At least two price records are understood to have been broken last night (Monday, December 5) at the McGee family’s second online on-farm sale of E- and U-grade breeding suckler stock.
The sale consisted of 42 breeding heifers (both pedigree and commercial) and one pedigree-registered Belgian Blue bull. There was a 100% clearance at the sale and all livestock in the sale were born in 2022.
The sale was a timed auction and took place on the MartEye ELITE app in association with Mid Tipperary Co Operative Livestock Mart (Thurles Mart).
Belgian Blue bull
At a price of €52,500, it is understood the January 2022-born bull Fatherson Quest (372 2144752 1 4713), or Rainbows End as he is referred to in the online sale catalogue, is the highest-priced bull ever sold at an auction in Ireland.
Agriland can exclusively reveal that the bull has been bought by Co. Limerick-based artificial insemination (AI) firm Bova AI.
A fierce battle had ensued between the company and Northern Ireland-based Owen and Freddie Miskelly.
At 1:00p.m yesterday the bull was at €11,500, before moving on to sit at €25,500 at 6:00p.m.
At 8:51p.m, the sale for the bull began to close at €26,000. It then moved on a further €26,500 in 12 minutes after which the lot closed at 9:03p.m at the final price of €52,500.
For comparison purposes, the record for the highest-priced bull at a society sale is understood to be held by Co. Laois man Garrett Behan, for his Simmental bull Lucky Explorer who sold for €52,000 at the Irish Simmental Cattle Society’s October Premier Show and Sale in Co. Roscommon in 2020.
BOVA AI
BOVA AI was formed in 1985 by Owen O’ Neill who, in addition to practicing as a veterinary surgeon, had built up a reputation for pedigree beef breeding.
According to its website, Bova AI has 45 technicians and has bull housing for over 25 bulls at its EU-approved stud in Co. Limerick.
It supplies beef and dairy genetics to farmers across Ireland and further afield.
Top-priced heifer
The top-priced heifer in the sale was Lot 1, Pretender to the Crown, who sold for €22,500.
According to the catalogue, this March 2022-born Belgian Blue-cross heifer is a maternal sister to last year’s sale topper She’s The One, who sold for €18,000.
The buyers of Pretender to the Crown were Owen and Freddie Miskelly who also purchased Lot 2 for €7,000, Lot 3 for €8,200 and Lot 18 for €18,000 – bringing their total spend to €55,700.
The heifer is believed to be the highest-priced commercial (non-pedigree) female ever sold at an auction in Ireland.
Prices
According to MartEye statistics, the average sale price across the 43 lots – the 42 heifers and the bull – was €5,563.
The average sale price of the 42 heifers sold was €4,445.
A total of 13 lots were exported and 5,345 bidders were approved from across Ireland, the UK, Europe and further afield for the McGee sale.