Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their weekly sale of Prime Stock on Thursday 12th May 2022. Forward were 199 Cattle, 1161 Sheep and 20 Pigs.
58 Prime Bulls sold to 280ppk or £2354
33 Prime Steers sold to 301ppk or £2085
106 Prime Heifers sold to 316ppk or £1928
2 Cast Cows sold to 170ppk or £1130
186 New Season Lambs sold to 395ppk or £166
623 Prime Hoggs sold to 333ppk or £174
352 Cast Ewes & Rams sold to £212
20 Prime Pigs sold to 135ppk or £112
Prime Bulls (58) – Bull trade just a little easier this week, particularly the top end, dairy bred bulls remain a good trade leaving those with the E and U grade’s feeling the hardest done by off the back of some mesmerising months in recent times. Still half a dozen bulls sold beyond £2000 and ten reached at least 260ppk as the sale averaged 234ppk. Not for the first time recently the buyers were most fond of a Blonde as a super 837kg bull from P Weightman & Sons, Easington sold for an impressive 280ppk and £2343, only once was this gross value bettered as an enormous Charolais all the way from C & E McCombie, Aberdeenshire sold for £2354. Another raider from the North produced our top native breed as F J Fraser & Son, Forfar sold Aberdeen Angus to 220ppk and £1432 whilst Friesians topped at 210ppk from J & A Herbert, Barnard Castle and £1414 from J K & C E Farming, Piercebridge. Below are listed some of the leading averages.
P Weightman & Sons, Easington sold 2 Bulls to average 273ppk and £2023
J B Luck, Bowes sold 3 Bulls to average 264ppk and £1967
S & J Dent & Son, Great Burdon sold 3 Bulls to average 264ppk and £1805
J C Johnson, Trimdon sold 2 Bulls to average 259ppk and £1791
J & A Moralee, Bardon Mill sold 5 Bulls to average 255ppk and £1715
Continental Bulls – Top prices ppk 280 266 P Weightman & Sons. 277 263 255 JB Luck. 270 268 256 S&J Dent & Son. 269 257 255 249 248 J&A Moralee. 265 255 248 247 LR Welsh & Co. 264 255 JC Johnson. 260 R&M Paterson. 256 RC Raper & Daughters. 250 243 GH Farms Ltd. 250 228 K&A Harker. 248 240 JF Gibson & Son. 232 Rigel Pedigree. 232 WI Suddes & Son.
Lead Grossing Continental Bulls £2354 C&E McCombie. £2343 £1702 P Weightman & Sons. £2260 RC Raper & Daughters. £2259 WI Suddes & Son. £2137 £1922 K&A Harker. £2041 £1968 £1890 JB Luck. £1967 Rigel Pedigree. £1851 £1731 JC Johnson. £1850 £1749 £1739 J&A Moralee. £1850 £1825 £1780 £1746 LR Welsh & Co. £1819×2 £1776 S&J Dent & Son. £1799 R&M Paterson. £1690 £1676 GH Farms Ltd.
Friesian Bulls – Top prices ppk 210 187 JA&A Herbert. 209 JK&CE Farming. 208 206 HM&JS Hutchinson. 206 185 JR Knox & Son.
Lead Grossing Friesian Bulls £1414 JK&CE Farming. £1378 £1326 JR Knox & Son. £1374 £1175 HM&JS Hutchinson. £1219 £1180 JA&A Herbert.
Native Breed Bulls – Top prices ppk 220 FJ Fraser & Son. 214 JC&P Tallentire. 212 209 GS Dowson.
Lead Grossing Native Breed Bulls £1432 FJ Fraser & Son. £1377 £1132 GS Dowson. £1322 JC&P Tallentire.
Cast Cows – Top prices ppk 170 148 FJ Fraser & Son.
Lead Grossing Cast Cows £1130 £1013 FJ Fraser & Son.
