Irish beef farmers can now apply for funding to help them cope with the impact of Brexit, which is already putting downward pressure on the prices for their products.

Markets for beef cattle were little changed in Brazil last week as tight supplies met with weak demand from meatpackers.

Brazil’s JBS, the world’s largest meatpacker, is boosting the capacity of plants authorised to supply the Chinese market as it looks to build on recent advances in the country.

Researchers in the UK have published a new study that questions the wisdom of imposing national livestock movement bans in the event of animal disease outbreaks.

Exports of red meat and offal from the UK have enjoyed a strong start to the year with shipments surpassing 300,000 tonnes – up 13% on 2018.

The Spanish organic agricultural area increased by 8% to 2.24 million hectares in 2018, strengthening its EU leadership, according to the Spanish ministry of agriculture (Mapa).

The EU pig market is once again heading strongly upwards, with increasing domestic demand and continuing strong Chinese export demand exerting upward pressure on prices.

Brazilian poultry prices came under pressure again last week as weak domestic sales offset a rise in exports.

Exports of red meat and offal from the UK have enjoyed a strong start to the year with shipments surpassing 300,000 tonnes – up 13% on 2018.

Cocoa and corn futures came under pressure last week as buyer support was hit by higher crop outlooks and jitters over the global economy. Markets for French butter and Indian guar gum also dipped, but prices for Spanish peaches and German pork edged higher.

European pig prices are rising again after a short downturn, as the dual drivers of low numbers of slaughter-ready pigs and continuing high import demand from China exert their influence on the market.

Numbers of livestock slaughtered in Brazil rose in the second quarter of this year, with cattle, chickens and pigs all following the same upward trend.

Japanese and Ukrainian authorities have agreed on veterinary certificates, allowing Ukrainian poultry exports to commence to Japan, according to the State Food and Beverage Service.

European broiler prices have held steady over the past week, sustaining the more stable market patterns noted over recent weeks.

Bulgarian poultry production should expand again this year as the sector fills gaps in pork supplies, which have been hit by outbreaks of African Swine Fever (ASF).

The proportion of EU egg output which is being produced to enhanced welfare standards is growing strongly – but it still accounts for only around half of the EU’s total layer hen flock, according to latest European Commission figures.

Brazilian poultry prices came under pressure again last week as weak domestic sales offset a rise in exports.

EU egg prices have risen for the third week in a row, as the market continues to lift from its summer low-point.

Exports of red meat and offal from the UK have enjoyed a strong start to the year with shipments surpassing 300,000 tonnes – up 13% on 2018.

European lamb prices have registered a slight uptick over the past week, with the Muslim Eid-al-Adha festival accounting for increased demand in leading sheepmeat producer countries. However, it remains to be seen whether this recovery will be sustained in the coming weeks.

The UK’s Department for the Environment, Food & Rural Affairs (Defra) has insisted it “will not hesitate” to provide direct support for certain agriculture sectors in the event of a ‘no-deal’ Brexit, following the publication of a report claiming up to half of farms in the UK could go bankrupt under such a scenario.

Australia’s trade ministry has published a list of 172 food and drink products that the European Union wants to be protected as Geographical Indications (GIs) under a future trade agreement between the two markets. The list includes a variety of dairy products as well as types of olive oil, meat and spices.

Despite strong warnings from the EU executive, Romania is going ahead with its large-scale exports of live sheep to the Persian Gulf.

Buyers in continental Europe are already shying away from UK meat because of fears of no-deal Brexit tariffs. But with cold stores full, and little chance of an early trade deal with the US, the industry has limited scope to adjust, according to the British Meat Processors’ Association, the BMPA.