Newport Mart in Co Tipperary has introduced a new fortnightly sheep sale. Mart manager James Lee said the move was taken after producers in the area expressed a desire for the mart to venture into the sheep trade.

“We have farmers trading cattle with us who had to travel long distances [to trade sheep] and wanted an option closer to home. We hold the cattle sale on a Thursday, so it made sense for us to hold an evening sheep sale. The second sale was held on 5 July and the plan is to have fortnightly sales until at least September and then review the frequency,” he said.

The latest sale had an entry of about 270 lambs and 30 cull ewes. A high percentage of the lamb offering was store lambs, but there was also a steady trade for slaughter-fit lambs. Prices for lambs weighing 48kg to 50kg ranged from €102 to €110 on average.

Forward store and factory-fit lambs weighing 40kg to 43kg sold from €82 to €92 on average. Poorer-quality and lighter stores weighing 37kg to 39kg sold from €70 to €80, with crossbred lambs lacking flesh at the lower end of the price range. Lighter lambs weighing 33kg to 36kg averaged €68 to €75.

Medium-sized cull ewes with an average cover of flesh sold from €80 to €100, with feeding ewes and lighter ewes back to €55 to €70.