This February 2023-born Belgian Blue-cross-Limousin heifer due on 9 February to Ballyline Tom sold for €7,800.
While many marts shut their doors for a Christmas break, a number of special cattle and sheep sales have taken place over the last few days.
One of those sales was a special sale of 60 in-calf heifers for Cavan farmer Herbie Griffith, which took place in Carrigallen Mart, Co Leitrim, on Monday 29 December.
Herbie specialises in the production of top-quality in-calf heifers and has a number of sales in Carrigallen during the year.
Ring one in Carrigallen was packed to the rafters as the first heifer came into the ring at 1pm on Monday, with brisk bidding right from the off.
Top call went to a February 2023-born Belgian Blue-cross-Limousin heifer due on 9 February to Ballyline Tom selling for €7,800.
Another Belgian Blue heifer sired by the same bull Chocolat D’ Ochamps and due to calve on 19 January also sold for €7,800.
Heifers sold from €4,400 to €7,800, with the majority being knocked down at between €5,000 and €6,000.
A remarkable 45% of heifers in the sale were knocked down to online customers, with over 3,000 viewers tuning in to watch the online sale on Martbids.
This Belgian Blue heifer sired by AI bull Chocolat D’ Ochamps and due to calve on 19 January sold for €7,800.
This Belgian Blue-cross-Limousin heifer sold in-calf to Lodge Hamlet and due on 30 January 2026 for €7,400.
This March 2023-born Belgian Blue-cross-Limousin heifer sold in-calf to Tomschoice Scorpion and due to calve on 30 January 2026 for €7,000.
This April 2023-born Charolais-cross-Limousin heifer sold in-calf to Ballyline Tom and due to calve on 10 March 2026 for €6,600.
This April 2023-born Charolais-cross-Limousin heifer sold in-calf to the LM/BB hybrid bull and due to calve on 10 February 2026 for €6,500.
Speaking to the Irish Farmers Journal, auctioneer Eamon Gaffney said: “We had a lot of repeat customers buying again today - farmers who bought before and the heifers done well for them, so they come back again.
"It’s getting harder to walk into a mart and find 60 top-quality heifers all in the one sale, but that’s what Herbie specialises in.
"We had a lot of online activity as well, with some choosing to view the heifers beforehand and then bid from home during the sale.”
For more photos and the full sale report, pick up a copy of next week’s Irish Farmers Journal.
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