Loughrea Mart hosted a celebration sale last Saturday to mark its 50th anniversary.

The sale included a number of prizes for both buyers and sellers, which led to a bumper entry of 550 cattle.

While mart throughput over the last number of weeks was up, this is still a massive rise of 200 head on previous years’ sales.

The extra numbers were met with a brisk trade, which resulted in all except nine animals finding new homes.

Export buyers were active, but the majority of lots were secured by farmer buyers.

The strong shed of mostly Charolais and Limousin stock headed to all parts of Ireland, with particularly good interest from Kilkenny buyers for the top-quality Charolais on offer.

This 30-month-old Charolais heifer weighed 670kg and sold for €1,640 (€2.45/kg)

Speaking after the sale, mart manager Jimmy Cooney said: “This was a very big sale for this part of the country, with trade as good at the finish as it was at the start.

“It proved a very dear sale, but there was a great yard of cattle on show.”

This two-year-old Limousin heifer weighed 520kg and sold for €1,860 (€3.58/kg)

Cull cows

Cull cows on the day sold up to €2,260, which was paid for a 935kg Limousin, a price per kilogramme of €2.42.

Lighter cows started at €2/kg, but the general run for fleshed cows stood around the €2.08/kg to €2.12/kg mark.

Some other stand-out prices here included a 900kg Limousin that sold for €2,000 and a 750kg Belgian Blue that sold for €1,660.

This first prize-winning Charolais heifer born July 2019 weighed 514kg and sold for €1,710 (€3.39/kg)

Top-quality fed bullocks were hitting €2.50/kg-plus. Leading the way here was a 790kg Limousin that sold for €2,030 (€2.57/kg).

Other notable prices included a four-year-old Charolais weighing 940kg and selling for €2,180 and a 28-month-old Charolais weighing 870kg that sold for €2,180.

Lighter bullocks were making that €2.50/kg easier, with the upper end heading to €2.75/kg-plus.

Stand-out lot here was a batch of four Charolais bullocks that weighed 460kg and sold for €1,380 (€3/kg).

Short-keep bullock lots peaked at €2.83/kg for a Limousin that weighed 595kg and sold for €1,600.

This March 2020 born Charolais heifer weighed 500kg and sold for €1,320 (€2.64/kg)

Heifers

Heifer prices were slightly back on bullocks for the lighter lots, but, again, quality proved the key difference.

Top-quality heifers suitable for breeding were in high demand.

Top seller on the day was a 520kg Limousin heifer that sold for an impressive €1,860 or a massive €3.58/kg.

This February 2020-born Limousin heifer weighed 585kg and sold for €1,380 (€2.36/kg)

This 18-month-old Limousin bullock weighed 450kg and sold for €1,170 (€2.60/kg)
This April 2020-born Limousin bullock weighed 450kg and sold for €1,180 (€2.62/kg)
This 695kg Blue bullock born January 2020 sold for €1,740 (€2.50/kg)
This March 2020-born Belgian Blue bullock weighed 645kg and sold for €1,740 (€2.70/kg)
This roan Limousin bullock born May 2019 weighed 445kg and sold for €1,030 (€2.31/kg)
This 27-month-old Charolais bullock weighed 530kg and sold for €1,270 (€2.40/kg)