Sheep mart prices: finished lambs strengthen, stores remain solid

There is a sharper tone to the mart trade this week, with all mart managers painting a similar picture of heavier fleshed lambs being in tighter supply.

Top-quality lowland lambs weighing 50kg to 53kg are exceeding the €200 mark and selling as high as €210 to €215, with select lots of heavier lambs selling to €220-plus in small numbers.

Similar-weight ram lambs and crossbred types are in some cases selling back to €190 to €195, depending on potential slaughter performance.

Likewise, lambs weighing 47kg to 49kg are selling on average from €190 to €200/head, but there are lambs hitting €205-plus/head and, at the other end of the quality spectrum, lambs falling back to the mid-€180s.

This variability in price of lambs at a similar weight is evident through all weight classes, with lambs weighing 44kg to 46kg selling anywhere from €170 to €185/head.

Factory agents are willing to drop down in the weight range to try to get their hands on additional supplies.

The store lamb trade remains solid, with numbers steadily increasing, but still remaining below the normal flush in entries seen in recent years.

A price range of €3.55/kg to €3.80/kg is buying a significant percentage of lambs. Excellent-quality and well-presented lowland lambs are, in some cases, rising to €4/kg to €4.10/kg, with some standout prices of up to €4.30/kg reported.

Hill lambs are low in number so far, but prospects appear good, with prices trending in the region of €3/kg to €3.20/kg for the low numbers sold.

The cull ewe trade is unchanged, with a price range of €2.30/kg to €2.55/kg buying upwards of 80% of fleshed lowland ewes. Top prices are rising to €2.60/kg to €2.70/kg on occasion.

There are very few lowland or crossbred ewes falling below €2/kg, with Scottish Blackface ewes starting at €1.50/kg for lighter types and selling to €2/kg to €2.20/kg for ewes capable of delivering heavier carcases.

A small number of hoggets have been traded in the last week, with prices for the best-quality lots from €300 to €350 and back to €270 for lighter-framed sheep.