There was a large entry of dry cows forward for sale in Elphin on Monday night, with farmers making the most of the continued strong cow trade.

This March 2013-born Limousin cow weighed 740kg and sold for €1,420 (€1.92/kg).

Speaking to Elphin Mart’s Gerry Connellan, he said that although the overall quality of cows was back slightly on the previous week, trade remained steady.

This April 2017-born Limousin cow weighed 560kg and sold for €990 (€1.77/kg).

Northern buyers continue to be prevalent in the market, not just for cows, with a number of weanlings heading north from this week’s sale also.

Cows averaged €1.76/kg. The top third of cows averaged €2.04/kg, while trade topped out at €2.23/kg for a 2014-born Limousin-cross cow weighing 600kg (€1,570).

This April 2015-born Charolais weighed 705kg and sold for €1,390 (€1.97/kg).

Commenting on the large sales of dry cows, Connellan said that it looks set to continue over the coming weeks, with big numbers booked again for next week’s sale.

This April 2015 -born Limousin weighed 760kg and sold for €1,280 (€1.68/kg).

There are two reasons for this he feels, with farmers taking full advantage of the a positive trade, while, in other instances, some are offloading cows earlier than normal in order to meet the BEAM 5% organic nitrogen reduction requirements.

This April 2015-born Angus cow weighed 800kg and sold for €1,440 (€1.80/kg).