“Up to €6.50/kg is available for lambs as prices push on this week, with deals for lambs of weights up to 21.5kg being done with factories.”
This is according to the sheep chair of the Irish Farmers’ Association (IFA), Sean Dennehy.
Sean said factory prices for lambs rising this week, along with a good mart trade and strong breeding sales, is creating great optimism in the sheep sector.
He added: “It’s been another positive week so far, with prices pushing on 10c/kg and deals up to €6.50/kg available for lambs.
“Excluding this year and last year, prices at this time of the year would tend to have fallen back to €4.70-4.90/kg in previous years.
“In my time, I have never seen prices like we are seeing now.
“So it’s great to see where they are at and if supplies stay tight, who knows what could happen over the next while – it could even get more positive.
“Deals are also being done for lambs up to 21.5kg, so sell hard while the market is strong,” Sean advised.
Sean added that deals for ewes continue to range from €3.40-3.60/kg, with factories looking to get whatever they can get their hands on.
Speaking about the mart trade, Sean explained: “The mart trade has picked up in line with rising factory prices and the store lamb trade has also strengthened, with prices stronger by €5/head in the space of a week.
“Breeding sales are also performing strongly and overall it is very positive,” he concluded.