Store cattle were a flying trade at the weekly Monday sale in Omagh Mart, with buyers active for all types of stock.

This Charolais bullock, born May 2022 and weighing 614kg, sold for £1,740.

In the bullock ring, there was a smaller show of slaughter fit animals and stores suited to a short intensive finishing period.

That intensified competition between finishers, underpinning prices in the process with 280p to 300p/kg repeatedly paid for bullocks within 100kg of reaching slaughter weight.

Good quality U grading bullocks with continental breeding topped out at £2,460 for a 970kg Charolais.

This Charolais bullock, born April 2022 and weighing 644kg, sold for £1,800.

That was followed by £2,280 for an 898kg animal, with £2,240 paid for a 740kg Limousin and £2,140 for a 744kg Charolais.

Other stand out lots saw £2,000 paid for a 700kg Limousin with a similar bred animal at 670kg seeing the hammer drop at £1,970.

Main price range

The general run of short keep stores between 600kg and 680kg made £1,700 to £1,950. Plainer types at similar weights sold closer to £1,600, with a heavy fleshed 616kg Friesian making £1,610.

This Limousin bullock, born May 2023 and weighing 392kg, sold for £1,330.

Buyers were taking age of cattle into account when bidding, with stronger prices being paid for animals likely to qualify for the Beef Carbon Reduction Scheme payment in late-spring.

Mid-weight stores weighing 400kg to 550kg were also in demand, with prices of 290p to 310p/kg for higher quality animals. Stand out entries saw a 392kg Limousin sell to £1,330, with £1,380 paid for a 434kg animal.

Heifers

The heifer ring also saw a limited entry of slaughter fit and short keep animals and again, that sharpened the appetite of buyers looking to secure numbers.

This Charolais bullock, born June 2022 and weighing 660kg, sold for £1,850.

Topping the trade at £1,760 was a 675kg Limousin-bred animal, with a similar type animal also weighing 675kg making £1,720 and 600kg selling to £1,700.