The weekly male sale at Castlerea took place on Monday with numbers starting to ease back to what can be expected for the summer months.

The closure of marts in March and April due to COVID-19 meant that a lot of marts have seen an increase for the last few weeks due to the backlog of cattle.

Just over 100 animals were offered, back over 30 on the week. The drop was particularly evident in lighter bulls and steers of weights fit for summer grazing, with these lots some of the top attractions in recent weeks.

Strong trade

This drop in entries meant that suitable lots offered were met with a strong trade. One group of Hereford-cross steers with an average weight of 372kg sold for €975 (€2.62/kg).

Any steers under the 400kg mark met a fine trade, with the average price/kg rising by over 40c on the week to settle at €2.37/kg.

As reflected with most trade in recent weeks, as the weight went up the price per kg went down.

Stronger, more-able bullocks or factory-fit bullocks maintained a solid average of over €2/kg. Lesser-quality animals or those older cattle met a slightly tougher trade, but still easily made it past the €1.80/kg mark.

On the upper end, the better-quality younger cattle continued to fare well. One 18-month-old Charolais bullock weighing 500kg sold for €1,240 or €2.48/kg.

The smaller entry of weanling bulls took a hit on the week, with the average price dropping to €2.20/kg. This of course had its exceptions, with higher-quality lots demanding higher prices to a top of €2.69/kg.

This price was paid for a seven-month-old Charolais-cross weighing 360kg and sold for €970.