Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their weekly sale of Cast Cattle, Store and Breeding Stock on Monday 15th August 2022. Forward were 172 Cattle and 1798 Sheep.
30 Cast Cattle & OTM sold to 236ppk or £1665
9 Stock Bulls sold to 216ppk or £2035
7 Breeding Cattle sold to £1480
47 Store Steers sold to £1545
49 Store Heifers sold to £1350
30 Young Bulls sold to £1470
308 Breeding Sheep sold to £275
1476 Store Lambs sold to £120
14 Feeding Ewes sold to £112
Cast Cattle & OTM – Numbers short of buyer’s requirements as people choose the straw cart over the cattle float; with such a light show the trade proved most excellent. Top price per kilo at a wonderful 236 pence went to a brilliant 40-month-old British Blue from E Wilson, White Hills Farm, Scorton whilst the best gross value for a cow proved to be a superb 5-year-old Limousin from J R & M Richardson, Etherley House at £1665. Also deserved of mention are a couple of excellent Charolais cows from Messrs Catten all the way from Norfolk which sold at £1443 and £1524 plus another exceptional OTM, this time a Limousin from R Mortimer, Glaisdale which reached 214ppk. Pick of the Friesian cows this week once again came from R G Swinbank, Sedgefield when a fleshy 7-year-old sold for 156ppk whilst a hefty 11-year-old from Little Newsham Farms realised £1067. Several stock bulls this week including two Jersey’s and a Highlander, the top three however went to the prolific Limousin breed; top price per kilo went to N White, Barf House, Marrick at 216 pence whilst the leading gross value headed East to G G Stevenson & Son, Trout Hall, Skelton at £2035.
Cast Cows – Top prices ppk 236 E Wilson. 214 178 176 168×2 R Mortimer. 198 JR&M Richardson. 198 Hughes Bros Farms Ltd. 190 162 R&J Carter. 188 170 KW&SM Catten. 168 T Hawes. 168 WA Richardson Ltd. 166 L Oakes. 164 N white. 164 138 JLC Welford. 158 JR Allan. 156 RG Swinbank. 150 EM Welford.
Lead Grossing Cast Cows £1665 JR&M Richardson. £1524 £1443 KW&SM Catten. £1387 E Wilson. £1377 L Oakes. £1375 R&J Carter. £1293 T Hawes. £1256 RG&G Rutter. £1254 WA Richardson Ltd. £1251 £1192 £1170 £1048 £1038 R Mortimer. £1249 JR Allan. £1185 N white. £1067 Little Newsham Farms. £1034 RG Swinbank.
Cast Bulls – Top prices ppk 216 N White. 192 GG Stevenson & Son. 190 KO Stones. 148 KW&SM Catten.
Lead Grossing Cast Bulls £2035 GG Stevenson & Son. £1987 KO Stones. £1972 N White. £1540 KW&SM Catten. £1042 JR Allan.
Store & Breeding Cattle – The numbers remain tight as the harvest continues at full speed, those showing cattle remain more than satisfied, all classes are in demand, in particular the strong short keep types are a truly magnificent trade. A fantastic 18-month-old Charolais steer led the prices this week from F E Pinkney, The Holt, Richmond, his compatriots stood second and third on the leaderboard at £1380 and £1400. Top price heifer this week was a strong 27-month-old Beef Shorthorn from W Denham, Dent Gate, Langleydale at £1350 whilst a good day for the Catten’s of Norfolk was completed when their 21-month-old Aberdeen Angus bull topped the section at £1470.
Breeding Cattle – £1480 M Eagle. £950 JR Allan.
Store Bulls £1470 £1260 KW&SM Catten. £1440 £1420 £1400 £1290 D Dixon. £1370 £1200 M Eagle. £1100 £870×4 JR Allan. £880×2 JW Richardson. £860 NJ&AM Barrett.
