Sow prices are currently running at almost double the level they were at this time last year due to increased demand for manufacturing meat.
To help producers
keep tabs on what is happening in this important market, the average price being
paid is now available on the BPEX website.
Prices are
currently running at around 126p per kg dw which is nearly double what they were
at the beginning of the year, having risen almost every week.
AHDBMS senior
market analyst Sue Fisher said: "Strong demand for sow meat on the Continent is
continuing to drive the price higher.
"In the first six
months of 2008, UK exports of carcase meat (primarily sow carcases) were up
4,000 tonnes on the same period last year to 21,000 tonnes.
"The export trade
in sow meat has been important to the British pig industry for many years with
the majority going to Germany and the Netherlands.
"This new service
from BPEX will help pig farmers keep abreast of exactly what is happening in the
sow market and the figures will be updated every Friday"
The price can be
accessed through the Market Intelligence section of the BPEX website, www.bpex.org.uk,
under the sub-section data.