Auctioneer pens poem summarising market prices

Trade at the auction mart has been tricky to say the least this year, with prices for fat lambs and breeding ewes slumping heavily on the year.

When Farmers Weekly asked auctioneer Stephen Dennis, from Bentham Market, to summarise trade, we weren’t expecting this.

But we thought it was so good we wanted to share it with you all!

Trade for the year is anyone’s guess

But if you ask me, it’s got in a mess,

Shearlings are down and ewes are bad too,

Gimmer lambs alright and tups will do.

Fat lambs have been sluggish for most of the year,

But cast ewes are the saviour, at times very dear.

So what about cattle? Well, dairy are down,

but the prices for milk would make anyone frown.

Store cattle hardly dropped, so calves have been strong,

And a buoyant cull cow trade has helped dairymen on.

So what about store lambs? – I nearly forgot,

Well it’s all about keep and there’s still a lot.

So prices are good compared to the fat.

If they pay in the short term, I’ll eat my hat!