Organisation: Kilmallock Mart

A COMPREHENSIVE SERIES OF ARTICLES ON THIS TOPIC

At Macroom Mart last Saturday, this 500kg Angus bull born May 2019 sold for €1,240.

farming

Message to Minister Cowen: Bring back the suckler cow subsidies of 25 years ago

Some say that our new Minister for Agriculture, Barry Cowen, mightn’t know that much about farming.

farming

Don’t be surprised if there is a bumpy landing for store buyers

There are three stages in flying, if you ask me.

farming

Bandon Mart’s new calf pens are a shot in the arm for us all

Positive news can be in short supply these days.

farming

Denis Lehane analyses the effect of the Scrooge-like beef barons on the cattle mart trade

farming

Friesian bull calf back in fashion amid hopes of beef clouds lifting

farming

Marts holding ground in spite of factory slippage

Kanturk mart, where it’s always business with a smile

The man who invented good humour must surely have been from Duhallow.

Fri, 21 Jul, 2017

Cattle marts report: Store cattle drop by €60 per head at marts, as the three Fs have beef farmers floored

Store cattle — and bullocks in particular — have suffered a €60 per head price drop over the past two weeks.

Fri, 26 May, 2017

Cattle marts: Lighter cattle not in vogue as rain keeps falling

The singer Madonna used to have a song a few years back, called Rain.

Thu, 09 Mar, 2017

Cattle marts: Unlike Hollywood, no confusion among cattle traders in busy week at the marts

While the Oscar ceremony on Sunday night was nothing but a confusing mess, at the marts the scene is anything but confusing.

Thu, 02 Mar, 2017

Beef marts: Enda and store cattle are on the move, as mart trade holds firm

It looks like Enda Kenny’s forthcoming visit to Washington will be his last high-flying trip as Taoiseach.

Thu, 23 Feb, 2017

Marts in mourning over the passing of Willie Slyne, a legend among cattlemen

It would be remiss of us, in the business of covering mart reports, if we didn’t mention the recent death of the well known and well respected cattleman, Willie Slyne.

Thu, 16 Feb, 2017

Cattle mart report: Cattle sales on the up, but small calves, like Beckham’s emails, should stay at home

It looks like David Beckham won’t be receiving a knighthood anytime soon.

Thu, 09 Feb, 2017

Cattle marts report: Farmer talk at marts turns to inequity in distribution of the basic farm payment

There is a movie about to hit the big screens based on the exploits of Chesley Burnett Sullenberger III, better known as Sully.

Thu, 20 Oct, 2016

Cattle marts report: Macroom lives up to name of never rearing a foolish mart trader

“The town of Macroom never raised a fool” — so they say. And the farmers around Macroom are clearly no fools either when it comes to rearing good weanlings.

Thu, 13 Oct, 2016

Breeders frustrated as beef prices stay low despite ‘supply glut’ failing to materialise

I took a few cattle to the mart at the start of the week — purely for research purposes, of course. Honestly, sometimes I wonder do I take my job of giving you an accurate account of the mart trade far too seriously?

Thu, 06 Oct, 2016

Cattle marts: Demand from feedlot buyers helps to insulate mart trade from bad weather

We experienced more than our fair share of moisture at the start of the week.

Thu, 15 Sep, 2016

Cattle marts: Heavens smile down upon a sunny week for buyers and sellers at busy cattle marts

I threw on my coat, fully prepared as I headed out the door, bound for Kilmallock cattle mart on Monday morning.

Thu, 08 Sep, 2016

Cattle marts report: A bad day at the office for some of us, but 500kg animal is still fetching good money

“The days of the plain animal are well over,” cattleman Gene Daly said to me in Bandon mart on Monday.

Thu, 01 Sep, 2016

Cattle marts report: Quality stock fetching good prices, but plain animals are struggling

Unlike the jails of Rio, where I hear the water is scarce (the taps only run for a couple of minutes every day), our farms this week have seen plenty of the watery stuff.

Thu, 25 Aug, 2016

Cattle marts report: National Ploughing Championships next stop for Kanturk weanling champ

On Tuesday last if you happened to be at Kanturk mart, you would have found a mart yard packed with jeeps, trailers and trucks, and mart pens full of quality weanling stock.

Thu, 28 Jul, 2016

Cattle marts: Friesian store bullock ‘best buy’ at the marts for those seeking to turn a healthy profit

The Friesian store bullock, a bit like David Cameron, has experienced a fall from grace this past week.

Thu, 14 Jul, 2016

Cattle marts report: Personal touch sees Gortatlea cattle mart grow its business by 50% in a single year

I’d say there were more Cork fellows back in Gortatlea mart on Friday than there were up in Thurles on Sunday. And I’m sure they had a better day out to boot.

Thu, 26 May, 2016

Cattle marts report: Big spenders pick up some impressive €980 Friesian stores and a €1,570 dry cow

The only regret I had in Bandon mart on Monday was that I’d didn’t have my cheque book with me.

Thu, 19 May, 2016

Cattle marts report: Small beef farmer is the fall guy as buyers focus on large animals

As you well know at this stage, I’m a glass half full man, rather than a glass half empty. Indeed so long as I have any drink at all, I’m happy.

Thu, 14 Apr, 2016

Cattle marts report: Prices and weather showing signs of picking up as focus moves to the fields

I find it very hard to believe that you will have any great interest in reading this mart report today.

Thu, 17 Mar, 2016

Cattle marts report: Friesian store bullocks break the €2/kg mark as buyers splash the cash on quality stock

Our first stop this week is in Macroom mart.

