Ballinasloe Mart’s general sale of sheep on Thursday evening witnessed a steady trade for lambs and cull ewes.
The general run of prices for well-fleshed lambs weighing from 49kg to 52kg ranged from €175 to €180 per head, with a small number of lambs at such weights but lacking flesh cover, selling back to €170 per head.
The trade for lighter lots was heavily dependent on potential slaughter performance.
Lambs weighing 46kg to 47kg sold on average from €160 to €167 for lots with a nice cover of flesh, while those lacking flesh sold back to the mid-€150s.
Likewise, lambs weighing from 44kg to 45kg sold anywhere from €140 to €150 for good-quality stores, with some ewe lambs with breeding potential rising to the high-€150s.
Lighter stores weighing around the 40kg mark sold from upwards of €125 for lesser-quality types to €140 per head.
The general run of prices for lighter store lambs ranged from €3.30/kg to €3.60/kg, for well-presented lowland lambs.
Some lots of lambs, lacking flesh cover, sold back to €3.10/kg to €3.20/kg – with a couple of batches of light Scottish Blackface lambs that wouldn’t be typical in the sale selling below the €3/kg mark.
Breeding ewes
A handful of lots of good-quality ewe hoggets sold from €278 to €300 per head, with a couple of lots of small-framed hoggets selling back to €200 per head.
The best-quality cull ewes sold from €2.30/kg to €2.55/kg, with some lesser-quality and feeding types selling from €2.10/kg to €2.20/kg.
These quality Charollais-cross lambs weighing 52kg, sold for €180 each (€3.46/kg).
These well-fleshed Charollais-cross lambs weighing 49.5kg, sold for €180 (€3.63/kg).
These good-quality Suffolk-cross lambs weighing 51kg, sold for €178 (€3.49/kg).
The ram lambs at back weighing 42kg sold for €147 each (€3.50/kg). The pair of lambs with an orange line weighing 53kg, sold for €170 (€3.21/kg).
These Suffolk-cross ewe lambs weighing 47.5kg were bid to €171 (€3.60/kg) but not sold.
These Texel-cross ewe lambs weighing 44kg sold for €159 each (€3.61/kg).
These Texel-cross ewe lambs weighing 36kg, sold for €132 (€3.67/kg).
These Scottish Blackface ram lambs weighing 27kg, sold for €65 each (€2.41/kg).
These Suffolk-cross ram lambs weighing 43kg were bid to €130 each (€3.02/kg) but not sold.
These Suffolk-cross lambs with a mixed cover of flesh weighing 46kg, sold for €135 each (€2.94/kg).
With an average weight of 43kg, these nice-quality Suffolk lambs sold for €143 each (€3.97/kg).
Weighing 42kg, these mainly Suffolk-cross lambs sold for €147 each (€3.50/kg).
Weighing 52kg, these Suffolk-cross lambs sold for €175 each (€3.37/kg).
This batch of mixed breed ram lambs weighing 30kg, sold for €113 each (€3.77/kg).
Weighing 51kg on average, these well-fleshed ram lambs sold for €175 each (€3.43/kg).
This batch of six Charollais-cross lambs weighing 44kg, sold for €150 (€3.41/kg).
These three Suffolk lambs weighing 47.5kg, sold for €163 each (€3.43/kg).
Weighing 33kg, these Charollais-cross ram lambs sold for €112 (€3.39/kg).
These mixed breed lambs weighing 37kg, sold for €120 per head (€3.24/kg).
This batch of light ram lambs with no weight displayed were sold subject, at €81 per head.