Camera at the Mart: prices jump once again in Gort

Gort Mart held its weekly weanling sale on Thursday 4 April. Slightly smaller entries and good-quality cattle drove strong prices in the sales ring.

Lighter weanling bulls were a positive trade and continental lots averaged from €3.20/kg to €3.30/kg. Highlights in this section included a Charolais bull weighing 300kg that sold for €1,360 (€4.53/kg) and a Limousin-cross weighing 345kg that sold for €1,330 (€3.86/kg).

Heavier weanling bulls weighing from 400kg to 500kg were a slightly easier sell than their lighter counterparts, but a number of impressive prices included a Limousin-cross bull weighing 400kg that sold for €1,380 (€3.45/kg) and another Limousin-cross weighing 445kg that sold for €1,500 (€3.37/kg).

A select number of traditional lots sold to an average price of €2.60/kg, while continentals averaged slightly higher around the €3.00/kg mark.

Slightly heavier bulls weighing from 500kg to 600kg were in shorter supply, leading to slightly higher averages around the €3.10/kg mark.

Some leading prices in this section included a Charolais-cross weighing 500kg that sold for €1,700 (€3.40/kg) and a Limousin-cross weighing 520kg that sold for €1,660 (€3.19/kg).

In the weanling heifer ring, prices were once again led by the flashier, good-quality suckler-bred weanling. In the lighter 300kg to 400kg weight range, the section was topped by a Charolais-cross heifer weighing 348kg that sold for €1,490 (€4.28/kg).

Other notable prices in this section saw a 320kg Charolais heifer selling for €1,170 (€3.66/kg) and a Limousin-cross weighing 330kg that sold for €1,150 (€3.48/kg). However, the continental category averaged closer to €3.00/kg on the evening.

There was a strong appetite for weanling heifers weighing upwards of 400kg on the evening, with the Charolais lots on offer selling from €3.00/kg to north of €3.40/kg for the choice lots. Limousin-crosses trailed closely behind, but a few poorer-quality types dropped this average to just below the €3.00/kg mark.

There was a special entry of Salers-cross breeding heifers at Thursday evening’s sale coinciding with the Salers Cattle Society Pedigree sale, which is reported on in this week’s pedigree section.

Some top prices in the Salers section saw a 390kg heifer sell for €2,620, a 370kg heifer that sold for €2,120 and another weighing 475kg that sold for €3,500.