Prime Clean Cattle (139) – Unlike the bulls the clean beef was definitely dearer on the week, less weight than last week saw the steers level at 247ppk whilst the heifers averaged a tasty 275ppk. King of the ring this week was Coxhoe’s W A Armstrong when his flashy 505kg British Blue heifer sold for 316 pence per kilo, seventeen other beast followed her in to the 300 pence plus club with stacks of heifers reaching 280-299ppk as the butchers shop fancies were in high demand throughout. Top steer per kilo at 301 pence was also a British Blue as a perfectly formed lightweight young lad from J L Marks, Bishopton led the charge, one in three steers today sold at 270ppk and above. The top gross valued heifer came from I Marshall & Son, Bishop Middleham as a thick fleshed 665kg Limousin sold for £1928, a dozen other hot heifers this week sold over £1800. All of the leading eight gross valued steers travelled down from Scotland this morning, regular seller Walter Dandie & Son, Broxburn produced five of these including one at £2019 however the sale leader proved to be Darlington debutant D Work & Son, Aberdeenshire with a sensational 764kg British Blue reaching £2085; further mention must go to Messrs Work with an awesome Aberdeenshire Angus which led the natives by a light year when he sold for £1998. As is customary some of the top averages are listed.
Heifers
J B Luck, Bowes sold 2 to average 300ppk and £1684
J E Suddes & Son, Cornsay sold 4 to average 296ppk and £1740
W A Armstrong, Coxhoe sold 12 to average 294ppk and £1745
J E Jordon & Son, Longhirst sold 4 to average 294ppk and £1565
Askwiths, Crook sold 2 to average 292ppk and £1745
J V & J A Hodgson, Summerhouse sold 12 to average 291ppk and £1759
R W & R Henry, Worsall sold 3 to average 291ppk and £1659
Steers
J L Marks, Bishopton sold 3 to average 289ppk and £1621
Askwiths, Crook sold 3 to average 269ppk and £1743
D Work & Son, Aberdeenshire sold 4 to average 260ppk and £1986
Walter Dandie & Son, Broxburn sold 5 to average 260ppk and £1970
J E Suddes & Son, Cornsay sold 3 to average 257ppk and £1783
Steers – Top prices ppk 301 285×2 JL Marks. 277 275 255 Askwiths. 274 270 264 254 244 Walter Dandie & Son. 273 248 240 WL Robinson & Partners. 273 270 252 249 D Work & Son. 272 258 244 JE Suddes & Son. 270 JR&B Anderson & Son. 267 I Marshall & Sons. 225 215 T Watson. 222 TN Hodgson & Sons.
Lead Grossing Steers £2085 £1998 £1978 £1884 D Work & Son. £2019 £1995 £1956 £1941 £1939 Walter Dandie & Son. £1919 £1875 £1701 WL Robinson & Partners. £1872 £1745 Askwiths. £1829 31776 £1746 JE Suddes & Son. £1807 I Marshall & Sons. £1732 £1633 JL Marks. £1598 JR&B Anderson & Son.
Heifers – Top prices ppk 316 308 301×2 300 298 296 292 WA Armstrong. £311 RW&R Henry. 310 308 307 305 290×3 JV&JA Hodgson. 305 296 JB Luck. 305 304 294 JE Suddes & Son. 305 293 291 290 JE Jordon & Son. 304 JL Marks. 304 300 299 292 W Swinbank & Sons. 298 MF Hall. 296 295 R Hirst. 295 290 Askwiths. 291 286 285 PJ&MP Gilhespy. 290 I Marshall & Sons. 288 TW Clark & Son. 288 B Walker. 286 P&JH Davison.
Lead Grossing Heifers £1928 £1802 £1787 £1771 £1760 £1723 I Marshall & Sons. £1851 £1832 £1815 £1799 £1794 £1754 £1741 £1727 JV&JA Hodgson. £1841 RW&R Henry. £1836 £1835 £1830 £1818 £1817 £1772 £1734 WA Armstrong. £1814 £1766 JE Suddes & Son. £1812 WF Hustwit. £1794 £1760 W Swinbank & Sons. £1789 Askwiths. £1747 JB Luck. £1725 JB Luck. £1716 R Hirst. £1656 JL Marks. £1649 £1622 JE Jordon & Son.
New Season Lambs (186) – One of those glorious occasions when the auctioneer loses no sweat whilst selling the lambs; a genuinely massive trade this week as the sale averaged a weighed 100% straight 350 pence per kilo and £147.21. Flying to the top of the class were five fantastic 42kg Texel lambs from W & M Knaggs, Sadberge when they were sold for £166 (395ppk) to regular quality seekers Roots Farm Shop, East Rounton. Over half the lambs offered sold for £150 as more buyers now start to switch and the springers naturally begin to push out the dwindling hogg supply.
