Elphin Mart had a big sale of 300 heifers last week, with some very big prices being paid for the top heifers in the sale.

The in-calf heifer producers drove the trade, with a few exceptional prices being paid for the best heifers in the sale.

A top call of €7,700 was paid for a May 2022-born Belgian Blue heifer weighing 650kg, followed closely by a May 2022-born Charolais heifer weighing 690kg selling for €7,600. Both were snapped up by in-calf heifer producers.

Buyers from 'all over'

Commenting on the trade, mart manager Ciaran Lynch said: “We had buyers from all over for the breeding sale, with massive appetite for replacement heifers, with both farmers and in-calf heifer operators.

"We had a steady flow of heifers bought for export to Northern Ireland as well, which helped the trade.” A total of 40 heifers made their way north from the sale.

The sale average came in at €3.78/kg, which was one of the best averages that the mart has achieved in recent times.

The mart is gearing up for Fred Dolan’s 24th annual sale of in-calf heifers which takes place on Monday 19 February.

Top prices

This May 2022-born Belgian Blue heifer weighed 650kg and sold for €7,700.

This May 2022-born Charolais heifer weighed 690kg and sold for €7,600.

This April 2022-born Belgian Blue heifer weighed 655kg and sold for €4,500.

This April 2022-born Belgian Blue heifer weighed 615kg and sold for €4,150.

This April 2022-born Belgian Blue heifer weighed 720kg and sold for €4,000.

This November 2021-born Limousin heifer weighed 655kg and sold for €3,900.