below the corresponding week in 2025 (€1.85/kg). Poland and Austria reported a price increase of €0.07/kg and €0.09/kg respectively reflecting the upward shift in prices across the EU.
Throughput: Slaughter activity remains robust. Combined throughputs for the first 12 weeks of 2026 are just over 805,000 head, which is 36,000 head higher than the same period in 2025. For the week ending 21st March, total slaughtering’s amounted to 57,527 head, including 1,514 sows and 18 boars.
Overall, there has been a 4.8% increase in fattener pig throughput compared with the same period last year, signalling strong supply despite softer price trends.
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