PRICES at Skye’s biggest lamb sale of the season this week were markedly down from the first trade only a fortnight earlier.
At Dingwall and Highland Mart’s sale last month almost 2,900 sheep went through the Portree ring with an average price of £44.90, which was £2.84 up on the same sale in 2015. However, on Monday (5.9) – at what is traditionally the bigger of the island’s two main lamb sales – the average price had slumped dramatically by £7.41.
The average price was £37.49 for the 4,272 lambs sold, which was down by just 50 pence on the corresponding sale last year, but marked a significant drop from last month’s bumper trade. Lambs from Kilmuir from Norman MacDonald topped the sale at £67 for a pen of Texel crosses.
Lamb prices down.
Dougie Ross, of 5/8 Ellishadder, topped the Cheviots with £60; Alasdair MacDonald, of 10 Stenscholl, secured the best cross lamb price at £50.50, which was the same price lambs sold by Wendy Donnelly, of 9 Clachan, recahed.
Feeding sheep (160) sold to £42 gross for Blackface wedders from 2 Mugeary, Portree.
Leading prices per head: Lambs: BF – 44 Borneskitaig (N. MacDonald), £67; 5/6 Sheader, Uig, £60.50; TexX – 44 Borneskitaig (N. MacDonald), £62, 40 Mains, Bernisdale, £58.50, 42 Bernisdale, Skeabost Bridge, £57.50; SuffX – 42 Bernisdale, £60.50, 4 Glenmore, Portree, £55, 40 Mains, £54.50; Chev – 5/8 Ellishadder, Staffin, £60, 4 & 5 Ardmore, Dunvegan, £58.50, 13 Tarskavaig, Sleat, £57.50; BeltX – 15 Glenconon, Uig, £57; CharX – 19 Kilmuir, Dunvegan, £50.50; Cross – 10 Stenscholl, Staffin, £50.50, 9 Clachan, Staffin & 1 & 2 Conon, Uig, £50, 19 Kilmuir, Dunvegan, £49.50; MtlX – 2 Vatten, Dunvegan, £50.50; ZwbX – 40 Mains, £48, 7 Ferrindonald, Sleat, £46.