Tom Staunton’s Caramba Herd located in Kinvara, Co. Galway hosted a special sale of pedigree Beef Shorthorn cattle over the June bank holiday weekend.
A special viewing day took place at Caramba Farm on Sunday, June 2, while the online sale took place on Monday, June 3.
The sale featured 14 homebred females and one homebred young breeding bull. There was a 93% clearance, with strong demand from UK and Northern Ireland breeders.
11 animals were purchased by UK-based breeders and three were purchased by home based buyers.
Topping the sale was lot 3 sired by stock bull Westmoor Merlin, who has twice been Male Champion at Balmoral and has twice been the All-Ireland Senior Bull Champion.
The dam was a homebred cow Caramba Oi Edna, the 2023 Balmoral Overall Breed Champion.
Prior to that, her success includes All-Ireland titles as a yearling and as a two-year-old, which also includes the 2022 National Show Champion title.
Her first calf Caramba Blythesome Tequila sold on the day at a record Irish price of £9,000gns or €11,100.
The top-priced heifer was purchased by the Glebefarm Beef Shorthorn Herd owned by Alfie Shaw and family.
According to the vendor, the price achieved represents a new record price for an Irish Beef Shorthorn female, beating a six-year record of €8,400 held by another Caramba-bred animal, Caramba Rothes Lovable.
Shaw also purchased Lot 8, Caramba Tilly sired by homebred bull Caramba Pedro for £3,200gns or €3,750.
The second-best price was achieved by lot 4, Caramba Ruby Sue who made £7,400gns or €8,650.
Caramba Ruby Sue is a daughter of Podehole Beefeater out of first calf heifer Ballinlig Ruby, she sold to Alex Bennett and Elliw Roberts from New Mills, Newtown, Wales.
Bennet and Roberts also purchased four others in the sale, lots: 2, 5, 9, and 10 including the third best-priced heifer Caramba Elizabeth Twink, a Carrarock Chalkie daughter out of homebred Caramba Jemma Liz.
Twink topped out for £6,000gns or €7,020 euro. Bennett and Roberts travelled over for the sale viewing day, as it is their intention to start a new Beef Shorthorn herd, both Alex and Elliw enjoy showing cattle and felt the Caramba herd animals will help them establish the foundation stock they require for a successful entry into the Beef Shorthorn breed and show circuit.
Other highlights of the sale included purchases from Tom Quin, Portadown, Co. Armagh, who secured two Carrarock Chalkie, daughters – lot 14 for £3,300gns or €3,860 and lot 7 for £2,900gns or €3,400.
Lot 12 sold for £2,800 or €3,300 and she went to N. Leary from Newtownbulter Co. Fermanagh.
This was Leary’s second purchase from the Caramba herd as he first purchased at Caramba’s first online sale in 2016. Lot 15 sold to E and T Richardson, the Catterall herd based in Preston, UK.
Home-based buyers included Sam Dooley, Templemore, Co. Tipperary who secured lot 6 for £2,300gns or €2,700, and T. Scalon from Tralee Co. Kerry who purchased the only embryo transfer (ET) sale heifer sired by Eionmor Ideal 50p, also for a price tag of £2,300gns or €2,700.
The only bull in the sale went to local breeder D. Cronin from Loughrea Co. Galway for £2,300gns or €2,700 and this is the second stockbull Graigue Herd has purchased from Caramba.
Commenting on the sale, Tom Staunton said: “I am delighted with the sale and grateful to all who supported our open day, as well as the bidders and the underbidders.
“A special thank you to Trevor Chadwick for his management of the herd day to day. The sale cattle represented the best of the Caramba Herd and the type of Beef Shorthorn we like to breed.
“Any success for our herd is also a success for the Beef Shorthorn breed and all its breeders. We were first on the island to showcase online sales back in 2016, 2017, and 2018 through our own platform Pedigree Sales.
“This year the decision to go with the Harrison and Hetherington (H&H) MartEye partnership wasn’t an easy decision but was the right decision based on the growth and success of the online platform in recent years.”
The Irish Shorthorn Cattle Society will host its premier sale in Carrick on Shannon on Saturday, November 9.