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03 October 2018

Kieran Mailey on 03 Oct 2018

Super start to calf sales at Kilrea Mart

Suckler calf sales got off to an excellent start at Kilrea Mart last week, with a big turnout of buyers hungry for stock.

Kieran Mailey

3 October 2018

Super start to calf sales at Kilrea Mart

This Charolais bullock, weighing 430kg and born January 2018, sold for £845.

This Limousin bullock, weighing 340kg and born April 2018, sold for £915.

This Charolais bull, weighing 420kg and born January 2018, sold for £890.

This Angus bullock, weighing 380kg and born December 2017, sold for £725.

This Limousin heifer, weighing 360kg and born November 2017, sold for £740.

This Hereford heifer, weighing 380kg and born January 2018, sold for £710.

This Limousin heifer, weighing 360kg and born December 2017, sold for £770.

This Belgian Blue bullock, weighing 500kg and born October 2017, sold for £1,000.

This Charolais bullock, weighing 450kg and born December 2017, sold for £1,020.

This Charolais bullock, weighing 380kg and born March 2018, sold for £915.

This Charolais heifer, weighing 350kg and born December 2017, sold for £790.

This Limousin bullock, weighing 410kg and born January 2018, sold for £860.

Camera at the mart attended the first suckler calf sale of the year to be held at Kilrea Mart. Trade was brisk on the back of a big turnout of buyers and prices were buoyant.Cattle quality was good, with a few exceptional animals selling to over £1,000 per head. Male cattle sold better as bullocks, especially when heavier lots were being offered for sale.

Camera at the mart attended the first suckler calf sale of the year to be held at Kilrea Mart. Trade was brisk on the back of a big turnout of buyers and prices were buoyant.

Cattle quality was good, with a few exceptional animals selling to over £1,000 per head. Male cattle sold better as bullocks, especially when heavier lots were being offered for sale.

However, bull calves were still an easy sell, while heifers were a solid trade. Buyers were most active on weanlings weighing 380kg to 400kg or slightly heavier.

Calves weighing 300kg to 350kg were a steady trade, but calves below 300kg were a harder sell.

Mart manager Mark Stewart commented on the sale, saying that cattle were a super trade and that the market outlook is positive for upcoming sales which have bigger numbers of stock on offer.

He added that buying demand held steady across the sale, with a strong start and finish to the trade across all types of cattle.

The sale started off on a positive footing, with a 420kg Charolais bull selling for £890 making 212p/kg.

Prices quickly escalated, with top-quality dun-coloured Charolais calves making 220p to 240p/kg. Bullocks sold at the upper end of the price range, with a 380kg animal making £915.

Prices reached a peak of £1,020 for a 450kg Charolais bullock born in December 2017, which equates to 226p/kg.

Plainer Charolais bull calves and bullocks sold from 195p to 210p/kg. Charolais heifers sold from 210p/kg rising to 230p/kg for better-quality animals.

A big entry of Limousin calves saw bullocks selling to 269p/kg for a 340kg April-born bullock which sold for £915.

Other noted prices saw bullocks weighing 370kg to 400kg make £765 to £985, or 205p to 245p/kg depending on weight and quality.

Limousin heifers were a steadier trade, with the majority of animals weighing 340kg to 410kg selling from £740 to £880. Lighter heifers under 300kg sold from £605 to £670.

Belgian Blue bullocks sold to £1,000 for a 500kg animal born last October. Lighter Blue bullocks weighing 280kg to 330kg sold to £640 for plainer animals.

A limited entry of Angus and Hereford bullocks sold from £690 to £725.

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Completing an autumn grazing planner