The special Christmas Cracker took place at Headford Mart on Saturday, with mart manager Joe Wynne saying the sale has gotten larger and larger each year.

The bullock sale saw numbers well ahead of previous weeks. The quality on offer was very high, with plenty of good-quality continentals to choose from. Bullocks over 550kg were a good trade but with only a marginal lift in beef prices, the trade for forward types at the ringside was curtailed. The best types sold for well over €1,200/head.

This pair of Charolais-cross bulls born January 2018 and weighing 470kg sold for €900 (€1.91/kg).

These three Limousin-cross bulls born March to July 2019 and weighing 337kg on average sold for €680 each (€2.02/kg).

This Limousin-cross bull born April 2019 and weighing 300kg sold for €800 (€2.67/kg).

This Charolais-cross bull born March 2019 and weighing 400kg sold for €970 (€2.43/kg).

This Simmental-cross bull born April 2019 and weighing 355kg sold for €800 (€2.25/kg).

This Charolais-cross bull born March 2019 and weighing 365kg sold for €925 (€2.53/kg).

Lighter stores were more plentiful, and quality was the main factor affecting prices. There were some plainer types on offer also, and these sold mainly from €1,000 to €1,100/head.

The weanling trade was quite strong, with plenty of buyers present. Again, the quality of bulls on offer was the main factor influencing the strong trade. Like heavy bullocks, heavy bulls were a relatively unchanged trade and struggled to pass the €1,000/head mark for those over 450kg.

Bulls from 300kg to 400kg sold mainly from €800 to €900, with some fancy and well-muscled animals selling for up to €970/head. Even lighter bulls were a strong trade. Those just under 300kg sold mainly from €700 to €750, with some lighter bulls making over €3.00/kg.

Heifers

The heifer trade was mixed. Good-quality types were easily sold, but there were some plainer types which went unsold as some farmers hoped for higher prices. At the top of the market, heifers over 550kg sold from €1,100/head to €1,210/head. Heifers from 500kg to 550kg sold mainly from €1,000/head to €1,100/head. Heifers from 400kg to 500kg sold mainly from €900/head to €1,150/head, with quality again an important factor. There were some Angus heifers on offer also; these were close to 500kg and sold for just around €900/head.

This Limousin-cross heifer born June 2018 and weighing 440kg sold for €1,010 (€2.30/kg).

This pair of Charolais-cross heifers, one of which was the first prize winner, born March 2018 and weighing 560kg on average, sold for €1,210 each (€2.16/kg).

This 2008-born five-star cow with a Limousin-cross heifer calf at foot sold for €1,350.

Weanling heifers from 300kg to 400kg sold to a top of €950/head for the 355kg first prize winner. Other good-quality types in the same weight range sold from €750 to €850/head. The best demand was for the better-quality Charolais and Limousin heifers, with black heifers and black white heads a more variable trade.

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