Beef Shorthorn bulls met a flying trade in Stirling with a top price of 21,000gns paid for the champion bull from young Morayshire breeder Grant Stephen.
The sale met a 66% clearance but saw the 47 bulls cash in to average £7,491, up £1,794 on the year.
Society breed secretary Clive Brown said: “Interest in the Beef Shorthorn is growing, particularly south of the border, with the society seeing an average of six or seven new members per month.
“Morrisons Supermarket is also enhancing the breed by giving us a 15 pence per kilo premium for Shorthorn sired cattle which go through the Beef Shorthorn beef scheme.”
With no fewer than eight bulls selling at 10,000gns or above, sale topper was Glendual Sammy, from Grant’s herd at Dallas, Forres.
Morayshire breeder leads the way at 21,000gns
Selling to the Green family at Corskie, Fochabers, and achieving a personal best for Grant who established his herd in 2015, this March 2022-born bull is by the AI sire Fearn Godfather.
The dam is HW Gorgeous Tessa, which was purchased as a calf at foot with her dam at the herd dispersal.
A second top price of 20,000gns was paid for Willingham Spitfire, which stood third in his class for breeder Alan Haigh of Balquhadly Farm at Brechin.
The Willingham Lieutenant Commander son, bred out of Willingham Eva Broadhooks, was bought by Monmouthshire Limousin and Beef Shorthorn breeder Mary Cormack.
Spitfire was junior champion, male champion and reserve overall at the Royal Highland Show last year.
The reserve champion, Westbroad Scotia, from new breeder Natalie Hynd of the Welbeck herd, Galston, Ayrshire, sold for 15,000gns to JW Frame, Little Galla at Biggar.
Scotia has had a very successful show career including junior champion at Stars of the Future in 2022, reserve overall at the Great Yorkshire and reserve male at the Highland.
Two bulls sell at 15,000gns
Also at 15,000gns, was Duncanziemere Saltire from Alistair Clark and family, Cumnock, Ayrshire, when knocked down to Glenrinnes Farms, Dufftown.
Reserve intermediate champion in the show, he is by Glenisla Excalibur, out of Knockenjig Margo.
He stood reserve overall at the Agri Expo in 2022 at only six-months-old.
Coxhill Spartacus from Lucinda Townsend at Moffat, sold for 11,000gns to Whissendine Farms, Syston, Leicestershire.
This Crooked Post Tobias son is out of Coxhill Lovely.
Squadron Leader of Upsall, owned by Upsall Castle Farms, at Thirsk sold for 10,500gns to D & M Wyllie’s Burllie Herd, Cummertrees, Annan.
Two bulls sold for 10,000gns.
The first of these was another bull from Lucinda Townsend’s Coxhill herd, Coxhill Sultan.
He heads south to Cannon Hall Farms in Barnsley.
The other was Burllie Saltire from D & M Wyllie, which heads to work with Michael and Ruth Cursiter at Laga Farms on Orkney.
This one is by Napolean of Upsall, out of Oakleigh Linda.