Freshly calved dairy cattle fetch up to €3,150 at Carnew sale

The sale took place as autumn calving continued and dairy animals returned to auction rings across the country. The Carnew offering comprised cows and heifers that had recently calved, maiden heifers and animals intended for spring calving. Speaking to Agriland, Quinn said buyers were particularly interested in cows ready to enter the milking herd.

The highest-priced animal was a Friesian cow born in September 2021 that had calved in early September. Her projected output for the current lactation is 9,452kg, with fat content of 4.34% and protein of 3.54%. Weighing 756kg, she carried an Economic Breeding Index (EBI) of €6. Its components included €47 for milk and minus €19 for fertility.

A heifer born in September 2024 fetched €3,000 after calving during October’s opening week. Her first lactation this year is expected to yield 9,782kg of milk containing 4.26% fat and 3.78% protein. Her overall EBI stood at €85, including a milk component of €101 and a fertility component of minus €5.

A second heifer born in September 2024 also sold for €3,000. She was approaching calving and had an EBI of €52, comprising a €61 milk sub-index and a €12 fertility sub-index. Expectations of high production were linked to her dam’s record: at peak lactation, the dam had yielded 10,393kg of milk, with 4.30% fat and 3.8% protein.

Across the sale, cows and heifers that had recently calved achieved an average price a little below €2,400 per head. Animals scheduled to calve during the current month averaged slightly above €2,420. Spring calvers, by comparison, returned an average of a little under €1,100 per animal. Quinn said prices for that group were only modestly above those paid for cull cows, while demand centred on animals available for immediate milking.

The auction also included a consignment of pedigree heifers born in autumn 2025. Their mean liveweight was 333kg per head, and they sold for an average of €1,217 each.