Lambs – Top prices ppk 395 390 389 388 382 373 369 361 348 W&M Knaggs & Son. 387 348 342 334 332 331 321 Wytherstone Farm. 375 317 W Kirk & Sons. 372 355 M&A Gaskin. 369 297 K&PM Lough. 365 323 A&EJ Dobinson. 361 353 342 338 I Burn & Sons. 361 B Fisk. 357 330 Anna Herbert. 351 334 BR&R Routledge. 326 322 JT Wilson. 276 265 F Shield.
Lead Grossing Lambs £166 £163.50 £163 £160 £157×2 £155 £152 £150 W&M Knaggs & Son. £160 £153 M&A Gaskin. £159 £148 £144 I Burn & Sons. £155 £150.50 £144 £143 £136 £135 £133 Wytherstone Farm £153 £146 £136 A&EJ Dobinson. £151.50 £125 K&PM Lough. £151 £144 BR&R Routledge. £150 £127 W Kirk & Sons. £150 £132 Anna Herbert. £148 B Fisk. £132 £124 JT Wilson. £127 £122 F Shield.
Prime Hoggs (623) – The worst show of quality for many moons as the good hoggs in this part of the world were certainly few and far between, the vendors who are still finding straight well finished sheep are still reasonably well off. For four weeks running now the beautiful Beltex from T N Callender, Whinney Hill have sold at our top price per kilo, this week they claimed the top five prices with a best of 333 pence. Some seriously big hoggs from B Layfield, Crook took this week’s top gross value column by the scruff of the neck, the biggest and best weighed a staggering 100kg and sold for £174.
Hoggs – Top prices ppk 333 321 317×2 314307 286 285 282 262 TN Callender. 311 RE&L Frank. 300 IE&A Teasdale. 293 280 276 269 256 254 AC Simpson & Son. 289 261 Fletcher & Coates. 281 279 Northfield Farms. 280 Elemore Hall. 277 W Suddes. 271 TB Hunter. 270 JP&R Ward. 269 RE&L Frank. 269 D&AM Bayles. 269 266 Tallentire. 263 M Proctor. 263 M&CLR Dale. 261 P Turnbull. 260 DR Smith.
Lead Grossing Hoggs £174 £170×3 £164 £160 £157 £144 £139 B Layfield. £154 £145×3 £144 £141 £140×4 £135.50 AC Simpson & Son. £150×2 £136 W Suddes. £150 DR Smith. £150 P Cockburn. £140 RE&L Frank. £140×4 M&CLR Dale. £135 £132 £130×3 TN Callender. £135 JP&R Ward. £135×2 £134 JW&B Firby. £134×2 R Nattrass & Sons. £130 C Harle & Sons.
Cast Ewes & Rams (352) – Another outstanding ewe average of £108 as the mutton market bounds along nicely. Top this week was a superb Texel ewe from Weardale based Fletcher and Coates when she sold for £212. Suffolk ewes pleasingly peaked when a brand-new voice made her debut in our rostrum at £170 for a heavyweight pen of fourteen from Wytherstone Farms, Skiplam whilst Mule tops on the day were £120; finally, the horned ewes, best meat selling typically £65 to £85.
Lead Grossing Cast Sheep £212 £160 Fletcher & Coates. £200 £180 £140 W Denham. £170 £140 £134 £130 JJ Horn. £170 £160 £154 £150 £140 W&M Knaggs & Son. £170 £164 £160 £142 Wytherstone Farms. £150 £140 £132 IM Maughan. £148 £140 £130 Northfield Farm. £140 T Denham. £140 TE Dobson. £138 JC&A Hutchinson. £130×2 P Cockburn. £130 C Harle & Sons.
Prime Pigs (20) – Profit in pigs possible? Patient purveyors of pork pleased after preposterously long pathetic paltry price period perhaps pauses, please lord permit the pig players to now prevail profitably. Prices progressing. The author would like to offer sincere apologies to anyone who reads with a stutter this week.
Pigs – Top prices ppk 135×2 125 115 J Mitchell & Son. 120 110 C Weightman.
Lead Grossing Pigs £112 £98 £95 £89 J Mitchell & Son. £108 £78 C Weightman.
