Report from Kilbride Farm Simmentals’ 50th-anniversary sale.
A “strong” export trade prevailed at the hotly anticipated premier heifer sale of WH Robson & Sons, Doagh, Ballyclare, Co Antrim.
Held as a timed online auction in conjunction with Ballymena Livestock Auctioneers and MartEye over three days, August 19th-21st, this export-qualified sale celebrated the fiftieth anniversary of the noted and prolific Kilbride Farm pedigree Simmental herd.
On offer was a selection of high-quality yearling and in-calf heifers from the herd’s main and prolific cow families.
Kilbride Farm Simmentals’ sale
An Australian buyer acquired the top-priced heifer, with two further heifers heading to buyers in Germany.
Four heifers ventured to Scotland, while six went to the south of Ireland and two to Northern Ireland. According to the family, fifteen heifers levelled at £4,886, respectively.
Cattle prices
Headling the sale at 6,000gns was August-2020-born Kilbride Farm Eunice 314L (P) [main image].
Out of Kilbride Farm Eunice 191F, this heifer, now the property of Jeff Knox, Crookwell, New South Wales, goes back to the Milnafua Graduate daughter, Eunice 34S.
Her sire, Kilbride Farm Hans PP, goes back to Kilbride Farm Fanni 9V, who bred the 12,000gns Kilbride Farm Bantry.
Last year, Mr Knox imported 32 embryos from the Kilbride Farm herd and from which he now has pregnancies.
From here, agreement has been reached that Kilbride Farm Eunice 314L (P) will remain at Kilbride Farm, where she will be flushed. The family will export embryos to Mr Knox thereafter.
5,100gns and under
Next up was 5,100gns was Kilbride Farm Eunice 295K (P), one of three heifers Eoin Coogan, Co Wicklow, purchased.
This August–2019-born heifer is by the homozygous polled bull Sneumgaard Imperator, a herd sire imported from Denmark.
Again with a depth of breeding and performance, Eunice 295K (P), is out of the powerful Crugmelyn Brenin daughter Kilbride Farm Eunice 149D and with her grand dam Eunice 45T being a full sister to Kilbride Farm Titan, a champion at the Stirling Bull Sales. This heifer was sold in-calf to Curaheen Gunshot (P).
Mr Coogan’s next selection was Kilbride Farm Eunice 306K for 4,400gns. Eunice 306K is one of a few Crugmelyn Brenin heifers in the herd ever to have been offered for sale. November-2019-born, she is out of the prolific Cairnview Snazzy daughter, Kilbride Farm Eunice 103B.
Making it a hat trick of purchases, the August-2019-born Kilbride Farm Jolly25K (P) also headed to Coogan’s newly established herd.
4100gns Jolly 25K (P) is by the Crugmelyn Brenin son Kilbride Farm Gruffalo 15 (P) and is out of Kilbride Farm Jolly 17G (P).
The Jolly family has produced some of the highest-priced bulls from the herd and up to 22,000gns. Kilbride Farm Jolly 25K sold in-calf to Kilbride Farm Jetstream P.
Scottish buyers
Two heifers changed hands at 4700gns. First up with Kilbride Farm Dora 97K (P), who Mike Morrice for the Boharm pedigree herd at Mains of Newton, Craigellachie, Moray, Scotland, acquired.
The August-2019-born Dora 97K (P), is the first heifer to be offered at sale by Islavale Harvest 16, the Ranfurly Confederate C24 11 son.
She is out of Kilbride Farm Dora 75F (P), a daughter of the homozygous polled Ardadoney VIP (PP), and was sold in-calf to Kilbride Farm Jetstream P.
Another selling to Scotland, and again at 4700gns, was the October-2019-born Kilbride Farm Eunice 305K.
She was one of two purchases by Kate & Alan McNee, Over Finlarg Farm, Tealing, Dundee to join their Finlarg herd.
A further heifer by Kilbride Farm Gruffalo 15 (P), Eunice 305K is out of Kilbride Farm Eunice 245I (P), a Sneumgaard Imperator PP heifer going back to Seaview Prince Charming and Dovefield Gallant.
Under 4,000gns
Also heading to Over Finlarg at 3900gns was the youngest heifer in the catalogue, the August-2020 Kilbride Farm Eunice 315L (P). Again full of breeding, Eunice 315L (P) is by Curaheen Gunshot (P), and is out of Kilbride Farm Eunice 274J (P).
The very first lot in the catalogue, Kilbride Farm Eunice 291K, went under the hammer at 4500gns when selling to the Killultagh herd of Connor Wilkinson, Killultagh Road, Co Antrim.
Getting the sale off to a solid start, this April-2019-heifer, a full sister to Kilbride Farm Gruffalo, is a Crugmelyn Brenin daughter out of Kilbride Farm Eunice 92A (P).
Eunice 291K’s grand-dam was noted as being “a tremendous breeding polled Milnafua Graduate cow on whom a lot of the herd’s polled breeding was based”.
Kilbride Farm Eunice 291K was also sold in-calf to Kilbride Farm Jetstream P.
The final animal hitting the 4,000gns mark was the March-2020-born Kilbride Farm Iris 25L (P). Another daughter of the homozygous polled Sneumgaard Imperator.
Iris 25L (P) is out of Kilbride Farm Iris 17F who placed third best cow in the 2020 European Simmental Virtual Show.
Germany
Furthermore, continuing the export theme, two animals made 3,900gns and both sold to Simmental breeders from Germany.
The first of these was Kilbride Farm Laura 37L (P), an Islavale Harvest 16 daughter, and out of Kilbride Farm Laura 20H (PP), an Imperator daughter. This heifer heads back to one of the breed’s homelands, Germany, and Mario Walther, Erlinbacher Stadtweg 52, Frankfurt.
No stranger to British Simmental, Mr Walther bought a female from the Omorga herd of John Moore, Tyrone, in 2020.
Also at 3,900gns was Kilbride Farm Laura 39L (P) who Thomas Eydner, Frohburg, Germany snapped up. April-2020-born, Laura 39L (P) is by Kilbride Farm Gruffalo 15 (P), and is out of Kilbride Farm Laura 22H (P). Mr Eydner previously bought semen from the Kilbride Farm herd.
Exported Simmental genetics worldwide
Billy Robson said: “We are delighted to have held this sale to mark 50 years of Kilbride Farm Simmentals.”
“As the herd has progressed in that time, we have exported Simmental genetics around the world. It is very fitting, therefore, to have seen such an export theme to this sale.”
“The sale represented an opportunity for purchasers to buy animals from our best breeding lines. We very much trust they go on to do well for their new owners.”
