Spring lambs top €190/head at Tullow Mart

“If we had another 200 spring lambs we would have sold them no problem, there was a serious demand and trade for what spring lambs were here on Tuesday.”

These were the words of Tullow Mart’s manager, Eric Driver, who reported a super trade for all types of sheep at Tuesday’s sale (March 23).

70 spring lambs were on offer on the day, with a top price of €190/head achieved for a pen weighing 44kg.

The run of prices for spring lambs on the day ranged from €170/head, up to €190/head for 40-44kg lambs.

Speaking to Agriland about the day’s trade, Eric said: “There was a serious demand for spring lambs, in fact for all types of sheep. If we had more spring lambs on the day we would have sold them no problem.”

Eric said that like the spring lambs, the hogget trade was flying, despite “talks of them being back in the factories” with prices nearly touching the €180/head mark.

He added: “Hogget prices were on the rise again on Tuesday, with the tops reaching €178/head. They were talking them back in the factories but there were no signs of it here in Tullow.

Those 48-53kg hoggets sold from €170/head up to €178/head. They were real good-quality, fleshed hoggets, with lesser-quality types of similar weight making from €160/head up to €170/head.

“The mid-40kg hoggets made from €140/head up to €160/head for 45-46kg. Going backwards again, [those] lighter stores sold from €120/head up to €140/head, with one pen of 33kg making €110/head – which was a fabulous price for them.

“Then the cast ewes… all I can say is ‘wow’. We saw a top price of €185/head for a pen of 125kg ewes. They were big sows of ewes and boy did they return the money.

“Ewes in around the 100kg mark sold from €155/head up to €165/head. All in all, it was a super trade for [the] heavy ewes.

“Then ewes with lambs at foot, aged ewes with single lambs at foot sold from €140/unit up to €220/unit for younger ewes with single lambs. Then ewes with doubles sold up to €325/unit,” Eric concluded.