A warm sunny bank holiday weekend came to a close with the calf trade in Bandon Mart continuing it’s 2025 trend of hot prices.

There were 1,461 calves on offer this week and traditional beef breed crosses kept a stranglehold on the trade as they accounted for almost four out of every five calves on offer.

Numbers were up about 130 head on the same sale last year, but prices were a world away from those of last year.

Angus- and Hereford-crosses over 75kg were generally trading from €450 to over €600.

Prices were not confined to that range, with a share of traditional beef-breed runners exceeding €700 with €720 paid for a group of 112kg bulls and higher available for heavier calves on occasion.

It’s not all big money for Angus- and Hereford-crosses, lighter calves from 45kg to 55kg can be bought for between €170 to €300 too, but that middle-range calf in between 55kg and 75kg has the potential to fluctuate most in terms of prices – especially if they are from Friesian dams.

An odd few were purchased around €250, but if bidders stuck it out, a share in that weight range also ended up making close to €450.

Continental-sired calves were a bit thinner on the ground this week but continued to pull in premium prices. Heavier Belgian Blue-crosses – those weighing over 80kg – were making from €540 to €830. A number of similar weight Charolais-crosses made similar money while lighter continental-crosses made from €400 to €500.

Friesians perform well

Friesian bulls made up just over 10% and demand for them has strengthened in recent weeks as supply has slowed down. A 37kg Friesian bull calf selling for €195 tells you a lot about where trade is for Friesian bulls at present. Heavier calves weighing from 55kg to 75kg were generally making between €290 to €370 and runners were making up to €450.

There were a number of Friesian heifers on offer and these made from €180 to €245 for lighter calves, while weaned Friesian heifers made up to €730.

In pictures