Prices: For the week ending 14th March, the average reported deadweight price paid for Grade E pigs in Ireland held at €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 €2.06/kg. Across Europe, pig prices are showing signs of recovery, with consecutive price increases over 4 weeks. The EU average price for Grade E carcasses improved by €0.05/kg to €1.62/kg (excluding VAT) and is €0.21/kg below the corresponding week in 2025 (€1.83/kg). Poland and Germany both reported a price increase of €0.08/kg reflecting the upward shift in prices across the EU.
Throughput: Slaughter activity remains robust. Combined throughputs for the first 11 weeks of 2026 are just over 747,000 head, which is 33,000 head higher than the same period in 2025. For the week ending 14th March, total slaughtering’s amounted to 70,453 head, including 2,012 sows and 9 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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