Competition from factory agents keen to source sheep for slaughtering over the Christmas period ensured sheep sales finished the year on a positive note at Carnew Mart.

Manager David Quinn reported on a brisk trade for an entry of just over 1,800 head and described prices as being a few euro stronger than the previous week.

Heavy lambs weighing 50kg and upwards met high demand and sold to a top price of €210 for a batch of 15 lambs weighing 55kg.

These were the heaviest lambs on offer, with a dozen lots weighing from 51.3kg to 53kg selling from €193 to €202, with the majority selling from €3.64/kg to €3.88/kg.

Lambs weighing 49kg to 50kg sold in a tight bracket from €191 to €194, with lots weighing 46kg to 47kg selling in the main from €170 to €184 or from €3.67/kg to €4.10/kg.

Short-keep stores weighing 41kg to 43kg sold on average from €155 to €166 or €3.70/kg to €4.10/kg.

There was also a large number of lambs in the sale weighing from 30kg to 40kg.

Lambs weighing 37kg to 40kg sold from €3.55/kg for plainer hill crossbreds and lambs with a lower cover of flesh to €3.80/kg to €3.90/kg for the best types. Prices were similar for lighter stores weighing 32kg to 35kg.

Prices paid for a small number of stores weighing 28kg to 30kg were very dependent on quality, with prices ranging in a wider differential from €3.20/kg all the way to upwards of €4/kg for good-quality lambs.

High numbers of cull ewes were a strong feature of the trade in Carnew Mart for the first six months of 2024 and while numbers eased towards the end of the year, David said that throughput has been helped by keen competition and prices running ahead of factory returns, particularly for heavy ewes.

Ewe numbers will likely be boosted in early January through ewes being scanned and farmers moving ewes once ewe lambs kick in to scheme calculations.

Ewes on offer on Thursday were typically lighter ewes weighing 70kg to 78kg, with such ewes selling in the main from €135 to €190.

Small numbers of heavier and top-quality ewes breached this ceiling, with a top price of €246 paid for seven ewes weighing 86kg.

There were only small numbers of light-framed ewes lacking flesh and hill-type ewes selling below €130. Fleshed hill ewes averaged from €1.30/kg to €1.70/kg, with ewes lacing flesh back to €1/kg.

In pictures

This batch of four lambs weighing 39.4kg sold for €146.

Weighing 49.3kg, these lambs sold for €194 each. \ Patrick Browne

This batch of four smaller-framed cull ewes weighing 67kg sold for €144 each.

This batch of mixed breed ram lambs weighing 49.9kg sold for € 192.

These ram lambs weighing 52.3kg sold for € 198 each.

These good-quality lambs weighing 46.8kg sold for €172 each.

These cull ewes weighing 70.7kg sold fro €160 each.

Weighing an average of 41.7kg these ewe lambs sold for €155 each.

These fleshed ram lambs weighing 43.7kg sold for €166 each.

This batch of mixed breed store lambs weighing 40kg sold for €149 each.

This pen of store lambs weighing 37.1kg sold for €131 each.

These Charollais-cross ewe lambs weighing 45.8kg sold for €177 each.

This batch of store lambs weighing 30.7kg sold for €120.

Weighing 36.6kg these store lambs sold for € 143 each.

This batch of Zwartbles-cross and Texel-cross cull ewes weighing 68.7kg sold for €130 each.