Kentucky Proud connection

 

 

Kentucky Farm Bureau Beef Expo cracks $1 million in gross sales

 

Kentucky proud connection staff report

 

FRANKFORT, Ky. — The $1 million barrier fell at the 26th annual Kentucky Farm Bureau Beef Expo March 2-4 in Louisville. Beef Expo records were set for gross sales, average per head, and top price for a single lot, and several other records were shattered in the individual breed sales.

“Many of the highest-priced lots were from Kentucky, including the sale topper,” Agriculture Commissioner James Comer said. “These results show that Kentucky’s beef cattle industry and the Kentucky Farm Bureau Beef Expo have the well-deserved respect of cattlemen from all over the United States.”

In all, 485 lots sold for $1,062,940, an average of $2,192 per head, in the 11 breed sales and the pen heifer sale. Gross sales were 24.1 percent higher than the 2011 total of $856,545, and the average was a 27.4 percent increase over last year’s average of $1,720.

The sale topper was an Angus female consigned by Boyd Beef Cattle of Mayslick that sold for $27,000 to Bridges Beef Cattle of Shelby, N.C.

The results of the breed sales, with number of lots, gross sales, and average, were:

  • Angus – 47 lots, $153,850, $3,273
  • Beefalo – 37 lots, $63,900, $1,727
  • Charolais – 42 lots, $90,850, $2,163
  • Gelbvieh – 29 lots, $67,975, $2,344
  • Hereford – 42 lots, $99,150, $2,360
  • Limousin – 26.5 lots, $75,350, $2,843
  • Pen heifers – 72 lots, $118,975, $1,652
  • Red Angus – 36 lots, $76,725, $2,131
  • Saler – 30 lots, $45,900, $1,530
  • Shorthorn – 37 lots, $67,490, $1,824
  • Simmental – 60 lots, $173,600, $2,893

In the junior show, 477 animals entered the show ring, including 138 from Kentucky.

“Being a beef cattle producer myself, I certainly appreciate the importance of a strong genetic base in a successful cattle herd,” Commissioner Comer said. “So it’s especially gratifying to me that the Kentucky Farm Bureau Beef Expo is recognized nationwide as a source of top-quality seedstock. Congratulations to everyone involved for making this year’s beef expo a resounding success.”

For more information, go to http://kybeefexpo.com.