After a hectic September and October, mart throughput is finally showing signs of easing up, with a general easing in numbers across most marts over the last week.

Prices have held pretty steady, without a lot of change in the last week, with heavy cattle being the best of the trade at the moment.

The category taking the biggest hit in the last seven days has been bull weanlings.

The weanling trade was cruising at a high altitude for the last two months, but has taken a turn in the last seven to 10 days.

The best-quality weanlings are always sold first and this is likely having an impact on the trade, but even the top third in terms of quality have taken a hit on price this week.

In the 300kg to 400kg bracket, the top third of bull weanlings were back by 19c/kg in the last week.

Average-quality weanling in the same age bracket were back by 13c/kg, while the lower third were back by 10c/kg.

Lighter weanlings in the 200kg to 300kg bracket took a similar hit across all quality categories, while heavier weanlings weren’t back as much.

Heifer weanlings were a steadier trade in the last week, with the top third of weanlings in the 300kg to 400kg category hitting €2.57/kg in the last seven days, unchanged from last week.

One area of concern is the level of exporter activity around mart rings. This time last year, a number of exporters were active for jobs in the Middle East and Turkey, while this year they haven’t been active at all. This is due to a combination of factors.

The good price for weanlings has meant exporters have been priced out of the market over the last two months and exporters have not been successful in securing contracts for cattle to export.

This is unlikely to change between now and the end of the year.

NI trade

Taking a look at the figures exported to Northern Ireland so far in 2021, there is 45,310 head exported up to the end of October 2021. This is up from 34,538 for the same period in 2020.

This has eased in recent weeks, with 2,901 head exported in October 2021 compared with 4,717 exported for October 2020.

Dry cows have also eased back in price. Speaking to a few mart managers around the country, price has also become an issue here, with a lower-quality cow coming out in the last two weeks.

A couple of NI-based wholesalers have eased back on buying those good young suckler types and that has taken a little heat out of the trade.

It is now taking an exceptional cow to hit that €2.20/kg – a price that was very common in mart rings a few weeks ago.

Good-quality R grade suckler cows are hitting around €2/kg, with lesser types coming in at €1.70/kg to €1.80/kg. Parlour cows have eased up a little in supply in the last week or so.

With milk price staying high, some dairy farmers are choosing to milk on cows later this year. In the mart, parlour cows are making anything from just under €1/kg to €1.40/kg depending on flesh and type.