A number of cattle marts held their final sale of 2016 over the past couple of days and many have reported a positive trade.

Quality cattle continue to lead the way in many venues, while it also appears that there has been some increase in demand for the plainer cattle on offer.

Tullow Mart

Friday’s cattle sale in Tullow Mart closed with an aura of positivity, according to the Mart Manager Eric Driver, as many farmers supported the trade.

Driver said that beef and forward stores sold from €500-880 over, while the store steers on offer traded from €2.00-2.80/kg.

Looking at heifer prices, the forward lots on offer traded from €620-840 over and the lighter store classes on offer traded from €2.10-2.60/kg.

Driver added that cows sold briskly, with culls making from €1/kg for the feeding Friesian types up to €600 over for the young continental cows on offer.

Sample prices:

  • Charolais cow: 860kg – €1,450 or €1.69/kg
  • 6 Charolais steers: 440kg – €1,180 or €2.68/kg
  • 2 Charolais heifers: 145kg – €390 or €2.69/kg

Balla Mart

Balla Mart held its final sale of 2016 on Saturday, according to the Mart’s Anthony Murphy, and the trade remained pretty much unchanged from last week.

Store steers weighing 450kg and less traded from €1.38-3.05/kg, he said, while the heavier steers (+500kg) traded from €1.43-2.32/kg.

There was also 140 heifers on offer in the heifer ring, where the trade was similar to last week with store heifers selling from €1.89-2.84/kg, while the breeding heifers traded from €1.62-2.56/kg.

Looking at cow prices, Murphy said there was a good trade for the lots on offer with the top price being paid for a three-year-old Charolais springer that sold for €2,020, while the dry cows traded from €1.32-1.99/kg.

A smaller number of weanlings were also on offer, with the lighter bulls weanlings selling from €1.06-2.83/kg, while the heavier types sold from €2.01-2.14/kg.

Sample steer prices:

  • Charolais: 395kg – €935 or €2.37/kg
  • Charolais: 465kg – €1,080 or €2.32/kg
  • Charolais: 585kg – €1,285 or €2.20/kg
  • Charolais: 690kg – €1,425 or €2.07/kg
  • Charolais: 700kg – €1,435 or €2.05/kg

Raphoe Mart

There was a good entry of cattle in Raphoe Mart’s final cattle sale of the year on Thursday last, according to the Mart Manager Anne Harkin.

Harkin said that cattle continued to meet a good trade with the plainer lots on offer trading from €2.00/kg and more in most cases.

She added that quality cattle continued to remain sought after, with these lots selling from €2.20/kg and up.

The steers on offer traded from €2.00-2.60/kg, she said, while the store and beef steers traded from €400-675 over and €600-840 over.

Meanwhile, there was also a number of heifers on offer and these lots traded from €2.10-2.70/kg, with the beef classes making €500-730 over and the store classes sold from €300-535 over. The fat cows on offer also traded from €600-1,240/head.

Castlerea Mart

Some 520 cattle were on offer in Castlerea Mart’s final sale of the year and according to the Mart Manager Brendan Egan, the trade finished on a very positive note.

All three rings on the day reported a very positive trade, he said, with heifers in particular meeting a very strong demand, while both bull and heifer weanlings were very sought after.

The best of the heifers on offer sold from €2.12-2.87/kg, while the bull and weanling heifers made €2.50-3.30/kg and €2.40-3.41/kg respectively.

Sample heifer prices:

  • Limousin: 380kg – €1,090 or €2.87/kg
  • Charolais: 405kg – €1,065 or €2.63/kg
  • Belgian Blue: 455kg – €1,215 or €2.67/kg
  • Charolais: 460kg – €1,220 or €2.65/kg
  • Charolais: 580kg – €1,570 or €2.71/kg
  • Limousin: 540kg – €1,365 or €2.53/kg
  • Charolais: 520kg – €1,100 or €2.12/kg
  • Charolais: 490kg – €1,115 or €2.28/kg
  • Limousin: 386kg – €850 or €2.20/kg

Egan aslo said the bigger number of dry cows on offer met a firm trade, with the hammer falling on these lots from €1,100-1,675/head.