Thu, 10 Mar, 2016

Cattle marts report: Good mood at marts, cattle numbers keep going up as the rain keeps coming down

Monday was a super day weather wise. And I thought as I journeyed to Kilmallock mart that the good times had finally arrived.

Thu, 18 Feb, 2016

Cattle marts deliver strong prices despite weather conditions

The biggest threat to the cattle trade at the present moment will come from the sky. And I’m not talking about Kim Jong-un and his rockets. I’m referring to the weather.

Thu, 11 Feb, 2016

Most sellers happy to say Yes as strong mart market continues for most cattle

I sold a few bullocks in Bandon mart on Monday, in my ongoing efforts to keep the wolf from the door.

Thu, 22 Oct, 2015

Cattle marts report: Peace and Tranquility reign as fine weather keeps the trade buoyant in the marts

I went to Corrin Mart on Tuesday, not only to check out the livestock, but also to look at a bit of farmland that has suddenly come onto the market.

Thu, 15 Oct, 2015

Cattle mart report: Plainer weanling prices get extra boost from strong farmer demand at ringside

Last week, I complained here that I could hardly go to a mart, because of the fine weather.

Thu, 17 Sep, 2015

Cattle marts report: €50-60 off recent store prices was timely ahead of this week’s factory price cuts

Forgive me today if my mart report is a bit trína chéile.

Thu, 06 Aug, 2015

Cattle marts report: More weanlings starting to appear, making up to €3.13 per kg at Kilmallock

I headed to Bandon mart on Monday morning, and the first thing I spotted on entering the town was a young fellow holding two hurleys.

Thu, 30 Jul, 2015

Cattle marts report: Cattle numbers hold solid, prices are steady and bargain calves are as rare as hen’s teeth

Ever the optimist, I went to Dungarvan mart on Monday in search of a few cheap calves. But alas for me, I arrived too late.

Thu, 23 Jul, 2015

Cattle marts report: Despite traffic jams, stampede for quality cattle continues in Pamplona, West Cork

I headed to Macroom mart on Saturday morning, but unfortunately I had to endure Macroom’s rush hour traffic first, which stretched from Hartnett’s cross to the town itself.

Thu, 16 Jul, 2015

Cattle marts report: Good times for sellers but tough for buyers as every Friesian in the ring exceeds €2/kg

I had big plans for heading to Dungarvan mart on Monday. It has been a few weeks since I’ve touched down at the Waterford mart.

Thu, 02 Jul, 2015

Cattle marts report: Serious trading done at regional marts as buyers travel from all corners of the country

On Tuesday morning, in a state of utter confusion, I found myself in Lissarda village. You see, I didn’t know whether to turn right for Corrin, or left for Kanturk.

Thu, 25 Jun, 2015

Cattle prices remain strong despite silage season creating time pressure for farmers

Silage is the name of the game this week and on Monday morning, as I drove along from Kilmichael to Kilmallock, the way seemed to be paved with nothing but cut swards of grass.

Thu, 11 Jun, 2015

Calves holding their value well for this time of year as marts report steady trading

I was in Fermoy on Sunday at a sporting event and saw silage being made. I was back there on Tuesday, at Corrin mart, and you’d be half inclined to open a bale.

Thu, 21 May, 2015

Cattle marts: Small cattle are ‘near untouchable’ and calves fetch some exceptional prices

As May begins and summer officially gets under way, the farming situation is like this: silage ground cannot be sold, and store cattle cannot be bought.

Thu, 07 May, 2015

Cattle marts report: Kilmallock sales were €1.5m on Monday, but buyers say store prices are easing

I’m a right pity this week, as I attend the marts. My right hand is broken, and I can no longer pick up the odd little calf, as I go about my mart reporting business.

Thu, 23 Apr, 2015

Markets: Quality animals draw attention of buyers as marts enjoy a flying trade in fine weather

Silage contractor Michael Allen from Enniskeane was a busy man last Thursday afternoon making his first round bales of the season.

Thu, 16 Apr, 2015

Cattle marts report: Mart trade going well but may need milder weather to maintain buyer confidence

The first person I met in Bandon mart last Monday morning was former mart manager Pat McCarthy, promoting the virtues of the Hereford breed.

Thu, 02 Apr, 2015

Cattle marts report: Strong prices for dairy stock point to post-quota confidence in the milk sector

Everyone was busy in Corrin mart on Tuesday. It was a big mart with big prices, with 2,000 cattle and calves on offer.

Thu, 26 Mar, 2015

Cattle marts: Mart bidding reflects Coveney progress towards promised land of high beef price

Cattle buyers have been telling me during the week that store cattle in the marts are simply too expensive to purchase.

Thu, 05 Mar, 2015

Markets: Solid sales at marts are hopefully a sign of better times ahead

Being the plucky fellow I am, I had plans on Monday to head to some faraway mart like Castleisland or Dungarvan.

Thu, 29 Jan, 2015

Dairy farmers paying €400 or more for handy bull calves, to offload surplus milk

The dry cow trade in the marts at the moment is flying high.

Thu, 15 Jan, 2015

Factories loosen purse strings for an upbeat Skibbereen fatstock show and sale

Isn’t it every farmer’s dream to one day be holding the halter of the winning animal at a fatstock show and sale? Of course it is! Sure what else do we dream about?

Thu, 11 Dec, 2014

Dairy farmers were rubbing their hands with glee as the calf trade took flight

Calves were absolutely flying in Bandon on Monday. On a number of occasions, I had to rub my eyes in disbelief at what I was witnessing.

Thu, 04 Dec, 2014

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