Kanturk Mart returned to selling on Tuesday this week, with the first sale of the year hailed as a great success.

As expected, numbers for the opening sale were small, but demand proved very strong for the lots on offer.

Speaking after the sale, mart manager Seamus O’Keeffe said: “The sale had over 180 head of cattle on site and achieved a full clearance, which got the year off to a great start.

“The clearance highlighted the demand for all stock types, but there was certainly an extra bite for the more forward lots on offer.”

This six year-old-Friesian cow weighed 625kg and sold for €950 (€1.52/kg).

Leading prices

A number of leading prices on the day came from the cull cow section.

Dominated by dairy cows, prices started at slightly over €500 and sold as high as €1,400.

Prices generally began at €1/kg, with younger and better-fed lots exceeding €1.50/kg.

This nine-year-old Friesian cow weighed 770kg and sold for €770 (€1/kg).

Securing the €1,400 price tag was a six-year-old Friesian cow that weighed 830kg (€1.69/kg). The small number of beef lots entered were led with a call of €1,160 for a near-six-year-old Hereford that weighed 675kg (€1.72/kg).

This six-year-old Friesian cow weighed 585kg and sold for €590 (€1/kg).

It was a smaller than usual showing for store bullocks, but, as already mentioned, those more forward-type lots hit the highest marks.

Prices here generally started anywhere from €350 with the weight all the way up to €740 with the weight.

Biggest entry

The biggest entry in this section came from the Angus breed, which also boasted the highest prices.

This seven-month-old Limousin heifer weighed 455kg and sold for €855 (€1.88/kg)

Securing the top bullock price of €1,320 was a batch of five Angus bullocks that had an average weight of 583kg (€2.26/kg).

Given the heavily dairy populated area of Kanturk and surrounds, most of the heifer stores on offer were also that of first-cross dairy beef.

Numbers and prices were again led by Angus, with prices starting at €2/kg, but selling from €420 to €785 with the weight.

This seven-month-old Simmental bull weighed 375kg and sold for €805 (€2.15/kg).

Forward stock again led these prices. Top of the heifers was a 595kg Angus that sold for €1,380 (€2.32/kg).

In the weanling stock, the Hereford breed performed best across both bulls and heifers.

This pen of eight March-born Friesian bull calves had an average weight of 258kg and sold for €430 (€1.67/kg).

Top of these was a batch of three Hereford bull calves that had an average weight of 196kg and sold for €525 per head (€2.68/kg).

Top female price was for a batch of four Hereford heifers that weighed 168kg and sold for €390 (€2.32/kg).

Other lots

These four Angus bull weanlings ranged in age from seven to 10 months, had an average weight of 238kg and sold for €535 (€2.25/kg).

These three Hereford bulls, born spring 2021, had an average weight of 196kg and sold for €525 (€2.69/kg).

This nine-month-old Limousin bull weighed 195kg and sold for €470 (€2.41/kg).

These three February-born Angus bullocks had an average weight of 301kg and sold for €600 (€1.99/kg).

These four Angus bulls, born in April, had an average weight of 187kg and sold for €445 (€2.38/kg).