Portumna Mart had a big show of heifer weanlings for its annual autumn show and sale on Monday evening.
Deteriorating ground conditions in the west have meant that many suckler farmers have chosen to house cows and sell weanlings rather than house them as well.
Exporter activity is very good for all types of bull calves and farmer activity is also very solid for heifer calves.
Taking a look at the prices at Monday night’s sale in the heifer ring, quality weanling heifers in the 300kg to 400kg weight bracket came in at €3.35/kg.
Average heifers in the same weight bracket sold for €2.86/kg, while plainer heifer calves were back at €2.34/kg.
Heavy heifers
Heavy heifers saw a lot of interest. Top-end heifers in the 400kg to 450kg weight bracket came in at €3.14/kg - an increase of 20c/kg on the previous week’s trading.
Lighter heifer weanlings also met good demand, with more farmer buyers in the market for lighter cattle this week.
Average heifers in the 200kg to 300kg weight bracket came in at €2.86/kg in Portumna this week, with Charolais and Limousin heifers being the pick of the trade.
In the bull ring, top-end bull weanlings in the 300kg to 400kg weight bracket came in at €2.83/kg this week, while more average types came in at €2.65/kg.
Plainer weanlings
Plainer dairy-cross weanlings are generally working off €2.10/kg to €2.40/kg.
Heavier bulls also saw good demand, with bull finishers active for bulls north of 400kg. These were coming in around €2.60/kg to €2.80/kg.
Speaking to the Irish Farmers Journal, Portumna Mart manager Marie Younge said: “We had a lot of customers for the heavier weanlings on Monday night, with farmer buyers dominating around the heifer ring.
“In the bull ring, it’s the exporters and Northern Ireland customers that are dominating the trade.
“We have a number of exporters very active for a number of jobs, but there is probably the most appetite for the top-quality weanling at the moment.
“We have a few buyers who buy weanlings and sell store bullocks every year.
“They are getting on very well with their store bullocks at the moment, so that’s filtering back to the weanling rings.”
Fat stock sale
Portumna Mart will hold its annual fat stock show and sale on Wednesday 18 October, with a big entry of stock expected.
