Varied monthly gross margin developments in livestock farming |
22/12/2023 |
The monthly gross margin for dairy farming in November 2023 was half that of a year earlier. The monthly gross margin of free-range chickens remained high, but was still below the high level of November 2022. Prices for broilers remained high with falling feed costs, making the monthly gross margin 28% higher than in November 2022. In pig farming, both fattening pig farms and sow farms recorded a significant improvement in the monthly gross margin in November. These sectors saw revenues increase while feed costs fell.
The gross margin for the standardised dairy farm was 16,200 euros in November 2023. This is half of the gross margin of November last year and 15% below the long-term average of this month. The milk price was lower in 2023 than in 2022 and resulted in lower yields. Feed costs were also lower than a year earlier. Dutch dairy prices decreased by 30 to 35% in the course of 2023 compared to 2022.
The gross margin for laying hens was about 82,000 euros per farm higher in November than during the third quarter. However, the gross margin was considerably lower than the high gross margin of November 2022 (111,000 euros). The egg prices rose compared to August, while feed prices fell. The rolling gross margin was about 1,2 million euros in November, significantly higher than the long-term average.
In November 2023, the gross margin for the broiler chicken sector was over 48,000 euros per farm, 14% higher than in January. Compared to November 2022, the increase was even 28%. The gross margin was lower than the gross margin achieved in the period March to October. Broiler prices remained high due to tight supply. Feed prices fell in 2023. The rolling gross margin was 6.13 euros per broiler in November, almost twice as high as the long-term average.
For the fattening pig sector, the monthly gross margin has been increasing since the beginning of the year and reached a peak of 35,000 euros in September. Compared to November 2022, the gross margin of fattening pigs in November was more than 15,000 higher in 2023. This was mainly due to increasing revenues and decreasing feed costs. The rolling annual gross margin of fattening pigs is climbing. In the last months of the year, the annual gross margin rose to 40,000 euros above the long-term average.
The year started strongly for sow farming due to significantly higher piglet prices, which rose until mid-June. The monthly gross margin was also the highest in this month and then fell 42% in the period from June to November 2023. The gross margin on sow farms in November was still more than 75,000 euros higher than in November last year. This was mainly due to the 40% higher revenues and 19% lower feed costs. The rolling annual gross margin for sows has been above the long-term average since March. In November the annual gross margin was more than 905,000 euros above the long-term average. |