New measures have been implemented at marts for the six-week Level 5 coronavirus restriction period. There are no bidders allowed around the mart ring to purchase cattle and sellers must drop livestock and leave.
The directed measures are largely similar to those put in place in April and May. Marts may only facilitate online sales.
All potential buyers must contact the mart manager to arrange and get approval to view livestock before the sale.
After their first day of trading under the new measures, mart managers have their say.
‘It’s better than nothing but it’s not the full shilling’
Anne Harkin, Raphoe Livestock Mart, Donegal
“Online is not ideal. We had 260 cattle booked in for today and only 130 showed up. Farmers are reluctant to sell and others are even more reluctant to buy.
“Farmers are not overly happy and are cautious of buying anything online never mind handing over more than €1,000 for an animal they’ve never seen.
“Online is okay when it’s used as a guide for prices, but people aren’t fully confident to make purchases in this way. A lot of our bidders are older customers who simply aren’t up to speed with this technology.
“We went to great efforts to ensure our mart was a safe location to do business and it’s disappointing to have found ourselves in this position. People need to work hard with new measures now and see if we can get opened up again.
“There’s no easy solution to this, the online is better than nothing, but it’s not the full shilling. We will play it by ear for now, but it’s really important the Government stops toing and froing on measures and let us get on with business.”
‘Sellers will get braver as time goes on’
Michael Lynch, Kilkenny Mart
“These first few sales are the guinea pigs to see how running fully online will work. So far so good though. It will be interesting to see after if there has been any effect on prices.
“We have 1,000 cattle here today and there likely would have been another 200 if buyers were allowed to be around the ring. These cattle will all have to be sold and sellers will get braver as time goes on.
“Buyers were allowed to view the cattle from the catwalks before the sale. There was a bit of resistance to this, with many wanting to get down to the pens for viewing.
“Ideally, we would be able to allow for longer viewing times and let people down to the pens, but circumstances at the minute won’t allow this.
“Of course, I’d prefer we had buyers around the ring but we’ll have to just sit tight for a few weeks and see what can be done then.”
‘Obvious barriers to trade’
Brendan Egan, Castlerea Mart, Roscommon
“There’s plenty of headaches with the online, but we are managing okay. We have 900 cattle booked in today and we have 300 sold.
“Broadband connection wouldn’t just be up to speed here. You can’t plaster without sand and cement. You can’t run a sale hitch-free without a good connection, so it’s a task to get the right tools in place.
“Some fellas don’t know what to make of the online, so were a bit put off today. Other farmers don’t have a phone, never mind an internet connection, so there are some obvious barriers there.
“We did our best to make the ring as safe as possible, with all the markings on the ground and various precautions. It’s a bit of a slap on the face to have to go this way now.
“We are hoping we can get past these teething problems and get the system to level off. It’s going to disturb trade a bit, but we’ll have to get on with it for the minute.”
Read more
Department outlines mart operations during Level 5
‘Grim future’ for marts in areas of poor broadband coverage
Coronavirus Level 5: how marts will work
New measures have been implemented at marts for the six-week Level 5 coronavirus restriction period. There are no bidders allowed around the mart ring to purchase cattle and sellers must drop livestock and leave.
The directed measures are largely similar to those put in place in April and May. Marts may only facilitate online sales.
All potential buyers must contact the mart manager to arrange and get approval to view livestock before the sale.
After their first day of trading under the new measures, mart managers have their say.
‘It’s better than nothing but it’s not the full shilling’
Anne Harkin, Raphoe Livestock Mart, Donegal
“Online is not ideal. We had 260 cattle booked in for today and only 130 showed up. Farmers are reluctant to sell and others are even more reluctant to buy.
“Farmers are not overly happy and are cautious of buying anything online never mind handing over more than €1,000 for an animal they’ve never seen.
“Online is okay when it’s used as a guide for prices, but people aren’t fully confident to make purchases in this way. A lot of our bidders are older customers who simply aren’t up to speed with this technology.
“We went to great efforts to ensure our mart was a safe location to do business and it’s disappointing to have found ourselves in this position. People need to work hard with new measures now and see if we can get opened up again.
“There’s no easy solution to this, the online is better than nothing, but it’s not the full shilling. We will play it by ear for now, but it’s really important the Government stops toing and froing on measures and let us get on with business.”
‘Sellers will get braver as time goes on’
Michael Lynch, Kilkenny Mart
“These first few sales are the guinea pigs to see how running fully online will work. So far so good though. It will be interesting to see after if there has been any effect on prices.
“We have 1,000 cattle here today and there likely would have been another 200 if buyers were allowed to be around the ring. These cattle will all have to be sold and sellers will get braver as time goes on.
“Buyers were allowed to view the cattle from the catwalks before the sale. There was a bit of resistance to this, with many wanting to get down to the pens for viewing.
“Ideally, we would be able to allow for longer viewing times and let people down to the pens, but circumstances at the minute won’t allow this.
“Of course, I’d prefer we had buyers around the ring but we’ll have to just sit tight for a few weeks and see what can be done then.”
‘Obvious barriers to trade’
Brendan Egan, Castlerea Mart, Roscommon
“There’s plenty of headaches with the online, but we are managing okay. We have 900 cattle booked in today and we have 300 sold.
“Broadband connection wouldn’t just be up to speed here. You can’t plaster without sand and cement. You can’t run a sale hitch-free without a good connection, so it’s a task to get the right tools in place.
“Some fellas don’t know what to make of the online, so were a bit put off today. Other farmers don’t have a phone, never mind an internet connection, so there are some obvious barriers there.
“We did our best to make the ring as safe as possible, with all the markings on the ground and various precautions. It’s a bit of a slap on the face to have to go this way now.
“We are hoping we can get past these teething problems and get the system to level off. It’s going to disturb trade a bit, but we’ll have to get on with it for the minute.”
Read more
Department outlines mart operations during Level 5
‘Grim future’ for marts in areas of poor broadband coverage
Coronavirus Level 5: how marts will work
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