Sheep sales in recent days have shown there is a significant demand for heavy, fat lambs that are being sold at marts across the country.
Auctioneer at Kingscourt Mart, Nigel Gilmer said that “the factory lamb and the butcher lamb is in good demand” at the moment.
Demand for the heavier and well fleshed lambs is owed to the poor condition of many lambs that are being brought to the mart.
Gilmer said: “There’s not enough feeding being put into lambs. There’s a lot of lambs coming in to the mart with not enough flesh on them.”
This can be rectified, according to Gilmer, who referred to a farmer at the mart who had only recently begun to buy meal for his lambs, but had found that his lambs were “weighing better”, had “more flesh on them”.
Kingscourt Mart
Kingscourt Mart in Co. Cavan held a sheep sale on bank holiday Monday (October 30), where the auctioneer at the sale, Nigel Gilmer said there was “variation” in the weights of the store lambs that were brought to the sale.
Prices at the sale included:
- 33kg lambs sold for €85;
- 34.4kg lambs fetched €83;
- 35kg lambs sold for €80;
- 43kg lambs sold for €115;
- 57kg cull ewes fetched a price of €68;
- A 80kg cull ram sold for €76.
However, Gilmer said that the lighter lambs (25kg to 33kg) were “not in big demand”.
Dowra Mart
On Friday, October 27, Dowra Mart in Co. Cavan saw significant numbers of sheep pass through the ring during its sheep sale.
There were over 2,200 sheep sold, with heavy lambs fetching prices of €153.50/head, and store lambs reaching €104.50.
Sample prices for fat lambs sold:
- 11 at 52kg/head sold for €153.50;
- Seven at 49kg/head sold for €150.50;
- 62 at 51kg/head sold for €149;
- 28 at 49kg/head sold for €145;
- 23 at 48kg/head sold for €143;
- 16 at 45kg/head sold for €141;
- 22 at 46kg/head sold for €139.50;
- 13 at 43kg/head sold for €134.50;
- 21 at 44kg/head sold for €132.
Sample prices for store lambs sold:
- 17 at 38kg/head sold for €104.50;
- Six at 35kg/head sold for €99;
- 21 at 34kg/head sold for €94;
- 21 at 32kg/head sold for €92;
- 18 at 34.5kg/head sold for €90;
- 10 at 27kg/head sold for €80.50;
- Eight at 29kg/head sold for €75.
Raphoe Mart
A sheep sale at Raphoe Mart saw an improved trade around the ring during a bank holiday Monday (October 30) sale.
In what was a “good entry”, according to the Co. Donegal mart, heavy lambs fetched prices of up to €150/head.
Lambs sold at:
- €70 to €90 for 28-33kg;
- €90 to €110 for 33-40kg;
- €110 to €130 for 40-45kg;
- €130 to €150 for 45-55kg.
Fat ewes sold at Raphoe Mart from €40/head to €140/head on the day, showing a significant variation of prices for sheep at the marts.