Sheep Industry News May 2022

ASI Looking for Producers for ALB, NSIIC Board Nominations

T he U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agricultural Marketing Service is requesting nominations to the American Lamb Board and National Sheep Industry Improvement Center board of directors. ASI is certified to nominate individuals to serve on both boards and is requesting nominations by May 15 to forward to USDA/ AMS. USDA requires a minimum of two nominees for each im pending vacancy. For ALB, nominations are needed to succeed members that in clude one producer with 100 or less lambs, one producer with more than 500 lambs, one feeder at-large, and one first handler. Any American producer, feeder or first handler who owns or purchases lambs may be considered for nomination. To satisfy the requirements of the Lamb Promotion and Research Order, the producers with 100 or less lambs or the producers with more than 500 lambs can be from either of ALB’s two regions: the area east of the Mississippi River or the area west of the Mississippi River. The at-large feeder nominees must be from Region 1: the area east of the Mississippi River. Nomination forms are available at SheepUSA.org/resources albnominations and must be submitted to ASI Executive Director Peter Orwick at peter@sheepusa.org by May 15.

The NSIIC vacancies are created by members whose terms will expire at the end of the board’s winter meeting in early 2023. This year, two vacant positions will occur for the 2023 board. There is one vacancy for a sheep producer and one vacancy for a person with expertise in finance and management. Marsha Spyker man is not eligible for renomination as a producer and Francisco Iturriria is not eligible for renomination as an expert in finance and management. AMS’ policy is that diversity of the boards it oversees should reflect the diversity of their industries in terms of the experience of members, methods of production and distribution, marketing strategies, and other distinguishing factors, including but not lim ited to individuals from historically underserved communities that will bring different perspectives and ideas to the table. Throughout the full nomination process, the industry must conduct extensive outreach, paying particular attention to reaching underserved com munities, and consider the diversity of the population served and the knowledge, skills and abilities of the members to serve a diverse population. Nomination forms are available at SheepUSA.org/resources nsiicnominations and must be submitted to Orwick at peter@ sheepusa.org by May 15.

MARKET REPORT Continued from Page 7

The smaller than expected pace to lamb and yearling slaughter through the first quarter of this year has led to the Livestock Marketing Information Cen ter revising its 2022 slaughter forecast to 2.135 million head – down 5 percent from last year. Weights are expected to trend approximately 1 percent below 2021, leading to a more than 6 percent decline in lamb production to 129.1 million pounds for the year. The lower production is expected to keep slaughter lamb prices (national negotiated live) above a year ago by about 5 percent with a range of $221 to $236 per cwt. this year. Feeder lamb prices (three-market aver age, Colo., S.D. and Texas) for the year are forecast at $293 to $305 per cwt, up 10 percent from last year. Recent data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics on the Consumer Price Index

showed inflation jumped 8.5 percent in March. This is the highest inflation rate since December of 1981, which was 8.9 percent. Inflationary pressures are likely to be a headwind to the larger macro economy, but the demand for meat looks optimistic. For lamb demand, the lamb cutout value averaging more than $6 per pound since late-July last year is an indication that demand remains robust. Further, the American Lamb Board study conducted in October 2021 showed that heavy lamb purchasers tend to be college-educated millennials with fami lies making more than $100,000 a year and live in urban areas. This would suggest that heavy lamb users have a higher degree of disposable income, allowing them some flexibility to absorb the elevated lamb prices.

price since late-July last year. Compared to the same week a year ago, the lamb cutout value was 39 percent – or $1.66 per pound – higher. Similar jumps in prices have also occurred in most lamb cuts. This year, the shoulder has averaged more than $4.77 per pound through the first quarter – a 31 percent increase from last year. The first quarter average price of legs was more than $5.90 per pound – up 31 percent from 2021. The average loin price has increased 36 percent from a year ago to $9.37 per pound. The rack has been the most impressive lamb cut as it has seen the largest increase, rising 58 percent during the first quarter to more than $15 per pound.

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