The Kilkenny Agricultural Show committee held its first pedigree bull sale of the year at Kilkenny Livestock Mart on Wednesday 19 March.
Just over 70 bulls were presented for sale on the day, made up of Angus, Hereford, Limousin and Friesians.
Getting the sale off to a flying start was the Angus breed, which saw 28 bulls sell for an average of €4,125.
Just four Angus bulls went home unsold, with indices and calving ease figures playing a pivotal role with buyers.
Sale leader
Leading the Angus trade and selling for the highest price across all breeds at €6,200 was Knockmountagh Leonardo Z079.
Exhibited by Eamon and John McKiernan from Co Louth, this November 2023-born son of Intelagri Matteo ET is out of a Netherton Americano M703-bred cow.
He attracted massive ringside interest, displaying a star-studded set of indices, along with below-average calving figures on dairy cows and heifers, before selling to a local dairy farmer.
Killea Black Lucifer Z976, which sold for €6,000, exhibited by Sam Trousdell Dudley and Tom Parr.
Selling for €6,000 was 17-month-old Killea Black Lucifer, brought out by Co Tipperary breeders Henry and Sam Dudley.
This Lanigan Red Samson son goes back to a Gigginstown-bred cow and carries a dairy beef index (DBI) of €120, as well as a calving figure of just 1.8% on dairy cows. He was also snapped up by a local dairy farmer.
Hereford trade
Demand was not as hot in the Hereford ring, as just 10 Hereford bulls exchanged hands, resulting in a 40% clearance.
It must be said this may have been affected by a delayed start to the sale.
Corlismorepoll 1 Forefront 242, which sold for €5,800.
Topping the Herefords at €5,800 was Corlismorepoll 1 Forefront 242, exhibited by Co Cavan breeder Sean McKiernan.
This powerful July 2023-born bull is homebred on both sides, sired by Corlismore 1 Codaline 102, going back to Shiloh-Farm Dynamite in his mother's lineage.
Ranking in the top 20% of the breed on both the DBI and carcase weight, the Cavan-bred bull was knocked down to Fluskey Farm Ltd in Co Carlow.
Just two out of the seven Limousin bulls presented found new homes, with a top price of €5,200 achieved by Brendan Hogan for Oldtown Uilliam.
This high-index bull displayed a page full of stars, with breed average calving figures across beef and dairy. Having the last call on this Tomschoice Lexicon son was Hilda Rothwell from Co Carlow.
Friesian bulls peaked at €4,000 for the October 2023-born Mountfarna Hansen, the property of John O'Callaghan from Co Cork.
This well-bred son of Firoda Jubilaris carries an EBI of €178 and a whopping milk figure of 295kg. Five out of the eight Friesian bulls in the yard traded on the day for an average €2,740.
Pick up a copy of next week's Irish Farmers Journal to read the full report.
The Kilkenny Agricultural Show committee held its first pedigree bull sale of the year at Kilkenny Livestock Mart on Wednesday 19 March.
Just over 70 bulls were presented for sale on the day, made up of Angus, Hereford, Limousin and Friesians.
Getting the sale off to a flying start was the Angus breed, which saw 28 bulls sell for an average of €4,125.
Just four Angus bulls went home unsold, with indices and calving ease figures playing a pivotal role with buyers.
Sale leader
Leading the Angus trade and selling for the highest price across all breeds at €6,200 was Knockmountagh Leonardo Z079.
Exhibited by Eamon and John McKiernan from Co Louth, this November 2023-born son of Intelagri Matteo ET is out of a Netherton Americano M703-bred cow.
He attracted massive ringside interest, displaying a star-studded set of indices, along with below-average calving figures on dairy cows and heifers, before selling to a local dairy farmer.
Killea Black Lucifer Z976, which sold for €6,000, exhibited by Sam Trousdell Dudley and Tom Parr.
Selling for €6,000 was 17-month-old Killea Black Lucifer, brought out by Co Tipperary breeders Henry and Sam Dudley.
This Lanigan Red Samson son goes back to a Gigginstown-bred cow and carries a dairy beef index (DBI) of €120, as well as a calving figure of just 1.8% on dairy cows. He was also snapped up by a local dairy farmer.
Hereford trade
Demand was not as hot in the Hereford ring, as just 10 Hereford bulls exchanged hands, resulting in a 40% clearance.
It must be said this may have been affected by a delayed start to the sale.
Corlismorepoll 1 Forefront 242, which sold for €5,800.
Topping the Herefords at €5,800 was Corlismorepoll 1 Forefront 242, exhibited by Co Cavan breeder Sean McKiernan.
This powerful July 2023-born bull is homebred on both sides, sired by Corlismore 1 Codaline 102, going back to Shiloh-Farm Dynamite in his mother's lineage.
Ranking in the top 20% of the breed on both the DBI and carcase weight, the Cavan-bred bull was knocked down to Fluskey Farm Ltd in Co Carlow.
Just two out of the seven Limousin bulls presented found new homes, with a top price of €5,200 achieved by Brendan Hogan for Oldtown Uilliam.
This high-index bull displayed a page full of stars, with breed average calving figures across beef and dairy. Having the last call on this Tomschoice Lexicon son was Hilda Rothwell from Co Carlow.
Friesian bulls peaked at €4,000 for the October 2023-born Mountfarna Hansen, the property of John O'Callaghan from Co Cork.
This well-bred son of Firoda Jubilaris carries an EBI of €178 and a whopping milk figure of 295kg. Five out of the eight Friesian bulls in the yard traded on the day for an average €2,740.
Pick up a copy of next week's Irish Farmers Journal to read the full report.
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