Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their weekly sale of prime stock on Thursday 29th May 2025. Forward were 166 cattle and 1169 sheep.
52 Prime Bulls sold to 400ppk or £3182
19 Prime Steers sold to 440ppk or £3182
92 Prime Heifers sold to 484ppk or £3034
3 Cows/OTM sold to 368ppk or £2439
532 New Season Lambs sold to 426ppk or £185
368 Prime Hoggs sold to 296ppk or £178
269 Cast Ewes/Rams sold to £280
Prime Bulls (52) – A plainer show of bulls with very few suckler bred sorts on offer amongst a host of first dairy crosses. Trade proved to be harder work to see them average 344ppk and £2499 per head. Top of the day at 400 pence per kilo was a tidy British Blue bull from L S Staley, Bluestone House Farm whilst the top bull in the lump at £3182 was a cracking 860kg Limousin down from Robert Neill & Partners, Upper Nisbet, Jedburgh. A few of the leading averages are listed below.
Top Bull Averages-
Robert Neill & Partners sold 2 Average £3109 (364ppk)
GW Dobson & Son sold 2 Average £2958 (381ppk)
K&A Harker sold 1 Average £2875 (329ppk)
JK&CE Farming sold 2 Average £2737 (376ppk)
Continental Bulls- Top Prices PPK 400 374 LS Staley. 390 377 369 GH Farms LTD. 386 356 WE Frank & Son. 385 377 GW Dobson & Son. 383 370 365 364 JA&A Herbert. 380 FW Hodgson & Son. 380 WJ Scott LTD. 376 x2 JK&CE Farming. 372 368 358 348 324 R Hall & Son. 370 359 Robert Neill & Partners. 368 FW Hodgson & Son. 362 354 348 x2 346 338 x2329 FS Sturrock & Sons. 329 K&A Harker. 329 324 JR Knox & Son.
Native Bulls- Top Prices PPK 362 JE Grieves. 348 R Hall & Son. 336 DC Smith & Sons.
Lead Grossing Continental Bulls- £3182 £3037 Robert Neill & Partners. £2999 £2917 GW Dobson & Son. £2875 K&A Harker. £2830 £2480 SH Watson & Son. £2801 £2673 JK&CE Farming. £2665 £2488 £2477 £2470 £2453 £2417 £2396 £2318 FS Sturrock & Sons. £2652 WJ Scott LTD. £2632 WE Frank & Son. £2632 £2623 £2571 GH Farms LTD. £2630 £2618 JR Knox & Son. £2552 £2460 LS Staley. £2519 £2416 £2339 £2307 R Hall & Son. £2470 £2458 FW Hodgson & Son.
Lead Grossing Native Bulls- £2516 R Hall & Son. £2458 £2404 W Denham. £2454 JE Grieves.
Clean Cattle (114) – In contrast to the bulls a good quality show of clean assembled and trade enjoyed a noticeable improvement to see the heifers average 418ppk and £2503 with the steers 403ppk and £2719. The day’s top heifer per kilo was a super sweet 565kg Limousin which sold for 484 pence per kilo, the next half dozen sold between 470ppk and 478ppk. Top of the steers per kilo at 440ppk was an excellent homebred 657kg Limousin from W J Scott Ltd, Low Leam Farm. Three excellent Limousin steers from I Marshall & Sons, Hope House Farm led the gross values, weighing 700kg to 740kg they sold between £3038 and £3182. Two thumping heifers sold over £3000, a lovely 636kg British Blue from the flying team at Low Leam sold at £3008 however she couldn’t quite catch a terrific 709kg Limousin from J E Suddes & Son, Rowley Farm at £3034. See below some of the top averages.
Top Clean Cattle Averages-
I Marshall & Sons sold, Bishop Middleham, sold 8 (640kg) Average 447ppk or £2870.
WJ&AS Bowes & Sons, Great Stainton, sold 3 (679kg) Average 414ppk or £2818.
WJ Scott LTD, Northumberland, sold 6 (636kg) Average 441ppk or £2810.
JB&N Harrison & Sons, Lanchester, sold 3 (715kg) Average 384ppk or £2750.
R Hirst, Neasham, sold 11 (616kg) Average 444ppk or £2742.
Steers – Top prices ppk 440 425 WJ Scott Ltd. 438 434 430 I Marshall & Sons. 417 404 391 Askwiths. 409 399 396 394 380 RA&BA Ridley & Son Ltd. 407 389 378 LW Martin. 389 M Robinson & Sons. 371 JB&N Harrison & Sons. 362 MF Hall.
Lead Grossing Steers £3182 £3162 £3038 I Marshall & Sons. £2916 JB&N Harrison & Sons. £2890 £2813 WJ Scott Ltd. £2876 £2679 £2633 £2613 £2492 RA&BA Ridley & Son Ltd. £2808 £2489 £2479 LW Martin. £2781 £2739 £2737 Askwiths. £2193 M Robinson & Sons. £2139 MF Hall.
Heifers – Top prices ppk 484 475 469 459 434 B Armstrong. 478 469 457 447 422 MF Hall. 473 467 435 WJ Scott Ltd. 471 468 459×2 447 442 439 437 434 427 R Hirst. 470 464 459 458×2 454 437 JV&JA Hodgson. 470 465×2 459 433 I Marshall & Sons. 459 454 427 W Swinbank & Sons. 459 428 421 JE Suddes & Son. 459 WJ&AS Bowes & Sons. 454 448 446 431 427 WF Hustwit. 428 420 M Robinson & Sons. 424 EW Grieves.