Store Steers £1545 £1400 £1380 FE Pinkney. £1360 £1055 £890×2 KW&SM Catten. £1305 £1195×2 £1180 £1170 £1080 DR Smith. £1190×2 £1185 £1135×2 £1090 £1050×3 £1045 £995×4 £985×2 £980 RJ Bradshaw. £1185 £1040 W Love Ltd. £1175×2 £1055 £995 R&J Carter. £1165 £1130 D&M Lowes. £1110 M Liddel. £970 £860 BJS Farms.
Store Heifers £1350 W Denham. £1300 £1100 £1070 £1050 £1040 Hughes Bros Farms Ltd. £1250 £1200 £1030 D&M Lowes. £1140 £1130 £1075 £1040 S&J Dent & Son. £1115×2 £930 K Thompson. £1090 £890 P Foster. £1035 M Liddell. £1010 £905×2 £880 I Spedding. £1000 £830×2 BJS Farms. £980 DR Smith. £870 WSI Anderson.
Store Lambs – More are coming forward now and the trade stays solid, 83 lambs sold beyond 100, the best half a dozen of these came from M Hogg, The Brae, Glebe Mount with some very strong Texel crosses at £120. The strong lambs, genuine stores and not fat, as a rule sold £85 to £95 with continental and Suffolk running lambs £75 to £85. Hill lambs were plentiful today and the increasingly popular Cheviot breed were best represented, a fine run of 193 of these little white-faced wonders from S Hallam, Egton Bridge looked very well sold as they averaged over £70 on the day.
Store Lambs – Texel £120×2 M Hogg. £106.50 £102 £90 £80 D Johnson. £101 PJ Anderson. £100 £97.50 B Lowson. £96 £85.50 JW&B Firby. £93 £91 £84 D&G Spry. £90 £87 N Fell. £87 £85 £84 K Sayer. £87 K Borrowdale & A Wearmouth. £86.50 GW Robson & Co. £86.50 £78.50 JH Johnson. £85 £80 C&M Burnett. £84 A Wilson. £84 A Swinbank. £81 £80 JR&J Crowe. £79 J Jopling.
Suffolk £109 £99 WM Bainbridge. £97 £82.50 £81×2 £79 JH Johnson. £92 GW Robson & Co. £83 JR&J Crowe. £78 JW&B Firby.
Beltex £98 B Lowson. £87 S Beeforth.
Mule £90 S Beeforth. £70 R Watson. £69 C G Barraclough.
Continental £87 A Swinbank. £86 JLC Welford. £79 W Cook. £78 S Beeforth.
Cheviot £79 S Beeforth. £76 £75 S Hallam.
Feeding Ewes £112 £111 £66 M Hogg. £88 PJ Anderson & Son. £80 £45 K Sayer. £79 £52 BR&S Fell.
Breeding Sheep – A two tier trade, the continental shearlings were harder work today yet the Mule’s looked dearer than what was considered a fine trade last time of asking. Starting with the Mules and it was the power of Dyson Farming Ltd, Nocton which impressed, the top pen from this excellent home sold for £185 with the 119 all sold to average £173. The continentals were as mentioned tougher to place, that is except for some superb pure Texel shearlings from Jess Stewart, Mill Wood Farm, Ferryhill which all sold over £200 and peaked at an impressive £275. A solitary pen of ewe lambs at this early stage came from R & J Myers, Toad Hole, Bransdale; a cracking pen of Beltex X Texels which sold for £120.
Texel shearlings – £275 £245 £235 £230 £200 A Stewart. £155 CM&TF Seymour.
Blue Texel Ewes – £180 M Eagle.
Mule Shearlings £185 £180×2 £175 £170×5 £165 Dyson Farming Ltd.
Continental Shearlings £170 £162 £152 £150 P&H Bainbridge.
Gimmer Lambs – Texel £120 R&J Myers.
Kerry Hill Tups – £130 £95 £90 NJ&AM Barrett.
Kerry Hill Ewes – £76 £72 NJ&AM Barrett.