Hoggets sold in the live ring at the start of this week were regularly making over £120/head, up £20 in seven days.

Ayr, St Boswells and Lanark marts’ fat hogget sales saw average prices for medium weights between £2.70/kg to £2.75/kg.

Prices slipped back a little in the following sales of the week, with hoggets closer to £2.60/kg at Stirling Caledonian and Dingwall marts.

Abattoirs are paying £5.40/kg for R grade hoggets in Scotland.

The official price for old-season lambs from the Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board (AHDB) is £5.27/kg for the week ending 9 January across GB.

Store lambs met an excellent demand, reaching levels not seen for many years

This is a massive jump of 40p/kg over seven days. Slaughterings rose by nearly 5,000, as 36,337 old-season lambs were processed.

Thainstone Mart held a sale of over 1,800 store lambs, which average £91.95/head.

Auctioneer Colin Slessor said: “Store lambs met an excellent demand, reaching levels not seen for many years. The sale was strong from start to finish for all classes.”

Beef price £3.90/kg

The beef price has risen 15p to 20p/kg in Scottish abattoirs this week as farmers are offered £3.90/kg for R grade carcases under 400kg. Cattle qualifying and being awarded the Angus premium should expect an additional 25p/kg on top of the base price.

Farmers are getting paid between £3.70 and £3.78/kg for R grade steer carcases under 400kg.

Finished cows were reported by the AHDB at £2.56/kg for an 0-4 which is up 4p/kg

Domestic demand for beef remains strong as lockdown is encouraging homecooked meals, which often have increased amounts of protein.

The official AHDB price for R grading steers for the week ending 9 January was £3.84/kg, which is up 1p/kg on the week. Same-grade heifers also rose 1p to £3.83/kg. The young bull price jumped back to typical levels, with a 14p rise to £3.68/kg.

Finished cows were reported by the AHDB at £2.56/kg for an 0-4 which is up 4p/kg. Beef cows averaged £1.31/kg last week at United Auctions Stirling.

Strong store trade

Aberdeen Northern Marts sold 1,225 store cattle last week where steers made £2.38/kg, which was up £143/head on the year. Heifers averaged £2.29/kg, which was up £160/head on the year. United Auctions in Stirling sold 1,129 store cattle, with steers averaging £2.24/kg, heifers £2.21/kg and dairy steers making £1.88/kg.

First fodder sale

Aberdeen and Northern Marts sold 1,625 bales of fodder at their first sale of the year. Inside barley straw sold to £34 for heston bales and £55 per tonne for 4x4 round bales. Outside barley straw sold to £8 per bale, with outside wheat straw selling to £5 per bale. Inside hay was making £12.50 per bale, with silage making £8.50 per bale. Turnips in the field were making £280 per acre with lifted swedes making £23 per tonne.