Mountbellew Mart's first sale of 2025 recorded a vibrant trade for cull ewes and strong trade for lambs. The ewe trade was driven by a couple of agents exhibiting a strong appetite for quality fleshed ewes, with fleshed ewes of any weight in demand.
Mountbellew Mart's first sale of 2025 recorded a vibrant trade for cull ewes and strong trade for lambs.
The ewe trade was driven by a couple of agents exhibiting a strong appetite for quality fleshed ewes, with fleshed ewes of any weight in demand.
Prices for fleshed crossbred-type ewes ranged from €2.20/kg to €2.40/kg in the main, with good-quality lowland ewes typically selling from €2.30/kg to €2.60/kg, but hitting as high as €2.80/kg.
The top price of €250 was paid for a single ewe weighing 110kg.
Firm trade
There was also a firm trade for a handful of rams on offer, with Charollais rams weighing upwards of 100kg topping the €200 mark and selling to a top of €232.
The lamb trade was firm, with prices up €3 to €5 on the final sale in 2024. The majority of lambs on offer were factory-type lambs weighing from 48kg to 52kg, with prices averaging from €197 to €205/head.
There was keen demand for a handful of lots of top-quality heavier lambs weighing from 53kg to 55kg, with prices for these ranging from €210 to €215/head.
A few pens of store lambs weighing around the 38kg to 41kg mark ranged from €150 to €160/head.
These top-quality well-fleshed lambs weighing 53kg sold for €215 each.
These four Suffolk-cross ewe lambs weighing 50.5kg sold for €205 each.
Weighing 38.5kg, this mixed batch of store lambs sold for €150 each (€3.90/kg).
Weighing 41.7kg, these Charollais-cross store lambs sold for €160 each (€3.84/kg).
These quality lambs weighing 50.2kg sold for €210 each (€2.18/kg).
These Scottish Blackface ram lambs weighing 30kg sold for €92 each (€3.07/kg).
These Suffolk-cross and Charollais-cross ewe lambs weighing 48kg sold for €198 each (€4.13/kg).
Five Suffolk-cross and Texel-cross ewes weighing 79.5kg sold for €190 each (€2.39/kg). The Suffolk ram with an average cover of flesh on left weighed 90.5kg and sold for €140 (€1.55/kg).
This batch of mixed breed ewes weighing 86kg sold for €208 each (€2.42/kg).
This fleshed Charollais ram weighing 107kg sold for €232 (€2.17/kg).
Two aged Charollais rams weighing 110.5kg and 116kg sold for €210 each.
Six ewes weighing 77kg sold for €196 (€2.55/kg). Two ewes on right weighing 80kg sold for €224 (€2.80/kg).
This batch of crossbred-type ewes weighing 73.5kg sold for €168 each (€2.29/kg).
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