Prices: For the week ending 15th August, the average reported deadweight price paid for Grade E pigs in Ireland has held at €1.67/kg for the third consecutive week (excluding VAT). Producer prices have returned to the range of €1.68/kg-€1.72/kg across processors this week.
Current prices remain 16% lower than the same week last year, when prices averaged €2.00/kg. Across Europe, pig prices are showing signs of downward pressure. The EU average price for Grade E carcasses increased by €0.03/kg, to €1.58/kg (excluding VAT) and is €0.44/kg below the corresponding week in 2025 (€2.02/kg). Some EU member state’s prices experienced price increases, with Germany and Austria’s price rising by €0.09/kg and €0.10/kg respectively
Throughput: Slaughter activity remains robust. Combined throughputs for the first 33 weeks of 2026 are over 2,190,424 head, which is just over 76,000 head higher than the same period in 2025. For the week ending 15th August, total slaughtering’s amounted to 69,893 head, including 2,207 sows and 3 boars.
Overall, there has been a 3.4% increase in fattener pig throughput compared with the same period last year, signalling strong supply despite softer price trends.
Market Trends
See our weekly updated market trends.
