A big sale of 1,200 sheep was seen at Kilkenny Mart yesterday, Monday (August 16), which included a special sale of hogget ewes and ewe lambs.

Starting with the general sale of lambs and cull ewes, the mart's auctioneer, George Candler, reported a good solid trade for both lambs and cull ewes - which resulted in a 99% clearance rate.

Butcher lamb prices peaked at €149/head for 56kg lambs, with factory lamb prices topping €135/head for 46kg lambs.

Sample butcher and factory lamb prices:

A solid store lamb trade was also seen at Kilkenny Mart on Monday. Prices ranged from €2.45/kg up to €3.00/kg.

Sample store lamb prices:

Heavy cull ewes continue to be met with a strong trade, with prices on Monday topping €214/head for heavy ewes. Feeding ewes sold back to €56/head.

Lastly, George said despite prices reaching a high of €270/head, many hoggets did not reach sellers' expectations.

The general run of prices for hogget ewes ranged from €150/head up to €270/head.

While ewe lambs sold from €110/head up to €145/head.