Breeding sales across the country have kicked off, with strong demand being seen for quality lots.
The general prices being reported for good-quality, well-fleshed hoggets have been reported from mart managers as being in the €320 to €370/head bracket, with some exceptional lots selling above this.
Strong cull ewe prices have been said to have bolstered the trade, with many farmers offsetting cull prices against the increase in replacement costs, with some ewes achieving prices north of €250/head, leaving replacement costs at a more reasonable level.
While numbers of breeding ewe lambs are low this early on, some quality lots suitable for breeding this year are being presented at marts.
Top-end ewe lambs suitable for breeding this year are selling in the main from €220 to €260, with lesser types are being reportedly sought by factory agents at €170 to €180.
Fat lambs and stores
There a slight difference in pricing of finished lambs this week, with some heavier lots seeing more bite from factory agents and butchers.
Lambs weighing 50kg to 52kg-plus are trading in the main from €170 to €178/head.
Some select lots are recording prices for such lambs rising to the mid-€180s to the mid-€190s for high-end lots where there is butcher demand and, again, marts with high percentages of hill genetics from customers are reporting prices in cases falling below the €170 /head mark.
Nice-quality lambs weighing from 45kg to 46kg are selling from €165 to €175 and higher on occasion and back to the mid-€150s for lesser-quality types
Store lambs have seen prices ease in some marts this week, with lambs in the 33kg to 38kg bracket now being purchased for €3.30/kg to €3.50/kg in the main.
Top-quality cull ewes are selling from €2.60/kg to €2.90/kg and on occasion above €3/kg for ewes capable of delivering high-quality carcases.
Average-quality lots are trading from €2.30/kg to €2.50/kg and lots lacking flesh cover back to €2/kg. There are very few lowland ewes below this mark.
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