A prolonged closure of marts could lead to a lot of difficulties for farmers, Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmer Association (ICSA) suckler chair Ger O’Brien has said.
Reacting to the news of nationwide mart closures, O’Brien said farmers depended on marts as they were a critical resource in determining a fair price for cattle.
“The livestock mart provides a level of transparent and open competition for livestock and it gives farmers a realistic view of what livestock are making,” O’Brien said.
“Many farmers who do not finish cattle on a commercial scale are very reliant on marts for selling stock and they offer the advantage of allowing farmers to see what stock are worth.”
Innovation
In the absence of marts, farm-to-farm trading can still take place. O’Brien said it could be a time for innovation when it came to selling livestock.
“Farmers who are new to selling cattle need to look at how to offer stock for sale using social media and internet sites. Good photos and accurate information around weights, and ICBF figures in the case of breeding stock are helpful,” he said.
However, he stressed that farmers needed to be very careful of dealing on farm and should be conscious of the risk of cheques bouncing.
Social
Aside from commercial considerations, O’Brien said the closure of marts would remove an important social outlet for many people who had no alternative.
“It is to be hoped that this is a very temporary measure and that the national campaign to slow Covid-19 succeeds sooner rather than later,” he concluded.
Read more
Mart closures ‘another challenge to the trade’ – Cullinan
Blanket closure of marts ‘disappointing’ – ICOS
Further calls for marts to provide matchmaking service
A prolonged closure of marts could lead to a lot of difficulties for farmers, Irish Cattle and Sheep Farmer Association (ICSA) suckler chair Ger O’Brien has said.
Reacting to the news of nationwide mart closures, O’Brien said farmers depended on marts as they were a critical resource in determining a fair price for cattle.
“The livestock mart provides a level of transparent and open competition for livestock and it gives farmers a realistic view of what livestock are making,” O’Brien said.
“Many farmers who do not finish cattle on a commercial scale are very reliant on marts for selling stock and they offer the advantage of allowing farmers to see what stock are worth.”
Innovation
In the absence of marts, farm-to-farm trading can still take place. O’Brien said it could be a time for innovation when it came to selling livestock.
“Farmers who are new to selling cattle need to look at how to offer stock for sale using social media and internet sites. Good photos and accurate information around weights, and ICBF figures in the case of breeding stock are helpful,” he said.
However, he stressed that farmers needed to be very careful of dealing on farm and should be conscious of the risk of cheques bouncing.
Social
Aside from commercial considerations, O’Brien said the closure of marts would remove an important social outlet for many people who had no alternative.
“It is to be hoped that this is a very temporary measure and that the national campaign to slow Covid-19 succeeds sooner rather than later,” he concluded.
Read more
Mart closures ‘another challenge to the trade’ – Cullinan
Blanket closure of marts ‘disappointing’ – ICOS
Further calls for marts to provide matchmaking service
This is a subscriber-only article
SHARING OPTIONS: