There was plenty of farmer buyers for ewe lambs in Dowra Mart’s sheep sale on Saturday, according to the Mart Manager Terry McGovern.
McGovern said that nice speckled faced ewe lambs met a good trade and prices for these lots averaged €80/head, with a price range of €70-100 each.
The Mart Manager added that hogget sales are slow to take off, with just 10 pens of hogget ewes on offer on Saturday.
He said that the nicer type lots traded from €140-170 each, while the lighter mountain cross hogget ewes made €116.
Cast ewes are also meeting a strong trade, he said and the strong prices are making it easier for farmers to replace older breeding ewes with hoggets.
McGovern said that light feeder type cast ewes traded from €50-60 each, while the better quality fat ewes sold to a top price of €110 each.
Factory lambs also sold well, he said, with the best of the factory and forward store lambs selling from €92-112 and €70-90/head respectively.
While, the lighter mountain type store lamb sold from €42-57 each and the better quality lowland ‘middle of the road lamb’ traded from between €55-70/head.
Mountbellew Mart
There was a large number of sheep on offer in Mountbellew Mart on Saturday, according to the Mart Manager Marianne Higgins.
Higgins said both factory and ewe lambs met with a strong trade and these lots sold from €95-101/head and €100-128/head respectively.
Despite a good trade for store lambs last week, Higgins said store lambs met an easier trade on Saturday, especially for the lighter lots. In general store lambs traded from €2.07-2.33/kg.
She added that cast ewes met with a good trade, despite the larger number of lots on offer and these lots sold from €70-122 each.
The Mart Manager also said an increased number of breeding ewes and hogget ewes passed through the ring. Hogget ewes ranged in price from €135-175, she said, while first and second crop ewes made €110-160 and €100-146 respectively.
There was a particularly strong trade for ewe lambs in Carnew Mart on Thursday, according to the Mart Manager David Quinn.
Quinn said there was a larger number of sheep on offer, with 4,300 lots passing through the ring and he added that there was a strong trade for all classes, with prices similar to last week’s sale.
The Mart Manager said that ewe lambs traded from €94-118 each, while the butcher and factory lambs on offer sold for €95-111/head.
Store lambs also met with a similar trade to last week, he said, with prices for lambs weighing over 30kg ranging from €80-91, while the lighter lots (<35kg) sold for €65-86 each.
Looking at the ewes, Quinn said heavy cast ewes sold from €100-118, while the lighter cast lots made €50-90 each.
Hogget ewes traded from €130-195 each, while older breeding ewes made €90-140, he said.
Carnew Mart