There was a variable tone to Monday’s sheep trade, with some plants pulling base quotes over the weekend, while others held at last week’s price.

Kildare Chilling has held its base quote at €8.20/kg plus its 10c/kg quality assurance (QA) payment, while reports indicate Dawn Meats is working off a similar quote for Monday.

In contrast, the two Irish Country Meats (ICM) plants in Camolin and Navan are reported as pulling their base quote by 30c/kg to a base of €8/kg plus the plants' 20c/kg QA payment.

Similarly, Kepak is reported as reducing its base quote by 20c/kg to a base of €8.05/kg plus its 15c/kg QA payment.

Wider differential

Regular sellers and groups are securing returns ranging from €8.30/kg to €8.40/kg by merit of group or conformation payments, with prices at the top end of the market 5c/kg to 10c/kg higher.

This has led to a wider differential in prices paid to individual sellers with low negotiating power and producers with greater bargaining power.

Numbers remain tight and this is reflected in small entries in mart sales. This was evident in Kilkenny Mart, with just 300 head on offer.

Auctioneer George Candler reported that the trade for fleshed lambs exceeded expectations, with the €200 mark breached on a number of occasions, with a number of lots of top-quality lambs weighing from 49kg to 51kg selling from €200 to €203.

The top price was recorded at €210 for a batch of five lambs weighing 55kg.

Flesh cover continues to have a massive influence on price and this was reflected in a batch of 53kg lambs selling for €179/head.

Ewe trade

The ewe trade seems to be steadier following recent moves to pull prices by 10c/kg to 20c/kg.

The majority of plants are quoting a price of €3.90/kg to €4/kg for good-quality ewes weighing in excess of 30kg to 35kg.

Plants or abattoirs specialising in the ewe trade are still paying anywhere from €4.20/kg to upwards of €4.40/kg for good-quality ewes.