Tuesday’s sale at Ballyjamesduff Mart saw a special entry of in-calf dairy and suckler heifers on offer.

Mart manager John Tevlin said that demand for dairy in-calf heifers was strong. Prices ranged mainly from €1,100 to a top of €1,320/head.

There were also a share of maiden Friesian heifers on offer and these averaged around €800 each.

Along with the special entry of dairy stock, there was a good share of in-calf continental heifers calving from now.

Farmer demand was steady on previous weeks, but John said that the demand was not quite as strong as the same time last year. Prices for in-calf heifers, calving to a Limousin stock bull, ranged from €1,300 to €1,600, with €1,680 being the tops. There was also an entry of cows on offer, mainly older cows, which sold from €800 up to €1,430. Quality was the main factor determining prices.

John added that there was good demand for breeding heifers also and prices ranged from €1,300 to €1,740 for those from 430kg to 600kg.

Heifers over 500kg saw prices range mainly from €2.00/kg for average quality types to €2.25/kg for better quality types.

Today, Thursday, will see a special 50th AGM event entitled Breeding and Building for the Future take place at 8pm.