As the prestigious Livestock Event kicks off at the NEC, latest figures show that while the retail price of lamb for consumers is lower in the spring of 2015, compared to the spring of 2014, it has not fallen anywhere near as much as the farmer’s share of that retail price which has dropped from 60 per cent to 50 per cent over the past year.
 
Lower retail prices are good for consumers, and will help bolster demand for lamb which has been falling year on year.  But consumers aren’t seeing as much of a drop in price as farmers are, which begs the question – who is profiting from lamb?
 
The graph below, from AHDB, shows that the share of the retail price of lamb received by the farmer has tracked below the level received in 2014, and well below the returns received in 2013. Retail prices paid by consumers have also fallen, but not by as much.

NFU livestock board chair Charles Sercombe commented, “The farmgate price of lamb is reaching critically low levels this spring.  Farmers know that markets are more volatile than they have ever been, but they will be galled to see that while their share of the retail price is falling, that fall-off is not being fully reflected in the price on the shelves.  Everyone in the supply chain needs to make a sustainable margin, but it looks like both ends of this supply chain – farmers and consumers – are getting a raw deal at the moment.  It begs the question – who’s profiting from lamb?”
 
The NFU chair has asked the industry to develop risk management tools to help farmers to deal with volatile markets. He added, “I’ve recently put four key asks at the door of retailers, and this week’s latest figures make those asks more critical than ever.  We want a fair deal for farmers, and a fair deal for consumers, so my call to retailers is to act now – and deliver that fair deal.”

Meanwhile, Plaid Cymru has called on the Welsh government to take emergency measures to protect farmers in light of falling prices for lamb and dairy products. The party's shadow Agriculture Minister Llyr Gruffydd said "It is imperative that the Welsh Government steps in" over lamb prices, and has tabled a debate in the Senedd. Plaid proposes using Rural Development funding to support struggling farmers and said supermarkets have a duty of cair to their suppliers, which must be honoured. 

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