British breeds catching up to continental prices

By the time I had this week’s mart report completed, I had heard of stock being re-housed in Cork because of the wet, a scarcity of grass in Meath because of the cold, and a mart in Kerry that takes in foreign coach tours on mart days!

Meanwhile, in another Kerry mart, at Castleisland, mart manager Richard Hartnett reported a strong trade on Monday for the 750 calves on offer — but no tourists, except for a few buyers from the West of Ireland among the large attendance looking to source good white head heifers for breeding.

“Trade was very good,” Richard said, “with Friesian bulls being especially sought after, with the locals taking the shippers out of a lot of the better stock.”