The cull ewe trade has gained even more upward momentum in the last week, with prices for heavy well-fleshed ewes rising by anywhere from €10 to €25/head. Large-framed ewes weighing in excess of 95kg and possessing a good kill-out potential are recording prices of €200 to €250 on average.

Higher prices rising to €270 to €280 and as high as €290 to €300 on rare occasions have been recorded in sales where live export buyers are competing with wholesale buyers filling contracts in EU markets.

Medium-weight ewes weighing in the region of 80kg to 85kg are trading in the main from €170 to €200/head, with increased-quality lots breaching the €200/head mark and lots lacking flesh selling back to €140 to €150/head.

Mart managers report farmers presenting ewes in small numbers to take advantage of the trade and generate cashflow to deal with rising concentrate and fertiliser costs. It is a similar story in marts in Northern Ireland, as reflected in this week’s mart comment.

The trade for spring lambs has been overshadowed by the strength of the cull ewe trade.

Lighter fleshed lambs weighing 41kg to 44kg are selling in general from €160 to €170 in mart sales. Lots lacking flesh and likely to kill below the 20kg carcase weight limit or weighing back to 38kg are selling in cases back to €150/head.

At the other end of the weight spectrum, lambs weighing 46kg to 50kg and higher are trading in the main from €170 to €180, with flesh cover and quality again dictating prices.

The hogget trade is steady, with some sales recording a slight firming in the level of competition and prices rising by €1 to €2/head.

The general run of prices for hoggets weighing 50kg to 58kg remains within a range of €162 to €170.

A small selection of heavy or excellent-quality lots, some of which are attracting butcher-buyer attention, are selling to the mid-€170s.

Reports indicate that producers with dry hoggets continue to draft plainer-quality types rather than holding these until breeding sales.

The trade for ewes with lambs at foot is unchanged. Twin lamb lots range in the main from €200 to €270, with select lots of young ewes or strong lamb units surpassing €300, while single-lamb lots range from €130 to €200 in the main.