Factories loosen purse strings for an upbeat Skibbereen fatstock show and sale
Anyway, this fine dream became a reality for a handful of very lucky farmers in Skibbereen on Friday.
Tired as I am at looking at my own plain, but happy, stock at home, I took a trip back to Skibbereen on Friday to view the fatstock action for myself.
And as you’d would expect from Skibbereen, the day did not disappoint.
A mart that’s well renowned for its beef stock, on Friday there was plenty of exceptional cattle on show.
The winner on the day was a Charolais heifer owned by Mervyn Busteed, Bandon. Slightly under two years of age, this heifer weighed 735kg and made the handsome sum of €3,020.
Dawn Meats were the purchasers in this case, as they were for most of the other prize winners in Skibbereen on Friday.
And while the agents from Dawn Meats seemed happy to pay out such fine sums for stock on Friday, I really would encourage all involved in the meat processing industry to take note of just how happy these prices made the farmers involved in the deal.
Why does it have to be only on the day of a fatstock show and sale that the meat industry gets so flaithiĂşil with the money?
It’s the one day in the year when you can see farmers and meat factory agents happily standing side by side to pose for the cameras.
The meat men loosen their old purse strings for that day and unfortunately put the squeeze on it, and on us farmers, for the other 364 days of the year.
Alas, such is life. Anyway, back to the general cattle trade in Skibbereen.
On Friday dry cows made from €100 under to €740 over the kilo.
Weanlings bulls in Skibbereen made from €350 to €660 over the kilo. While weanling heifers made from €290 to €555 over their weight.
Continental bullocks in Skibbereen sold from €400 to €700 over the kilo.
Aberdeen Angus and Hereford bullocks ranged in price from €400 to €700 with the kilo. While Friesian bullocks sold from €150 to €700 with the kilo.
Heifers in Skibbereen sold from €280 over to €800 with their weight.
Skibbereen
Friday
No Breed Sex Weight €
1 BB steer 550kg 1000
3 Fr steers 413kg 690
9 Hr steers 530kg 920
4 AA steers 711kg 1390
2 Lm heifers 545kg 1150
4 BB heifers 495kg 1075
1 BB cow 670kg 1360
Next we move to Dungarvan where mart manager Ger Flynn was happy enough after Monday’s cattle sale.
“We had an excellent trade for all types of forward store on Monday. With cattle numbers holding well for the time of the year.”
Dungarvan
Monday
No Breed Sex Weight €
2 Hr steers 567kg 1125
1 Hr steer 600kg 1110
4 Fr steers 583kg 1000
3 Ch heifers 583kg 1135
3 Ch heifers 521kg 1025
3 Ch heifers 535kg 1020
1 Fr cow 740kg 1120
Kilmallock had 1,387 head of cattle on offer on Monday last, where trade was said again to be strong.
“Compared to the same sale last year, bullocks are up €35 a head,” Denis Kirby of Kilmallock mart said.
“Dry cows are up €113 a head and heifers are €55 a head dearer,” he added.
And looking at dairy stock, a four-year-old calved Friesian cow sold for €1,310, while a three-year-old calved cow made €1,150.
Looking at factory bulls a Hereford weighing 970kgs made €1,250, while a Friesian at 705kgs sold for €960.
And in suckling, a six-year-old Limousin and her Simmental heifer calf made €1,610.
A three-year-old Charolais, six to seven months in-calf to Limousin, made €1,490. While a four-year-old Charolais time up to Charolais sold for €1,250.
Kilmallock
Monday
No Breed Sex Weight €
2 AA steers 375kg 800
5 Hr steers 343kg 680
3 Ch steers 523kg 1150
2 Fr steers 395kg 630
2 BB steers 663kg 1390
1 Sim heifer 345kg 730
5 AA heifers 506kg 930
Now once my mart report is complete this evening, I’m off to meet a man I hope can do something to restore confidence in the beef industry.
I will be asking him to see if he can secure an immediate and substantial rise in the price paid for our finished stock.
And who will I be meeting on this miserable December evening you might be asking? Could it possibly be our old pal Minister Coveney? Or even Larry Goodman himself?
Well no, not at all. I’m going to see Santa Claus. Most of the children in this house still have a strong urge to visit the big man and so, while I’m in his company, I will ask him for his view on the depressing beef trade. And if the going is good, I’ll see if it’s within his power to do something to improve our plight.
And while some might question my sanity in making such a move, I’m quietly confident that I will get every bit as far as the IFA did with their protests, their strapping of shopping trolleys and their Roundtable Discussions. So relax, and leave it all to me and old Santa Claus to try and sort out the mess once and for all.
Anyway we will move along, and so next we turn to Bandon mart and to those runner types calves that I wrote so eloquently about last week . Well this week they are at it again: making the headlines once more.
In Bandon on Monday top runner bulls of the continental and Hereford variety were racing over the €600 once again. So while the weather has tuned miserable this week, there are some in the calf business who clearly see a bright future ahead.
Bandon
Monday
No Breed Sex Weight €
4 Lm steers 536kg 1180
2 Hr steers 522kg 1000
6 AA steers 286kg 690
4 Fr steers 335kg 650
3 AA heifers 456kg 825
1 Lm heifer 575kg 1200
1 Fr cow 795kg 1150
Also in Bandon on Monday dry cows made from €150 under the kilo to €740 with the kilo. Heifers here sold from €200 to €625 with their weight.
In Bandon continental bullocks made from €400 to €650 over the kilo. Aberdeen Angus and Hereford bullocks ranged in price from €310 to €600 with the kilo. While Friesian bullocks sold from €290 to €400 with the kilo.
Macroom
Saturday
No Breed Sex Weight €
2 Hr steer 435kg 925
1 AA steer 585kg 1085
1 Ch steer 675kg 1360
3 Lm steers 535kg 1175
1 Ch heifer 440kg 930
1 Hr heifer 480kg 920
1 Ch cow 850kg 1465
Meanwhile, Macroom mart on Saturday had a similar trade to the previous week with cattle prices maintained.
Looking next to Kilkenny livestock mart last Thursday, mart manager George Candler had this to report.
“We had a good sized sale, with bullocks showing an improvement. However the quality of heifers of offer was not as good as last week. At our special sale of suckler cows, cows with calves at foot peaked at 2,210.”
In Kilkenny on Thursday Friesian cull cows made from €1.05/kg to €1.70/kg. Continental cull cows sold from €1.30/kg to €2.06/kg.
Kilkenny
Thursday
No Breed Sex Weight €
4 AA steers 755kg 1580
6 Fr steers 555kg 1085
3 Ch steers 455kg 990
2 Lm steers 380kg 920
3 Sim heifers 375kg 975
2 Ch heifers 355kg 855
2 Lm heifers 300kg 790
And so finally for this week we go to Kanturk mart where late on Tuesday evening Michael Scanlon gave us the following report.
“A very big sale of cattle was seen at today’s sale here in Kanturk,” he said. “We had over 150 cull cows on offer with a large entry of good quality store cattle, with Continental store bullocks making over €600 over their weight. Friesen stores made up to €400 over the kg.”
“Weanlings and calves were also in great demand with sucks a particularly good trade. Next week, December 16, sees our last sale for 2014.”
Kanturk
Tuesday
No Breed Sex Weight €
3 Hr steers 415kg 880
5 Fr steers 505kg 800
3 AA steers 455kg 930
2 Ch steers 520kg 1140
5 Hr heifers 450kg 875
1 Ch heifer 490kg 910
1 Lm cow 680kg 950
