The weekly Tuesday evening weanling sale in Carnaross Mart in Co Meath resumed this week, with an entry of 170 bulls and 100 heifers meeting a fine demand.

As has been the case for the last two weeks at Carnaross Mart, Tuesday’s sale was held completely online for buyers and sellers, with only a skeleton staff present in the mart during the sale.

After a slower-paced trial run last Monday, the new format was well up to speed, with over 100 lots selling in the first two hours of the sale.

Commenting on trade, mart manager Padraig McElroy said “it could only be described as a flying trade” and he went on to add that “a lot of that was driven by farmer buyers”.

There was a large number of good-quality, continental yearling bulls on offer and these started at around €2.10/kg and swiftly moved up to prices of €2.40/kg, topping at around €2.60/kg for high-quality lots. A selection of lighter, high-quality, shipping types went well, typically making from €2.65/kg to €2.85/kg. Angus bulls and dairy-cross Belgian Blues typically fell between €1.90/kg and €2.10/kg.

Heifers prices were just as strong, with lighter continental the standout, ranging between €2.60/kg and €2.80/kg. Run of the mill, 350-420kg continental heifers averaged between €2.40/kg and €2.50/kg. Plainer dairy crosses fell between €1.90/kg and €2.20/kg, typically.