Fermanagh Pedigree Livestock Breeders Group have recently launched ticket sales for their big Summer Draw featuring some outstanding prizes with the star prize being a 16-month-old Pedigree Charolais heifer of supreme quality which was originally intended to be shown at this year’s Balmoral Show before being purchased for the draw by the group.

With proceeds in aid of NI Air Ambulance, a charity close to the heart of people province-wide and FPLB group, tickets will be available from members of the group locally and across the summer show circuit. Priced at £20 for a book of three tickets, demand presently has been keen.

With the first prize being the outstanding Charolais heifer, valued at £3000; second prize is an embryo from Slieve Jen, the famous pedigree Limousin cow from the McGeehan’s prizewinning herd at Fivemiletown.

This embryo will be a full sibling to some of the herd’s high priced five figure cattle sold through Harrison and Hetherington’s Carlisle sales centre. The embryo is valued at £500.

Third prize is a pedigree Simmental embryo from the Derrycallaghan herd at Lisnaskea, of Alan Burleigh and Harold Stubbs. Bred from the highly prolific brood cow Corskie Vesna by Popes Laird, the sire being either Auchorachan Hercules or Islavale Frontier, the resulting offspring with be from the same line as herd’s 9,000gns Junior Champion from the Stirling Bull Sales. £300 is the alternative cash prize for third.

Fourth prize is £100 cash.

The Fermanagh Pedigree Livestock Breeders Group Ltd which has a set membership of 50 local pedigree breeders was formed in the early 2000’s with charitable status, as an idea by it’s now honorary member, Edwin Morrison and others to help local breeders extend their knowledge of pedigree breeding by availing of study tours and herd visits throughout Ireland and mainland UK.

Some 20 years later the group can proudly claim to be one of the longest running farming groups in Northern Ireland, thanks to the hard work of the committee and especially the sponsorship for many educational tours and trips courtesy of the Vaughan Trust.

This sponsorship from the Vaughan Trust has been invaluable over the years, helping to partly fund Beef Weight Recording Programmes and Health Scheme membership creating some of the top recognised pedigree beef herds within the UK and Ireland, here in County Fermanagh, through a wealth of knowledge gained by its members. The group would like to express its sincere thanks to the Vaughan Trust for all their financial help over the years which has been invaluable.

The group said that support in the purchase of tickets for the Group’s draw is greatly appreciated and they look forward to presenting a substantial cheque to NI Air Ambulance at the second annual Calf Show in November at the Ulster Farmers Mart.