Lead Grossing Heifers £3034 £2790 £2732 JE Suddes & Son. £3008 £2995 WJ Scott Ltd. £2910 £2776 B Armstrong. £2884 £2804 £2767 WJ&AS Bowes & Sons. £2882 £2877 £2885 £2836 £2822 £2764 £2732 £2718 R Hirst. £2873 £2813 £2688 £2684 I Marshall & Sons. £2813 £2792 £2788 £2702 W Swinbank & Sons. £2793 JB&N Harrison & Sons. £2783 WF Hustwit. £2755 B Watson. £2749 MF Hall. £2744 JV&JA Hodgson.
Prime Lambs (532) – Lamb trade sharper again with more buyers having made the switch, this week the sale average rose just over £6 per head to level at a weighed straight £157.81 which equated to 351ppk with an SQQ average of 362ppk. Top per kilo at 426 pence were three sweet 38kg Beltex lambs from William Tindale, Paradise Farm, following next at 421ppk were half a dozen cracking 42kg Texel’s from J B & J A Fenwick, Eastholme Farm with ten 43kg smart sorts from J C Simpson, Hill Top East close behind at 418ppk. The Simpson stardom continued in the gross values to tie for the lead at £185 with quintet weighing 46kg; the other vendor at £185 was Cole Hill Farms, Elwick with a thumping pen of nine weighing 55kg. Five further pens of lambs sold in the £180’s including two more from J C Simpson, another pen from Cole Hill and a super pair from G & E Walton, The Meadow. Some stand out averages are listed below.
Top Spring Lamb Averages-
JC Simpson, Caldwell sold 37 (44kg) Average £179 or 407ppk
Cole Hill Farm LTD, Hartlepool sold 22 (55kg) Average £178 or 321ppk
JB&JA Fenwick, Marwood sold 33 (43kg) Average £171 or 396ppk
G&E Walton, Darlington sold 29 (46kg) Average £170 or 366ppk
RG Richardson, Burdon sold 17 (44kg) Average £169 or 384ppk
Lambs – Top prices ppk 426 W Tindale. 421 404 397 388 386 381 JB&JA Fenwick. 418 411×2 406 402 376 JC Simpson. 407 M Fenwick. 397 372 MW Cook & Son. 388 387 378 RG Richardson. 386 385 380 375 363 G&E Walton. 384 366 Anna Herbert. 377 375 369 360 W&M Knaggs & Son. 375 A Pennell. 375 P Tindale. 375 368×2 JA&A Herbert. 372 360 PJ Tindale. 370 Duell Partners. 369 AWSM Farms. 360 C&V Harrison. 359 PM Hill.
Lead Grossing Lambs £185 £181×2 £180 £179 £173 JC Simpson. £185 £180 £172 Cole Hill farm Ltd. £181 £179 £178×2 G&E Walton. £178 £175 RG Richardson. £177 £175 £174×2 £167 JB&JA Fenwick. £176 Duell Partners. £175 M Fenwick. £170 £169 £166 £164 £162×2 W&M Knaggs & Son. £170 AWSM Farms. £170 B&L Robson. £169 £165 Anna Herbert. £166 C&V Harrison. £165 A Pennell. £162 W Tindale. £161 £160×2 PJ Tindale. £160 MW Cook & Son.
Prime Hoggs (368) – The hoggs are sharper on the week however it does not appear that an enormous price rise is on the horizon. Flesh is key now with a lot of sweepings up distorting averages; top of the day for the umpteenth time were a fine run of heavy weight clipped hoggs from R Atkinson, High Greenbury as this prolific home sold one hundred to top at £178 and 296ppk and average 60kg and £175.90.
Hoggs – Top prices ppk 296 291×3 R Atkinson. 280 MW Cook & Son. 280 267 260 JD Brannen. 279 268 265 245 RA&BA Ridley & Son Ltd. 275 H&P Hutchinson. 272 260 Cole Hill Farm Ltd. 268 266 M Madrell. 267 M&A Gaskin. 259 254×2 JP Coatsworth & Son. 255 Allison Devereux. 255 W.K M.M Lamb. 250 GC&JC Pullan.
Lead Grossing Hoggs £178 £175×3 R Atkinson. £152 G Te-Lintelo. £147 M&A Gaskin. £140 MW Cook & Son. £140 I Marshall & Sons. £140 PM Hill. £136 GC&JC Pullan. £136 £134 DE Stones. £136 GC&JC Pullan. £135 H&P Hutchinson. £135 £130 RA&BA Ridley & Son Ltd. £135 R Nattrass & Sons. £130 Cole Hill Farm Ltd. £130×2 JP Coatsworth & Son. £130 MJK Dodds.
Cast Ewes/Rams (269) – A few more forward and a pleasing sale average of £151.74. Plenty of the heavy sheep well beyond £200 to a top of £280 from W Denham, Dent Gate. Heavy Suffolk Halfbred ewes from Cole Hill Farm, Elwick impressed at £231 and £211 as did Texels from W & M Knaggs & Son, East Newbiggin at £213. Mule ewes sold to a top of £176 and averaged £128 whilst in the horned sheep the tups took the highlights with Blackface to £157 and Herdwicks to £118.
Lead Grossing Cast Sheep £280 W Denham. £231 £211 £167 Cole Hill Farm Ltd. £213 £208 W&M Knaggs & Son. £210×2 £170 D&PH Brown. £209 JC Simpson. £201 £190 PM Hill. £200 £171 J Lawrance. £192 F Shield. £190 £170 £165 B Lowson. £179 £170 M&A Gaskin. £178 £172 £168 LD Laws. £177 £160 W.K M.M Lamb. £176 C&V Harrison. £170 £166 CW Jackson. £168 £164 F Shield. £165 B Boyle.
