Granard Mart saw 200 bullocks, 70 dry cows and 100 heifers go through the mart on Wednesday last.

Joseph ‘Jody’ Reilly is the new manager in the mart and Manus Connolly met him last Wednesday to talk about the current trade.

The dry cow trade is on fire at the moment and the Granard trade was no different.

Dry cows

Factory-fit dairy-bred cows weighing 550kg-plus averaged €1.50/kg. Continental factory-fit cows weighing 670kg-plus averaged €1.97/kg.

Store cows were slightly back on other weeks, with these cattle selling for an average of €1.74/kg.

Factory-fit cows are well up, according to Jody, with good-quality cows €100/head dearer than the week previous. This was primarily driven by factory buyers with increased demand this week.

Bullocks

Bullocks were met with good demand, with lots of customers for quality continental bullocks.

Auctioneer PJ Reynolds was moving fast through the lots, always a sign of a good trade.

Factory agents were out in force again in this ring, buying any bullock with flesh, while the forward store bullock weighing under 550kg was also a good trade.

Bullocks weighing 570kg averaged €2.11/kg. Lighter store type bullocks, more summer grazing farmer types from 350kg to 550kg, averaged €2.52/kg.

Heifers

Similar to the bullocks, the pace of the sale of heifers was set by factory agents again.

Heifers weighing 550kg-plus were ahead of their comparison in the bullock ring, averaging €2.21/kg.

Once again, the forward store heifers weighing 550kg and under were in hot demand, with both buyers for grass and feedlots in on the action in this ring, with lighter heifers being pushed into €2.40/kg and over it.

Jody commented: “The demand for store cattle has gotten stronger in the weeks gone past, while the factory-fit cattle are also more in demand, with prices going up across the board week on week.

"Online sales are here to stay, but I’d love to see buyers back around the ring, because when the trade gets stickier, it is best for the buyers to be in the eyeline of an auctioneer to gauge the sale. Hopefully it won’t be too long until they are back again."

In pictures

This January 2017 Charolais bull weighed 775kg and sold for €1,310 (€1.69/kg).

This October 2013-born Friesian-cross cow weighed 650kg and sold for €890 (€1.38/kg).

This April 2012-born Simmental-cross cow weighed 645kg and sold for €1,240 (€1.92/kg).

This July 2018-born bullock weighed 710kg and sold for €1,800 (€2.54/kg).

This September 2018-born Limousin-cross weighed 740kg and sold for €1,840 (€2.49/kg).

This July 2019-born Charolais-cross heifer weighed 350kg and sold for €910 (€2.60/kg).

This June 2019-born Charolais-cross weighed 445kg and sold for €1,120 (€2.52/kg).

This June 2019-born Limousin-cross heifer weighed 400kg and sold for €980 (€2.45/kg).

This May 2020 Aberdeen Angus-cross heifer weighed 455kg and sold for €1,080 (€2.37/kg).

This April 2019-born Aberdeen Angus-cross heifer weighed 530kg and sold for €1,190 (€2.25/kg).

This March 2019 Limousin-cross bullock weighed 615kg and sold for €1,290 (€2.10/kg).