At the mart...

Big bullock sale in Mohill yesterday, around 450 head. Average run of bullocks was Charlois Mar/Apr 20 born around 510kg €1220
€2.40/kg
I had a few (Gerry Boyle types) strong dairy influence. It helped to make the charlois look good 😀😎. Fresians spring 20 average 475kg / €1.65/kg
No meal.
I was tuned in remotely. The charolais bullocks appeared to sell better than the limousins. There were some top charolais that came into 2.60 and the limousins were 10c behind all the way. It hasn't been that way up to now where limousins were on a par and often on top in some marts.

I have a few booked to sell elsewhere this week. Prices are good so I picked off what I thought would be the worst sellers - 3 black limousins, 3 simmentals, a parthenaise and a blond. All march and April 20 born and coming in around the 600kg mark. They would all be U grade so hopefully they will come somewhere close to 2.40 on average. I have the red limousins left for spring. Even if prices fall, they are the sort of animal that will sell well.
 
Top class ch stores were making 2.60 to 2.80 freely and up to 3.00 on Roscommon last Friday week.
Was in Ballymahon on Thursday,a lot of 2019 born stores, average r grades, making around 2.30 and less in cases
 
Top class ch stores were making 2.60 to 2.80 freely and up to 3.00 on Roscommon last Friday week.
Was in Ballymahon on Thursday,a lot of 2019 born stores, average r grades, making around 2.30 and less in cases
Its strange really. You'd think with online bidding that prices would match all around the country. A friend of mine was selling at a mart in Cavan on Saturday last and the top CH were only making 2.40. He was watching mohill and believed that prices were much stronger there.
 
Its strange really. You'd think with online bidding that prices would match all around the country. A friend of mine was selling at a mart in Cavan on Saturday last and the top CH were only making 2.40. He was watching mohill and believed that prices were much stronger there.
there is usually a good reason there are different prices for similar animals in different marts. allot would have to do with the surrounding land that cattle would draw from, stand the cattle are getting pre sale, or maybe just down to who is in it buying
 
Top class ch stores were making 2.60 to 2.80 freely and up to 3.00 on Roscommon last Friday week.
Was in Ballymahon on Thursday,a lot of 2019 born stores, average r grades, making around 2.30 and less in cases
Roscommon always draws top quality charolais cattle, I prefer castlerea myself as a quality black limousine will get much more respect than in Roscommon where there is a snobbish attitude towards anything not colour perfect

Roscommon better for the purists
 
Was at weanling sale last night, the good quality charolais or limousin weanling a great trade,too dear to be buying imo, but I wud see a big difference in price between the top quality charolais and that slightly lesser 1 ,not meal fed, as much as 300 euro a head of a difference ,farmers as I see it don't know value for money 🙄
 
Was at weanling sale last night, the good quality charolais or limousin weanling a great trade,too dear to be buying imo, but I wud see a big difference in price between the top quality charolais and that slightly lesser 1 ,not meal fed, as much as 300 euro a head of a difference ,farmers as I see it don't know value for money 🙄
I think some farmers over think the meal feeding thing with weanlings. I find with weanlings that if I can get a small amount of meal into a calf from 3 months old then that animal will perform better the whole way through to 600kg than one that got no meal at all. The 50 euro spent on meal will come back to me in spades.

The issue with meal fed weanlings are the ones that are stuffed in order to compensate for poor quality or lack of milk. There's plenty of those about and when you buy them they'll melt. But top weanlings that are making the good money are not normally this type - instead they have better shape and quality not generated by meal feeding but by breeding and nature. Yes, they might have gotten some meal which will be an advantage to them all their life but they haven't been stuffed.

The lads buying good quality weanlings aren't the fools that some people make them out to be. Horses for courses and all that - every man is just trying to make a pound.
 
Around here,top quality animals are show pieces.someone who is going to sell them again as a store might be doing the right thing.this year with good beef price on the lads finishing are getting well paid for a well deserved change but it's generally a hobby for those that can afford it.
Was at a talk in dairy calf to beef lately,they had Angus bull calves in at 160 and friesans be at 60.
If paying much more for Angus better with the Friesan is their conclusion.
Not saying I agree but overpaying for calves us the single biggest thing to reduce profit in their book.
My experience is that any p grade calf will lose money and they have 40,% p
 
Around here,top quality animals are show pieces.someone who is going to sell them again as a store might be doing the right thing.this year with good beef price on the lads finishing are getting well paid for a well deserved change but it's generally a hobby for those that can afford it.
Was at a talk in dairy calf to beef lately,they had Angus bull calves in at 160 and friesans be at 60.
If paying much more for Angus better with the Friesan is their conclusion.
Not saying I agree but overpaying for calves us the single biggest thing to reduce profit in their book.
My experience is that any p grade calf will lose money and they have 40,% p
There's very few hobby farmers or farmers buying good quality cattle around here. Most are only keeping stock to meet the stocking rate and don't need to make anything out of an animal. Black and white is the animal of choice.

A lot of the better quality weanlings in mohill go to Meath and this year there has been a lorry of weanlings go to Carlow from most sales.
 
Pride can be expensive,which is fine once you can afford it.
There are farmers around here who literally would not take a friesan for free.


Its the opposite here. Fields that were red or white with cattle up to 5 years ago are black and white now. There's as many dairy bred animals in the county as suckler bred and we don't have many dairy farmers.

But maybe the lads that won't look at a freisan are right. They made it this far by doing what they are doing. Buying a continental animal is a safer investment against falling beef prices than a dairy bred one. Didn't you say that's the reason why you buy them? Many people don't like the gamble of dairy bred animals.
 
