Castlerea Mart’s show and sale brought with it quality cattle in both the weanling and fat cattle section, with classes for continental heifers and Belgian Blue weanlings.

Exporters were active to lock in quality weanlings for shipping, while farmer activity was also present ringside, while factory agents competed against one another for the high-end finished lots.

Averages across all weight brackets of heifers was up on the week prior, with the pre-sale show encouraging quality lots out, but also more buyers.

Some 118 heifers weighing 400kg to 500kg sold to an average of €4.76/kg, up 29c/kg on the week prior, with the top third of heifers averaging €5.70/kg, up a strong 50c/kg on last week’s sale.

Forward store and finished dairy-beef heifers in the 500kg to 600kg bracket, totalling 43, managed to average over €5/kg, up 56c/kg on the week previous (€4.55/kg), with heifers in the bottom third up from €3.80/kg to €4.36/kg.

Prizewinners

Many heifers in the 600kg-plus weight were prizewinners, with the quality of stock reflecting the high average price, with heifers averaging 4.64/kg, up 60c/kg on the week prior.

A small number of light bulls weighing 200kg to 300kg were present, averaging €6.43/kg, with even the bottom third of bulls averaging a strong €5.77/kg.

Bulls in the 300kg to 400kg bracket were most plentiful in numbers, with keen demand from exporters, feedlot buyers and farmers alike, mainly the two former.

Bulls of this weight averaged €5.46/kg, meaning a calf weighing 350kg would sell for €1,911/head. Top-end bulls of this weight sold to an average of €5.98/kg.

A smaller number of bulls in the 400kg to 450kg bracket were down slightly in price on the week prior, averaging €5.16/kg, though numbers were also smaller.

Heavy bulls above 450kg averaged €5.56/kg, up 30c/kg on the week before.

Weanling heifers were a slightly stickier trade, but good prices were still paid for good-quality U and R grading heifers. Those from 200kg to 300kg averaged €6.23/kg, down 22c/kg on the week before.

Heifers in the 300kg to 400kg bracket were plentiful, with prices averaging €5.16/kg, down 11c/kg on the week before, though the bottom third of heifers in this weight bracket averaged €4.53/kg, up 8c/kg on last week.

A small number of heavier heifer weanlings over 400kg averaged €4.95/kg, with the top third averaging €5.56/kg.