Ballyjamesduff Co-operative Livestock Mart hosted a special show and sale of select suckler-bred heifers on Wednesday (August 10).
The sale got underway shortly after 6:30p.m and “buyers from all directions secured heifers at the sale,” according to mart manager, John Tevlin.
“There were over 100 heifers on offer at the evening sale which attracted large numbers of farmers to the mart with some coming to buy and others coming to see the quality of the heifers on offer,” said Tevlin.
“Buyers from all directions secured cattle at the sale with farmers, factories, feedlots and northern buyers all competing for heifers at the special sale.”
“There was a super trade” the manager added, with one 590kg Simmental-cross heifer selling for €2,660 or €4.51/kg and another 570kg heifer selling for €2,400 or €4.21/kg.
Sample prices from the sale:
While many of the heifers in the sale were going for breeding, factories and feedlots from north and south were competing for stock too, paying as high as €2,370 or €3.22/kg for a 735kg continental heifer.
Other sample prices from the heifer sale:
- 630kg Charolais-cross heifer sold for €2,380 or €3.78/kg;
- 700kg Limousin cross heifer sold for €2,270 or €3.24/kg;
- 560kg Limousin-cross heifer sold for €2,220.
The suckler sale took place earlier in the day and saw cows with calves at-foot selling for in and around €1,800.
Cull cows
The cull cow sale took place earlier in the day at Ballyjamesduff Mart, with weanling bulls, heifers and cull cows all sold in the same ring.
Commenting on the cow trade, Telvin said: “Cows remain a great trade. There seems to be a great demand for manufacturing beef and supplies seem to be tight.”
“Orders seem to be rolling in and the smaller northern wholesalers are all back alive again looking for stock and getting it hard to fill them,” he added.
Upcoming sales
The special weanling sales will get underway at Ballyjamesduff Mart in October.
Next Wednesday evening (August 17) the mart is set to host a special sale of breeding hoggets and ewes.
There will be two sales rings in operation with lambs in one ring and breeding hoggets in the second ring.
There will be no sale at Ballyjamesdfuff Mart on August 24, due to the Virginia Show taking place, and the cow sale will instead take place on Tuesday, August 23.