Thursday night saw Drumshanbo Mart in Co Leitrim host its weekly sheep sale, where 30 lots went through the ring.

The sale was held 100% online through the Irish Farmers Journal Martbids.ie platform.

Finished hoggets are in short supply and there was a small entry on Thursday night, with the majority of lots made up of ewes and lambs.

One standout lot of quality spring lambs weighing 27kg sold for €106 (€3.93/kg).

Quality lots are still commanding a premium, with lots of customers on the hunt for slaughter-fit lambs.

With ewes and lambs reaching a top price of €345 for a Suffolk ewe with two Texel ewe lambs at foot, it was fair to say quality pays.

“With sheep prices hiked this year, it is even easier to see the difference between a quality outfit compared to a poor quality one, and that’s the way it should be,” commented mart manager Eoin Kane.

Culls ewes were averaging €1.50/kg and upwards, with some heavy ewes selling from €120 to €160.

In pictures

This two-year-old ewe with her ram lamb at foot sold for €157.

This cull ewe weighed 80kg and sold for €126.

This Texel ewe with her Blue Texel ram lamb at foot sold for €200.

This batch of seven hogget ewes weighed 32kg and sold for €117.

This batch of seven spring lambs weighed 27kg and sold for €106.