Its the opposite here. Fields that were red or white with cattle up to 5 years ago are black and white now. There's as many dairy bred animals in the county as suckler bred and we don't have many dairy farmers.

But maybe the lads that won't look at a freisan are right. They made it this far by doing what they are doing. Buying a continental animal is a safer investment against falling beef prices than a dairy bred one. Didn't you say that's the reason why you buy them? Many people don't like the gamble of dairy bred animals.
Indeed I did move from friesan to continental cattle for the reasons of saleability at any time.
Years ago we kept good cont bullocks here only in the subsidy era I moved to fr as the same premium was achievable without the loss that good cattle were making without subsidies.
Times changed then,I was at bulls and fr bulls are a tricky sell.over a few years I managed to increase the value of my herd back to continentals with plenty of help from my bank.
Times changed again 2 years ago when bulls became a problem to sell and I got an offer of a contract rearing job which is now a good half of my stock though there is a question over that now too,not from my side.
Top class cattle need a big end price to justify their suckler mother's existence and that will be more so in future from an environmental perspective.
A bit like the man who buys a fendt, most of us but what we can afford or something more not less
 
Was at weanling sale last night, the good quality charolais or limousin weanling a great trade,too dear to be buying imo, but I wud see a big difference in price between the top quality charolais and that slightly lesser 1 ,not meal fed, as much as 300 euro a head of a difference ,farmers as I see it don't know value for money 🙄

I'd say you were at the sale that I was looking at online last night. What you say was very noticeable, equally some crazy money paid for AA runners, much better value in some of the slightly lesser quality CH's.
 
Thought this chart showing cow numbers was interesting. We have 3 marts in the county and you could say that we are served by 2 other marts in dowra (100 meters across the Shannon) and elphin (8 miles across the Shannon). We also have a specialised pedigree sales ring just across the Shannon in Carrick on Shannon. 1900 cows in total we have in the county. Take out 10% replacements and 10% of sucklers that don't have calves each year and you're down to 1600 at least. 4 good sales in the local mart would sell all of the cattle in the county. Easy to see that we do get a lot of sellers from other counties but it really tells us that all 3 marts in the county may not be viable into the future.

Screenshot_20211022-150748.png
 
Them figures are dairy numbers and
Jeez I forgot that. We have 4 marts. Its some showing for 1900 cows
Most dairy cows are sold through carrigallen, few in mohill. Maybe a handful in drumshanbo , manor and dowra.only 1 dairy farm north of lough Allen but I did hear there was a man in manor that was in the process of starting.alot of the dairy cattle in the county dont go near the mart.also in your figures from agriland there are 4 if not 5 lads not in the county but have leitrim postal addresses so even diff figures then but it probaly applies to other counties aswell
 
Them figures are dairy numbers and

Most dairy cows are sold through carrigallen, few in mohill. Maybe a handful in drumshanbo , manor and dowra.only 1 dairy farm north of lough Allen but I did hear there was a man in manor that was in the process of starting.alot of the dairy cattle in the county dont go near the mart.also in your figures from agriland there are 4 if not 5 lads not in the county but have leitrim postal addresses so even diff figures then but it probaly applies to other counties aswell
There's definitely 1 new dairy entrant in manor - just outside the town. I believe there is a second setting up somewhere between manor and glenfarne.

I can think of 10+ lads not too far from me that have their main land block over the bridge but addresses on our side. One close to us has all his cattle in Westmeath. Travel the n4 on a Sunday and you'll see lines of lads moving stock east - many with sheep but a certain amount of cattle too. As you say, it probably applies to other counties too.
 
Thought this chart showing cow numbers was interesting. We have 3 marts in the county and you could say that we are served by 2 other marts in dowra (100 meters across the Shannon) and elphin (8 miles across the Shannon). We also have a specialised pedigree sales ring just across the Shannon in Carrick on Shannon. 1900 cows in total we have in the county. Take out 10% replacements and 10% of sucklers that don't have calves each year and you're down to 1600 at least. 4 good sales in the local mart would sell all of the cattle in the county. Easy to see that we do get a lot of sellers from other counties but it really tells us that all 3 marts in the county may not be viable into the future.

View attachment 98839


Very interesting chart.

If it seems strange that Co Leitrim has 3 or 4 marts , for the counties size , number of breeding herds , not to mention the fact that there is a fair proportion of the county under forestry ,

It's twice as strange that County Laois has only 1 mart operating now , since Mountrath closed a few years ago. Bsllinakill is a privately owned mart , and is only barely in County Laois . Quite near the Kilkenny border. Kilkenny mart is a substantial operation .
I'd be within 10 miles of 2 marts in Tipperary , Roscrea where I sell , and Templemore , 20 from Thurles, and 30 from. Nenagh . Tipperary must have up on 10 marts.
 
Very interesting chart.

If it seems strange that Co Leitrim has 3 or 4 marts , for the counties size , number of breeding herds , not to mention the fact that there is a fair proportion of the county under forestry ,

It's twice as strange that County Laois has only 1 mart operating now , since Mountrath closed a few years ago. Bsllinakill is a privately owned mart , and is only barely in County Laois . Quite near the Kilkenny border. Kilkenny mart is a substantial operation .
I'd be within 10 miles of 2 marts in Tipperary , Roscrea where I sell , and Templemore , 20 from Thurles, and 30 from. Nenagh . Tipperary must have up on 10 marts.
Isn't Carlow mart now in Laois?
 
Back
Top