Granard Mart in Co. Longford hosted its weekly weanling sale on Monday evening, October 6, with up to €7.80/kg paid for weanling bulls despite the absence of weanling exporters.

Speaking to Agriland after the sale, mart manager Jodie Reilly said there was no weanling exporters active in the sale but strong farmer demand saw the average sale price for weanling bulls reach €5.62/kg, up 18c/kg on last week.

He noted that in the same sale last year, weanling bulls averaged €3.26/kg, leaving this week's average bull sale price up by €2.36/kg year-on-year.

He said that the top price per kilo in the Monday sale was €7.80/kg paid by a farmer for a 290kg Charolais bull calf that made €2,260.

The average price per head for bulls at the Monday evening sale was just over €1,800/head, an increase of €625/head on the same sale last year.

The highest price per head was €2,560 or €7.21/kg, paid for a 355kg Charolais bull.

Heifers under 300kg made up to €7.29/kg for a 225kg Limousin heifer that made €1,640.

Weanling heifers in the 300-430kg weight bracket made up to €2,340/head for a 390kg Charolais heifer that equated to €6.00/kg.

Weanling sale at Carnew Mart

There were over 340 weanlings on offer at Carnew Mart in Co. Wicklow on Wednesday, October 1.

Some of the top weanling bull prices from the sale at Carnew Mart:

Four Charolais bulls averaging 258kg sold for €1,760/head or €6.82/kg;
340kg Limousin bull sold for €2,210 or €6.50/kg;
334kg Limousin bull sold for €2,160 or €6.47/kg;
296kg Limousin bull sold for €1,880 or €6.35/kg;

The mart's annual show and sale of Limousin-bred weanlings also took place on the evening with "a very lively trade", according to Carnew Mart's Eugene Clune.

Some of the top weanling heifer prices from Carnew Mart:

300kg Limousin heifer sold for €2,000 or €6.67/kg;
316kg Charolais heifer sold for €1,980 or €6.27/kg;
260kg Charolais heifer sold for €1,500 or €5.77/kg;
272kg Charolais heifer sold for €1,560 or €5.74/kg.

Clune said: "Quality bulls were being bought by both the farmers and exporters, with a smaller show of heifers selling to a very strong farmer trade."