Easter Slows April Cattle Slaughter

AUSTRALIA - Eastern states average weekly cattle slaughter collected by MLA's NLRS contracted eight per cent during April against the five-year average, according to analysts at Meat and Livestock Australia.
calendar icon 6 May 2011
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Meat & Livestock Australia

Cattle slaughter was lower across all states except for South Australia, with total throughput down 12 per cent year-on-year.

Cattle slaughter was hamstrung by two consecutive reduced trading weeks over the Easter break, effectively robbing processors of a full working week.

Wet weather again affected cattle supply, with rain in south-east Queensland leading into the Easter long weekend slowing turnoff. Similar weather patterns were experienced in the southern regions during the month, impeding cattle supply across NSW and Victoria.

Queensland cattle slaughter for April was just over 245,000 head, five per cent below the five-year average and 26 per cent below the previous month's total. NSW throughput fell four per cent compared with the five-year average, and a considerable 30 per cent on March 2011. Victorian cattle slaughter was 26 per cent lower than the five-year average.

Cattle quality was generally good during April, but did begin to slip towards the end of the month with the onset of cooler temperatures. As a result of the easing in quality, feeder buyers secured a higher proportion of supply over recent weeks.

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