The Irish Charolais Cattle Society (ICCS) will host the first of its events on Saturday 23 September in Elphin Mart as the highly anticipated National Charolais Calf Show is set to make a promising return.

The society expects this to be the biggest show of any breed this year. Last year, the show had a display of over 180 calves and the society is expecting similar numbers again this year.

ICCS secretary Nevan McKiernan told the Irish Farmers Journal: “It is a great opportunity for breeders and commercial farmers to see what new bulls are breeding well.”

After the National Calf Show, Charolais enthusiasts can look forward to the first of the breed’s autumn sales. The first of these sales is the elite heifer show and sale, which will take place in the Midland and Western Livestock Improvement Society Showgrounds in Carrick-on-Shannon on Saturday 28 October.

The first of the society’s bull sales will take place in GVM Mart Tullamore on Saturday 4 November

All entries for this sale will be pre-inspected prior to the sale, and a maximum of 50 heifers will be allowed in to ensure there is a high standard for potential customers.

As an added incentive this year, all purchasers at this sale will receive free AI straws from the society’s top new AI bulls, who are suitable for use on heifers.

The first of the society’s bull sales will take place in GVM Mart Tullamore on Saturday 4 November.

This will be followed by one of the breed’s main highlights of the year, the annual Christmas Cracker bull sale, which is set to take place in Elphin Mart on Saturday 2 December.

With the National Ploughing Championships just around the corner and many breed societies not attending this year’s event, McKiernan told the Irish Farmers Journal: “With regards to not attending the National Ploughing Championships, like most other things, the cost of attending and having a stand at the event has increased in recent years.

“As well as finding it hard to justify the cost, it was also felt that the National Charolais Calf Show would be more beneficial to the breeders and the breed as a whole. This is not to say that the society will not return to the Ploughing in the future.”