Fifty pens of lambs kicked off the first of the sheep sales in Mayo-Sligo Mart, with buoyant demand for all types of stock, backed by the factory price lift. Heavy lambs above 48kg were in short supply, but the lots on offer were capable of clearing €4.20/kg with ease for the majority, with a slight slip in price for uneven batches or those lacking a little flesh.
Fifty pens of lambs kicked off the first of the sheep sales in Mayo-Sligo Mart, with buoyant demand for all types of stock, backed by the factory price lift.
Heavy lambs above 48kg were in short supply, but the lots on offer were capable of clearing €4.20/kg with ease for the majority, with a slight slip in price for uneven batches or those lacking a little flesh.
Top price per kilo was seen for a batch of hill-cross rams weighing 50kg selling for €225 (€4.50/kg), while several lots of clean, well-fleshed ewe lambs between 45kg and 49kg sold for €4.25/kg to €4.35/kg.
Breed was not a determining factor in price for any weight class, with hill and hill-cross lambs matching lowland types on price per kilo on many occasions.
There was little fluctuation in price for forward stores compared with finished types, with the majority trading around the €4.25/kg mark.
Long-keep stores below the 40kg mark sold to a similar price per kilo, with highs of €4.35/kg being paid.
A full clearance was seen in the lamb section, with buyers anxious to let no lambs go home unsold.
Cull ewes surpassed lambs, with tops of €278/head paid for well-fleshed lowland types. Good-quality ewes sold from this down to €150/head, with many lots crossing €200. Light ewes and mountain types sold from €88 to €150.
This pen of clean, well-fleshed ewe lambs weighing 37kg sold for €161 (€4.35/kg).
This pen of mixed-breed ram lambs weighing 50kg sold for €225 (€4.50/kg.
This pen of Scotch and hill-cross ram lambs weighing 45kg sold for €193 (€4.28/kg).
This pen of Scotch ram lambs weighing 39kg sold for €165 (€4.23/kg).
This pen of Speckled Face ewe lambs weighing 44kg sold for €188 (€4.27/kg).
This is a subscriber-only article
SHARING OPTIONS: