Corrin Mart saw an exceptional lamb trade at the annual Christmas fatstock sheep show and sale.

Top sellers were butchers’ lambs in the 49kg to 54kg weight range. These sold from €115 to €140, with most making between €2.15/kg and €2.50/kg.

A few select lots broke this, with a top price of €200 for 53.2kg (€3.71/kg) paid for the show class winners.

Lighter lambs under 48kg were making similar money, although the lighter lots were getting closer to €2/kg than €2.50/kg.

Speaking after the sale, mart manager Sean Leahy said: “The quality of sheep was top class, with a lot of Charolais, Suffolk and Texel lambs in it, the heavy tight wool sheep, and they sold well.”

Commenting on recent trade, he said: “There was a good solid trade overall, up about €4 to €5 on last week. There were a lot of butchers and wholesalers around trying to fill up for the Christmas market and they just wanted numbers because they will need them.”

Describing the 2018 sheep trade at the Fermoy venue, Sean said: “We’ll sell just under 20,000 sheep this year. Numbers-wise, we’re back slightly, but you can see it around the country, it’s an aging demographic. There isn’t many young people ringside. But saying that, there was a solid trade and loads of demand.”

Cull ewes were a good trade, with prices ranging from €70 to €124 per head.

Entry fee is 60c/head payable by the seller. Commission is 1.33%, subject to a minimum of €1.60/head.