Breeding rams sold to £920 at Armoy Mart’s Wednesday-night sale, where a large entry of sheep met what the mart described as very sharp trading across all classes.
The sale included breeding stock, finished lambs, store lambs and cull ewes. Breeding sheep reached £235, while the leading breeding ram price was £920. The report did not give further details of the ram’s breed, vendor or buyer.
Demand across the sale
Finished lambs sold to a top of £176. That figure was recorded twice among the leading prices: Graham Thompson, Bushmills, sold a 33kg lamb at £176, while Richard Kane, Stranocum, achieved the same price for a 40kg lamb.
Other notable finished-lamb returns included £170 for a 30kg lamb from J and D McKee, Loughguile, and £167 for a 29kg lamb from Alex McKillop, Cushendall. Several further lots made more than £160, including a 30kg lamb from Ryan Laverty, Loughguile, at £165.50.
The sale also included a wide range of store lambs. Crossbred, Texel, Cheviot, Suffolk and Blackface lambs were among the entries listed, with the highest reported store-lamb price being £135 for 22 Texel lambs from S McShane, Ballintoy. A pen of 48 Crossbreds from Tom O’Kane, Martinstown, made £134.
Top reported returns
- Breeding rams: £920
- Breeding sheep: £235
- Finished lambs: £176
- Store lambs: £135
- Ewe lambs: £156
- Cull ewes: £215
Ewe lambs sold to £156 for 14 Crossbreds from D McGarel, Glenarm. Other reported ewe-lamb prices included £134 for 70 Charollais from M Wright, Carnlough, and £126 for 10 Blackface lambs from a Ballygawley farmer.
Cull ewes reached £215 for a Texel consignment from R McCormick, Armoy. Suffolk ewes from G Thompson, Bushmills, sold to £208, while Texel ewes from R McCormick and Jas Pinkerton, Rasharkin, each made £186. Further Texel and Suffolk lots made between £170 and £188.
The figures show a sale in which breeding stock and sheep for slaughter or further production all attracted active bidding. The report gave no overall averages or entry numbers, but listed strong prices across the principal categories presented at Armoy Mart.
