Balla Mart in Co. Mayo hosted a weanling sale on Tuesday, November 19, with the number of weanlings on offer in the sale up by 100 head on the same time last year.
Speaking to Agriland after the sale, Balla Mart manager Michael Nolan said: “It’s great to see the trade remaining so strong and we will be having another weanling sale next Tuesday, November 26.
The mart manager explained that the number of weanling bull calves being sourced by customers for overseas markets is up significantly on other years with 45% of the 180 bull calves on offer in the weanling bull sale on Tuesday being purchased by exporters.
He said that other years, 30% of the calves purchased by exporters in a sale would have been considered strong demand. There were four different export customers buying at the sale.
He said that the export buyers are predominantly active for the top-end U grade bull calves but are buying “the R grade bull calves too”.
Commenting on some of the prices paid by exporters for weanling bulls, Nolan said: “There was a 455kg Limousin-cross bull calf that made €1,950 or €4.29/kg and another 330kg Belgian Blue calf made €1,460 or €4.42/kg.
Bulls in the 200-350kg weight range averaged €3.48/kg with the tops making over €4.00/kg and all bought by exporters. The bull weanlings weighing from 350-450kg averaged €3.32/kg.
Heavier bulls weighing over 450kg were up in price on last week’s sale and averaged €3.50/kg with the best of these all bought by exporters for prices around €3.50-4.00/kg.
In the weanling heifer sale, it was the farmer customers driving on the trade with a March-born Belgian Blue heifer calf out of ‘Tatoo’ weighing 385kg bought online for €2,020 or €5.25/kg.
Another March 2024 Belgian Blue heifer weighing 315kg sold online for €1,690 or €5.37/kg.
Lighter store heifers ranging from 200-350kg averaged €3.49/kg and heifers in the 350-450kg weight bracket averaged €3.44/kg.