The sheep trade continues to come under pressure, with reduced factory quotes for finished hoggets affecting sales this week. Cull ewes were the exception, with a real solid trade for good-quality cull ewes in Blessington Mart.
The sale of over 870 fat and breeding ewes, along with hoggets, met a steady trade which resulted in a 95% clearance rate.
Store hoggets weighing between 35-40kg remain solid, with the hammer falling at between €80 to €105/head for most lots. Speaking to the Irish Farmers Journal, auctioneer John Doyle said: ''The store hogget trade was very similar to last week, with a mixture of farmers and larger feeders still looking for lambs."
At the other end of the spectrum, better quality hoggets ready-to-kill weighing over 45kg were back €2-€3 per head on last week's prices, coming in at €108 to €130/head.
The lighter poorer quality lambs were back by as much as €5/head on the previous week's trading.
@farmersjournal at Blessington mart for Tuesday’s general sheep sale. This pen of 5 cull ewes weighed at 79kg and sold for €130 each @FJSheep pic.twitter.com/1rfLFgX4si
— Niamh (@Niamh_gunn) January 18, 2022
The cull ewe trade remains good, with an overall rise in price of €5 per head compared to last week.
Heavier ewes weighing up to 95kg remain a very strong trade, selling from €140 to €176/head. Prices for lighter ewes ranged from €86 to €136 per head.
@farmersjournal at Blessington mart for Tuesday’s general sale of sheep. This pen of 3 ewe lambs weighed at 45 kg sold at €136 each. @FJSheep pic.twitter.com/Z63YXFy2J8
— Niamh (@Niamh_gunn) January 18, 2022
"Overall, we were happy with the trade. It’s a quiet time of the year and numbers are always smaller in January before the big spring sales get busy," Doyle said.
Blessington Mart will hold a special sale of 100 Suffolk cross ewes on Tuesday 1 February 2022.
In pictures