Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their Great Annual Show and Sale of Suckled Calves in conjunction with their weekly sale of Cast Cattle, Store and Breeding Stock. Forward were 650 Cattle and 1477 Sheep.
87 Cast Cows & OTM sold to 240ppk or £2107
6 Stock Bulls sold to 240ppk or £1824
7 Stirks sold to £780
14 Breeding Cattle sold to £1520
106 Young Bulls sold to £1680
Store Steers sold to
Store Heifers sold to
1357 Store Lambs sold to £107
120 Feeding Ewes sold to £130
Show Calves
We were delighted to welcome regular prime beast seller Graham Chantrell of Flash Farm, Leicestershire to carry out the judging duties this morning; Graham made an excellent job of his tricky task as our vendors presented some superb calves before him. Sincere thanks also go to John Warren ABP for their continued and most generous sponsorship.
This sale always contains a fabulous run from the Swinbank family of Cold Comfort Farm, Neasham and there was no stopping them today as they deservedly scooped both the Champion and Reserve rosettes. Daughter Kate certainly had the Cold Comfort show team looking terrific, none more so than our Champion a superb red Limousin steer with obvious show potential, his stablemate and runner up was a very sweet black Limousin heifer which also surely has a bright future ahead of her. Show ring success was again gained by the consistent Stones family of Nun Cote Nook Farm, Marrick with some excellent British Blue steers whilst our other red rosettes on the day went to a Parthenais steer from Lindsay Carter of Woodland and our winning bull brought more Limousin success hailing from R A & S Wearmouth, Middletown Farm, Long Newton.
Best Limousin Heifer
1st N Swinbank, Cold Comfort sold for £1280 to R S Hall & Sons, Driffield
2nd J Fletcher, Edder Acres sold for £1390 to R L Carter, Woodland
3rd P Tindale, Paradise sold for £1320 to M Robinson & Sons, Staindrop
Reserve Champion Heifer from N Swinbank
Best Limousin Steer
1st N Swinbank, Cold Comfort sold for £1550 to R S Hall & Sons, Driffield
2nd N Swinbank, Cold Comfort sold for £1290 to C Moralee & Sons, Langley Park
3rd K O Stones, Nun Cote Nook sold for £1130 to C Moralee & Sons, Langley Park
Champion Steer from N Swinbank
Best British Blue Steer
1st K O Stones, Nun Cote Nook sold for £1420 to S Hunt, Bedfordshire
2nd K O Stones, Nun Cote Nook sold for £1440 to W R Thompson, Etherley
3rd K O Stones, Nun Cote Nook sold for £1400 to C Moralee & Sons, Langley Park
Best Other Breed
1st R L Carter, Hinedon Cottage sold for £1020 to Josh Burton, Ettersgill
Best Young Bull
1st R A & S Wearmouth, Middletown sold for £1095 to E R Hyde & Sons, Wakefield
2nd W S I Anderson, Dalton Fields sold for £1300 to S Beachell, Driffield
3rd G W Dent, The Bungalow sold for £1060 to S Beachell, Driffield
Store Cattle
Prices soared at this sale last year, little wonder then that numbers sold were up today. The stunning finished beef trade has seldom looked so good and therefore averages remain high, no doubt at all that the rising feed cost is responsible for the barley hungry young bulls taking a hit whereas the easier wintered steer and heifer calves traded at truly wonderful levels, comfortably surpassing the flying trade achieved in 2021. A great show met a packed ringside of buyers with some 70 accounts in operation. The hot heifers levelled up at an impressive £920 (+£55 on 2021 with 62 more sold) whilst the exceptional steers averaged £1029 (+£109 on 2021 with 14 less sold) and young bulls a slightly disappointing £804 (-£111 on 2021 with 31 more sold). Top priced steer of the day duly went to our magnificent Champion when the youngster sold for £1550, leading the heifer trade was a stunning black Limousin 8-month-old calf from Mark Marley, Holywell Farm when she sold for a whopping £1620; she will now take up residence at another of our show calf producers, the Dent family at Northfield Farms, Bowes. Top priced bull on the day was a big lad from R A & S Darling Farms, Hartlepool; the hefty Limousin sold for a mighty £1680.
C Harle & Sons, Brandon sold 12 calves to average £1280 (-£26 on 2021)
N Swinbank, Neasham sold 42 calves to average £1166 (+£97 on 2021)
M J Marley, Northallerton sold 14 calves to average £1166 (+£101 on 2021)
F Ward, Frosterley sold 17 calves to average £1161 (+£48 on 2021)
H S Hutchinson, Eastgate sold 10 calves to average £1107 (2021 n/a)
K O Stones, Marrick sold 22 calves to average £1060 (-£38 on 2021)
Leading Prices
Stirks – £780 £570 £560 £550 £480 W Gibson & Son. £635 £555 Humbleton Farms.
In Calf Heifers – £1250 £1200 £1110 £1100 F K Fleming.
Breeding Cow – £1120 W Gibson & Son.
Cow & Calf – £1520 F K Fleming. £1000 £900 W Gibson & Son.
Bulling Heifer – £960 £930 £850 T H Mace & Sons.
Young Bulls – £1680 R A & S Darling Farms. £1345 £1270 G M Elstob. £1315 American Squeeze Crush. £1300 £875 W S I Anderson. £1265(x2) P Foster. £1165(x2) £1090(x2) £905 S G Horn. £1120 £930 £895 E Scott & Sons. £1095 O J Kendall. £1095 R A & S L Wearmouth. £1090 B J S Farms. £1090 P M Bradley & Bros. £1060 G W Dent. £905(x2) £895(x3) £885 £855(x4) A Wilson. £890 £880 £870 Duell Partners. £870 H G Lynas & Son. £865 R Valks.
