The Franco Herefords dispersal sale was held at the Inverell Livestock Exchange on Monday 24 April.
The sale was deemed a resounding success and a fitting swansong for Frank Hannigan’s Casino based stud which has been in operation for over 30 years.
Of the 177 lots offered on the day only 15 were passed in for a 91 percent clearance rate, grossing $960,000 and averaging $5454.
Bulls fetched a top price of $20,000 for Franco Safari S510 and the cow and calf lots sold up to $18,000 for Franco Daffodil R132 with a heifer calf at foot sired by Franco Rockstar R100.
According to Elders selling agent Brian Kennedy there was a large buying panel on hand at the sale and online via StockLive with 85 registered bidders in total from across Queensland, NSW, and Victoria.
Mr Hannigan was pleased with the sale result and attributed the majority of the buying support to stud producers and repeat clients.
“We received good support from other studs, there was a mix of buyers, but the majority went to studs.
“A lot of purchasers over the years became repeat clients so we had a lot of support from repeat buyers at the sale,” Mr Hannigan said.
The top price of $20,000 was paid by Ross Smith of Glenellerslie Herefords, Adelong for two-year-old sire Franco Safari S510.
Sired by Franco No Alibi N820 and out of Franco Gem K360, Safari tipped the scales at 876kg with a raw EMA scan of 121sqcm and rib and rump fats of 11 and 15mm respectively.
Safari ticked a lot of boxes according to Mr Smith who was impressed by the bull’s phenotype, temperament, and outcross pedigree.
“He’s a really well put together bull and the quietest bull you’d ever see in your life.
“He’s nicely coloured and a complete outcross from everything around,” Mr Smith said.
Mr Smith was glad to have made the 10-hour trip to Inverell to inspect the Franco draft and says Safari S510 will be joined to Glenellerslie stud cows in about a month’s time.
In the female lots the top price of $18,000 was paid by Jim Gibb of Cootamundra for the three-year-old daughter of the $45,000 sire Battalion Black Hawk K7, Franco Daffodil R132, sold with heifer calf Franco Daffodil U103 at foot.
Mr Gibb told The Land that he selected Daffodil R132 for her body length and overall conformation.
Mr Gibb also purchased another Black Hawk K7 daughter, six-year-old Parson Hill Cherry Ripe N107 with heifer calf at foot by Warwick Court Riverview R170 for $16,000, as well as Chery Ripe N107’s dam, nine-year-old Parson Hill Cherry Ripe J328 for $4000.
The second top price in the bull lots of $14,000 was reached twice, first paid by Hereford/Brahman breeder Daryl Amos of Old Bonalbo for Franco Sizzle S145.
The two-year old son of Battalion Blackhawk K7 was the heaviest bull in the draft, weighing in at 908kg.
Franco Spearhead S340 was the second bull to fetch $14,000, selling to Chris Lisle of Tummel Herefords, Walcha.
A high-growth sire with a 600-day weight EBV in the top five percent of the breed, Spearhead S340 was sired by Parson Hill National Hero N390 and out of Franco Olive L512, a daughter of Battalion Brunswick.
Bulk purchasers on the day were Vern and Debbie Robertson of McCooey Herefords, Goulburn who were winning bidders on 28 lots at the sale.
In the final breakdown of the sale offering the ‘S’ drop bulls, 26 head, sold to $20,000 to average $7576 and the 19 lots of ‘T’ drop yearling sires sold to $8000 to average $4000.
In the female draft cows with calves, 68 lots, sold to $16,000 to average $5455. “R’ drop first calf heifers, 23 lots, sold to $18,000 and averaged $6087. The ‘S’ drop heifers, 20 lots, sold to $7000 to average $4975 while the ‘T’ drop yearling heifers, 32 head, sold to $6500 to average $3890.
Elders selling agent Brian Kennedy was pleased with the outcome of the sale and the quality of the horned Hereford cattle on offer.
“The cattle were good, and the sale was well supported by repeat Franco buyers and new buyers.
“The sale presented a great opportunity to buy good horned Hereford genetics, particularly as there aren’t as many opportunities around as there were five or ten years ago,” Mr Kennedy said.
Although the Franco stud has been dispersed, the Hannigan family will continue to run a commercial Hereford herd on their fourth-generation owned property near Casino.
Top selling Franco Herefords female Daffodil R132 with heifer calf at foot brought $18,000, knocked down to Jim Gibb, Cootamundra pictured with Elders studstock agent Brian Kennedy, Franco stud principal Frank Hannigan and auctioneer Paul Dooley. (Photo courtesy of The Land)
