Drumshanbo Mart in Co. Leitrim hosted its weekly general cattle sale on Friday, April 19, with over 450 cattle on offer.
The mart also had an an organic cattle and sheep sale on Saturday, April 20, with a good volume of cattle on offer also.
Speaking to Agriland after the sale, Eoin Kane, Drumshanbo Mart manager said there were approximately 440 cattle on offer at the Friday general cattle sale.
“There were approximately 100 dry cows, 30 springers, 150 heifers, 40 bullocks and 120 weanling bulls on offer.”
Sample prices from the weanling bull ring:
“Cattle were a good trade, any of the good light weanling bulls are being bought up by farmers.
The mart manager said: “A share of the store-type lighter ones would be bought by farmers to be fed as bullocks, and the better weanling bulls were mostly being bought by the exporters and feedlot customers.
Feedlot customers from up the country were buying them heavy calves. Some of the tops of them are making up to €4.00/kg and the general run of them are making from €3.40-4.00/kg for the good store calves.”
Sample prices from the dry cow ring:
In the heifer sale, he said: “Farmers are picking them up for feeding on for beef, and the odd good stylish heifer is being bought for breeding, they’re making great money but not that plentiful. There were only a few of them in it.
“Dry cows were a flying trade and cows made from €1,400 up to €2,000 for cows and some of them going over it.
“Feeders and factory agents buying cows and there’s a couple of farmers buying dry cows to keep for the seven months for the payments.”
He said the in-calf heifers “were making up to €1,800 and the good cow and calf would make over the €2,000 mark”.
Organic sale at Drumshanbo
The Co. Leitrim mart venue hosted its monthly organic sale on Saturday, April 20, and the trade “was flying it”, according to the mart manager.
He said: “There was something short of 500 cattle in it with a good trade and a lot of cattle and customers from surrounding counties.
“A lot of these cattle are all being bought up by the organic buyers with the commercial farmer finding it hard to compete for a lot of these.”
Sample prices from the organic cattle sale at Drumshanbo Mart:
- 520kg Charolais bullock sold for €1,850;
- 460kg Aubrac bullock sold for €1,670;
- 415kg Charolais bullock sold for €1,640;
- 290kg Belgian Blue bull sold for €1,400.
Female:
- 585kg Shorthorn heifer sold for €2,040;
- 520kg Angus heifer sold for €1,800;
- 330kg Charolais sold for €1,450;
- Two 290kg Angus heifers sold for €1,280.
Drumshanbo Mart hosts an organic sale of cattle and sheep on the second-last Saturday of every month as well as a general cattle sale every Friday evening.
The mart hosts a sheep sale on Thursday evenings and a horse and donkey sale on the last Saturday of every month.