Trade in Carnew Mart on Thursday 18 March was almost too hot to handle, with demand from factory buyers and farmers alike driving prices.

The sale saw over 2,500 hoggets and cast ewes on offer, alongside 600 breeding ewes in-lamb and with lambs at foot, go under the hammer.

Speaking to the Irish Farmers Journal, David Quinn of Carnew Mart expressed his delight at the day’s trade.

“We had a very large sale here today for the time of year, with 2,500 hoggets and cast ewes in ring one and about 600 breeding ewes in our second ring.

Prices

“The hoggets and the cast ewes were up again, with a top price of €173 for hoggets weighing 57kg. In general, anything over 50kg was making anything from €165 to €175.

“The factory weight sheep weighing between 45kg to 49kg sold from €150 to €170, with a very good trade for the store sheep.

“Cull ewes were then up €15/head on last week, with a top price of €155 for heavy ewes. Factory weight ewes were selling anywhere from €85 to €120," he said.

Breeding ewes

“In our second ring, we had 250 ewes with lambs at foot on offer and we saw a top price for hoggets with doubles at foot of €350/head," the mart manager continued.

"In general, ewes with double lambs sold from €280 to €350, ewes with a lamb and a half sold anywhere from €220 to €280 and ewes with singles from €170 to €280.

“We then had 150 in-lamb ewe hoggets and they met a very good trade, selling from €160 on the lower end to €208. Today, we had record prices and a full clearance of all sheep on offer.”

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