Posted: December 4, 2017

"Belles of Christmas" online auction will take place on December 12, highlighting the outstanding beef genetics in the Department of Animal Science's Angus beef program.

Lot 1 in the Penn State Online Beef Production Sale is P S Playmate 749 225.

Lot 1 in the Penn State Online Beef Production Sale is P S Playmate 749 225.

Penn State's Department of Animal Science is holding its second Online Beef Production Sale on Tuesday, December 12, through AngusLive.com. Last year's first-ever online sale was highly successful, grossing $62,350.

In this year's "Belles of Christmas" sale, there will be 16 lots of Angus cattle offered including bred cows, bred heifers, and open heifer calves.

Dr. Terry Etherton, Head of the Department of Animal Science, said, "Offering an online auction offers the potential to market our outstanding beef cattle genetics to a broader audience, while giving our students a very valuable experience in using cutting-edge online marketing technologies."

Wendall Landis, Beef and Sheep Complex Manager, said, "We strive to keep our students at the core of our operation at the Beef and Sheep Center and Haller Research Farm and we see this as a chance for them to really put into practice what they have learned. Last year's online auction proved to be very popular, and we are happy to offer our students the experience for the second year, in what we hope will be an annual event."

The Angus cattle breeding program at Penn State is in its 106th year, and the offerings in the 2017 auction represent an outstanding selection of the breeding program.

An open house to view the cattle will be held on Saturday, December 9, from 1-5 p.m. at the Beef and Sheep Center, 142 Orchard Road, University Park. A time can also be scheduled to view the cattle prior to the open house by calling Landis at 814-863-0831.

An online catalog is available at www.anguslive.com, as well as the terms and conditions of the sale. A print catalog is available by emailing Brooke Milbrandt at bmilbrandt@gmail.com

Online bids will open at 6 a.m., Monday, December 11 and end at 8 p.m. EST, Tuesday, December 12. Also find information on Facebook at Penn State Beef and Sheep.

For more information on the beef facilities, visit http://animalscience.psu.edu/facilities.