Store Steers – £1550 £1390 £1360 £1300(x4) £1290(x2) £1280(x5) £1270 £1250 £1210 £1190(x6) N Swinbank. £1440 ££1420 £1400 £1370 £1300 K O Stones. £1430 £1335 C Longstaff. £1360 B Watson. £1310 P M Beveridge. £1290 £1270 R A & S L Wearmouth. £1270 £1250 £1200 M J Marley. £1240(x2) R G & G Rutter. £1240 J Fletcher. £1220 £1195(x2) F Ward. £1220 W H Brown. £1220 H S Hutchinson. £1170(x2) E Scott & Sons. £1160(x2) Northfield Farms. £1150 R C Wharton & Son.
Store Heifers – £1620 £1220 £1170(x2) £1150(x2) M J Marley. £1400(x3) £1390 £1320(x2) £1280 £1200(x2) £1175 £1140(x2) C Harle & Sons. £1390 J Fletcher. £1350 £1290(x2) £1250(x2) £1220 £1130 £1125 F Ward. £1320 £1195(x2) W H Brown. £1320 P Tindale. £1320 £1280(x2) £1135 R G & G Rutter. £1310 £1170 £1145(x2) £1135 H S Hutchinson. £1280 N Swinbank. £1200 W Love Ltd. £1190 K O Stones. £1165 A & A G Moralee.
Cast Cattle
Cull trade continues to boom, a stunning sale average today for the 93 over the bridge of 167 pence per kilo and £1144 per head. No doubting the cow of the day was a fabulous 5-year-old Limousin from J C Johnson, Beanley Carr Farm, Trimdon Village which led the way when she sold for 240 pence per kilo and £2107; in her slipstream a quintet of cows sold over £1500 and a trio beyond 200 pence. Bull trade was also blistering as two vendors reached 240 pence per kilo, a Limousin from J Elliot, Mickleton and a British Blue from G Coates, Stainforth with the Blue boy topping the gross values at £1824. Native breed cows were plentiful and also enjoying proceedings, tops came from A & A G Moralee, Willington with an Aberdeen Angus at £1517 and a handsome Hereford from R T & P M Kirkbride, Leaholm sold for 190 pence per kilo. Final mention goes to those retiring from milk production, a superb Holstein Friesian from A R & C Booth, Bolton-on-Swale topped at 180 pence per kilo whilst a fantastic Fleckvieh from G W Dobson & Son, South Wingate amassed the highest value at £1376.
Cast Cows & OTM Leading PPK – 240 J C Johnson. 226 188 F & J S Gargett. 220 R L Carter. 206 182 W A Wardman Ltd. 196 188 182 E Parsons. 194 G W Dobson & Son. 192 C & N Waters. 190 188 Humbleton Farms. 190 R T & P M Kirkbride. 188(x3) 186 184(x2) 180(x2) L & S Barker. 188 M S Foord. 186 180 A R & C Booth. 184 W Wearmouth & Son. 184 P Foster. 184 K Wilson. 182 R T & P M Kirkbride. 180 A & A G Moralee. 180 R G Richardson.
Stock Bulls Leading PPK – 240 G Coates. 240 J Elliot. 180 H M Dent. 156 J G Forster & Partners. 150 B & F Wilkinson & Son. 138 S Beeforth.
Cast Cows & OTM Leading Gross – £2107 J C Johnson. £1532 C & N Waters. £1530 P Foster. £1517 £1377 A & A G Moralee. £1505 Messrs Heathcote. £1504 £1318 Humbleton Farms. £1497 £1306 R G Richardson. £1487 W A Wardman Ltd. £1463 £1441 R T & P M Kirkbride. £1447 R L Carter. £1426 M S Foord. £1414 £1346 F & J S Gargett. £1396 K Wilson. £1379 £1376 £1304L & S Barker. £1378 £1324 £1323 E Parsons. £1376 £1359 G W Dobson & Son. £1326 W A Wardman Ltd.
Stock Bulls Leading Gross – £1824 G Coates. £1723 J Elliot. £1633 B & F Wilkinson & Son. £1406 S Beeforth. £1261 H M Dent. £1226 J G Forster & Partners.
Store Lambs
The store lamb vendors continue to have a fine autumn, trade once again in fine form. Strong lambs threaten £100 with great regularity and a host of buyers again attended looking for the longer keepers. Top price went to a brilliant Beltex from Neil Fell, High Wooley Farm, Crook which sold for £107, also in the 100 club were five top Texel’s from Gillian I’Anson, Heighington and nineteen corking Beltex lambs from Andrew Newton, Tutta Beck, Rokeby. Mule lambs topped this week at £87 from James Burns of Ingleby Barwick and the feeding ewe trade proved excellent, the lean healthy girls are certainly best sold on a Monday at the moment.
Store Lambs – £107 N Fell. £100 £93.50 £85 Gillian I’Anson. £100 A Newton. £99.50 D & H M Hodgson. £99 £85 M & R J Hall. £98 £91 £89 K A & V Armstrong. £97 £94 £94.50 P J Anderson & Son. £93 £88 £86.50 J A Scott. £92.50 £90 £88.50 A & R Thompson. £92 I W Cairns. £90 G P Addison. £90 W H Brown. £89 K Mowbray. £87 F Bainbridge. £87 James Burns. £85.50 £85 W B Rutter & Sons. £85 W K Wilkinson & Sons.
Feeding Ewes – £ 130 £120 F D Hall. £118 £92 £88 £77 A & R Thompson. £110 £90 £72 Ainsty Farms Direct. £89 £82 £62 G H Lister. £89 I W Cairns. £76 T E Dobson. £73 P J Anderson & Son. £70 S Beeforth.
