Enniscorthy Mart held its weekly calf sale on Wednesday, March 23 ,with over 600 calves on offer at Co. Wexford-based mart.

The sale saw a reduced number of Friesian bull calves on offer, with the bulk of calves on offer made up of continental sires, Aberdeen Angus and Herefords sires.

According to Eanna Harrington from Enniscorthy Mart, "there was a much stronger trade this week, with Friesian bulls up €30 to €50/head in some cases after a much tougher trade last week due to the double bank holiday.

Starting with the Friesian bull calves, the majority of the better-quality Friesian bulls were purchased by farmers, both ringside and online. These ranged from €120 up to €250.

The prices were propped up by export agents which competed strongly for calves from €50 to €100, with a particular interested in those Friesians offered in groups.

The softer Friesian bulls are becoming less plentiful and sold generally from €30 to €50.

Some sample Friesian prices:

According to Eanna there was also a small number of Friesian heifers on offer which sold from €150 to €230, for those suitable for breeding.

Moving to the continental calves on offer at Enniscorthy Mart on Wednesday which, according to Eanna, remained an excellent trade.

The heifer calves sold from €190, up to a top price of €515 for a four-week-old Hereford-cross heifer out of a Belgian Blue-cross cow.

The bulls sold from €200 up to €440 for a good Belgian Blue.

Some sample Continental prices:

Looking at the Aberdeen Angus and Hereford calves on offer, which sold very well on the day also, theese ranged from €140 for the lighter heifers up to €330 for a good Hereford heifer; their male counterparts ranged from €170 up to €360.

Some sample Hereford and Angus prices:

Summing up Eanna stated: "Overall, another big sale and a better trade throughout for all calf types.

"The suck calves in general remain in big demand from local farmers all looking for those good quality calves."