This year proved to be Kenmare Mart’s busiest year for sheep sales since the mart opened its doors.

Trade was described by one farmer as being on fire and it was hard to argue about that comment in a sale that saw hill lambs sold for a few cents per kilo either side of €2/kg. It was a far cry from the summer sales.

Those over 35kg were the strongest sellers, but lighter lots were making similar prices. Lowland and hill-cross lambs made from €2.15 to €2.30/kg.

Hill ewes dominated the cull ewe numbers. Prices for these ranged from €30 to €40/head.

After a shaky start to sheep sales in early summer, the Kerry venue saw a surge in numbers, selling over 2,000 more sheep than in 2017. Mart manager Dan McCarthy said: “Numbers picked up as autumn approached and we ended up selling over 53,000 sheep this year. There was a point where we thought we would struggle to hit 40,000 sheep sold this year after the difficult spring and hearing of farmers getting out of sheep farming.

He added: “Lambs started to come out in savage numbers in September and October. We were seeing 3,000 to 3,500 per sale.

“This week was exceptional. I had 60 lots of lambs sold in 45 minutes. We struggled to sell those types of lambs back in June and July,” he said. Entry is 40c/head and commission rates are €1 each to the buyer and seller.