The mart trade for heavy store cattle is being driven primarily by farmer finishers at present, according to one mart manager.
“It seems the farmer is going to buy away at the heavy store cattle,” Granard Mart manager Jody Reilly told Agriland.
“They’re giving more than they’d like to be giving, but they’re buying away at them.”
There were over 300 cattle at Granard Mart’s weekly cattle sale on Wednesday (October 12) and almost 400 cattle at the weekly weanling sale on Monday (October 10).
Commenting on the weanling trade, mart manager Jody Reilly said: “There’s a strong demand for Charolais weanlings and the export buyers are active for both the top-of-the-range bulls and the plainer bulls.”
In the Monday night weanling sale, the top price was €4.25/kg and it went to a 280kg Charolais bull calf selling for €1,190.
“There’s a few select buyers here every week looking for the top-spec weanlings and they’re willing to pay that bit extra for the right one,” Jody explained.
“There’s a lot of weanlings making around the €3/kg mark and the plainer-type weanlings are making €2.50-€2.60/kg.”
Wednesday’s sale
Commenting on Wednesday’s general cattle sale, Jody said: “There wasn’t a lot of finished beef cattle in the sale this week but there was a strong demand for the store bullocks and heifers.”
Jody noted that there was particular interest in the lighter store heifers weighing from 400-450kg and said: “If there were 200 more of them here, you could have sold them easily but they seem to be scarce the past week or two.
“There’s a good demand for the forward store cattle as farmers buying for sheds are still keen for heavy stores.”
Sample bullock prices:
“Bullocks from 650kg to 700kg are making round the €2.50-2.70/kg mark with the better of them at €2.80/kg. The tops of the Charolais bullocks were hitting €3/kg a week or two ago but they’re probably back at about €2.80/kg now,” the mart manager continued.
“Farmers buying the lighter bullocks weighing 500kg or less are probably storing them for the winter and going to grass again next spring.
“The farmers that are winter finishing are buying a heavier beast at €2.50 or €2.60/kg for a short feed.”
Sample heifer prices:
“There was only a few cattle crossed €3/kg this week there was lot more cattle making it last week but there was slightly different type of cattle in it last week,” he said.
Jody believes most beef finishers who sold cattle this year got on well and are returning to buy “with plenty of power”.
“Farmers going back out to buy now are after finishing cattle this summer and got out at great prices so they’re fairly fit going back in,” he said.
Commenting on the feedlot activity, Jody said it has been “slow” for the past number of weeks.
He added that these feedlot finishers are buying up some cattle at the weekly sale and are generally buying the plainer-type cattle around the 500kg mark.
“They wouldn’t be buying the real top ones,” he added.
Cow trade
Jody said that the plain store cows are making in and around the €2/kg mark and the top-end continental cull cows are making as high as €2.60-2.70/kg.
The top price in the cow ring went to a 650kg Limousin cow that sold for €1,750 or €2.69/kg.
Sample cow prices:
The Friesian cow trade is varying depending on the type, according to Jody.
“Bare, thin cows are down as low as €1/kg and less, while the better-type of a Friesian cow would get into €1.20 to €1.30/kg,” he said.
Jody expressed confidence on the trade going forward and added that Granard Mart is always looking for additional buyers and sellers at its weekly weanling and general cattle sales.