The Northern Ireland Simmental Cattle Breeders’ Club has announced that its Woodcraft Kitchens (Kilrea) Junior Heifer Derby will take place at Ballymena Show on Saturday 27 May.

Open to heifers born in 2016, the heifer derby carries a total prize fund of £400, and will be judged by William Ferguson from the noted Sperrin View Herd based at Stewartstown, Co Tyrone.

There are three classes in the heifer derby: heifers born from the 1 January 2016 to the 30 April 2016, heifers from the start of May to the end of August and finally heifers from September 2016 to December.

The schedule for County Antrim Agricultural Association’s Ballymena Show includes a variety of classes for Simmental cows, heifers and bulls, and is also a qualifier for the Ivomec Super Simmental Pair of the Year competition. The event is a nominated points show for the Danske Bank Male and Female of the Year Awards. Entries close for the show on Friday 12 May.

Cappamore host for two all-Ireland finals

The Cappamore Show, which takes place on Saturday 19 August will this year host two all-Ireland finals. First up is the hotly contested all-Ireland bonny baby calf finals, while the all-Ireland Limousin breeding heifer final will also take centre stage.

Cappamore has always been able to attract a large entry of top-quality commercial cattle and, given the €2,000 commercial championships are again being hosted by the Limerick County Show, this year should be no different.

In total, Cappamore will see a total of 96 cattle classes on the day covering nine breeds along with a wide range of mare and foal classes. The show will also feature a Taste of Limerick food exhibition and lots of free children’s entertainment.

Full details of all classes can be found at www.cappamoreshow.ie

Four-day Balmoral

An additional day is being added to the Balmoral Show this year, with Saturday included to create a four-day show. The show takes place from 10-13 May at Balmoral Park near Lisburn.

The focus of Balmoral Show will remain the same over the four days, with food, farming and livestock competitions at the core of the show.

New livestock classes, final championship judging of classes and a new champion of champion’s competition are scheduled for the fourth day. Check out this week’s Focus in the main paper for more information.

Athlone Show cattle classes cancelled

The cattle section of one of Ireland’s most popular shows has been cancelled due to a lack of sponsorship. The Athlone Agricultural Show is one of Ireland’s most popular shows and sees an average of 4,000 to 5,000 people go through the gates per year. The show committee remain confident that the classes will return in 2018.

Three shows lost for 2017 calendar

Agricultural shows have been struggling to stay afloat in recent years due to a number of factors including the recession, a declining number of volunteers, falls in sponsorship, bad weather, and competition from other events, both televised and live.

This year is no different, with Castlerea, Ballivor and Drimolegue shows all calling it a day. However, the Carnew Agricultural Show, which was cancelled last year due to financial constraints and a decline in the number of volunteers, is back on track to open its gates in 2017.

Super commercial heifer class at Bandon

Launched in 2016, the Bandon show Super Commercial Young heifer competition has again obtained sponsorship from Bandon Co-op.

The class, which is open to exhibitors from every county in Ireland, brings with it a prize fund of €1,200, with €500 going to the first prize winner.

While Bandon Co-op has traditionally been associated with dairy farming, it also has a strong commitment to the beef sector through the supply of its quality beef feeds.

The show will also see a further 43 classes in its beef section along with a further 17 in the dairy side.

Winter fair 2017 bound for the banner county

The Commercial Cattle Exhibitors Society holds its 21st annual showcase at Clare co-operative marts, Ennis on 22 and 23 of October.

This two-day event will see exhibitors travel from all over Ireland to show their champion cattle for prestigious prizes. Day two is sale day, where exporters, factories, butchers, breeders of elite show cattle and farmers alike have their chance to purchase top-quality stock.

New for 2017 is an extension to young members’ classes as well as an extensive trade stand area, beef breed demonstrations, educational and advisory exhibits and practical demonstrations of livestock.