Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their weekly sale of prime stock on Thursday 19th January 2023. Forward were 195 Cattle, 1718 Sheep and 6 Pigs.
46 Prime Bulls sold to 306ppk or £2511
24 Prime Steers sold to 315ppk or £2139
125 Prime Heifers sold to 333ppk or £2187
1347 Prime Hoggs sold to 336ppk or £156
371 Cast Sheep sold to £250
6 Prime Pigs sold to 115ppk or £88
Prime Bulls (46) – Low numbers this week didn’t halt the excellent trade, a pleasing sale average of 262ppk and £1850 was achieved. Five bulls from four vendors sold at 300 pence or more, all carried Limousin or Limousin cross upon their passport; our two tied at the top and 306ppk were a brilliant 13-month-old 655kg bull from W I Suddes & Son, Cornsay and a 750kg topper from regular sellers A G Watson & Sons, Rushyford, another familiar face D Richardson & Co, Melsonby sat just a penny adrift. Some great gross values with seventeen beyond £2000, nobody however could live with the blistering pace set by the tremendous Limousin’s of A C Simpson & Son, McNeil Farm who produced the top three with a brilliant best of £2511. The Friesian’s this week were again a sharp trade although carrying noticeably less weight than we often see, best of the week came from J K & C E Farming, Piercebridge at 223ppk and £1451. Below are some of the leading averages.
A C Simpson & Son, Witton-le-Wear sold 4 to average 290ppk and £2386
W I Suddes & Son, Cornsay sold 4 to average 288ppk and £1905
D Richardson & Co, Melsonby sold 10 to average 277ppk and £2065
J A & M Boyes Ltd, Cleatlam sold 5 to average 270ppk and £1947
A G Watson & Sons, Rushyford sold 5 to average 269ppk and £2006
Continental Bulls – Top prices ppk 306 300 277 275 WI Suddes & Son. 306 277 250 AG Watson & Sons. 305 284 281×2 280 279 277 274 273 D Richardson & Co Ltd. 300 289 287 285 AC Simpson & Son. 299 280 270 269 JA&M Boyes Ltd. 276 WE Swales & Sons Ltd. 267 JK&CE Farming. 266 257 JJ Horn. 260 257 M Hutchinson. 255 JE&B Morgan & Sons.
Lead Grossing Continental Bulls £2511 £2416 £2370 £2248 AC Simpson & Sons. £2326 WE Swales & Sons Ltd. £2296 £2143 £1912 AG Watson & Sons. £2224 £1923 £1881 JA&M Boyes Ltd. £2216 £2188 £2111 £2059 £2050 £2027 £2016 £1993 £1992 £1990 D Richardson & Co Ltd. £2040 £1801 M Hutchinson. £2004 £1958 £1897 WI Suddes & Son. £1930 JK&CE Farming.
Friesian Bulls – Top prices ppk 215 213 C&M Atkinson & Sons. 223 JK&CE Farming. 208 203 199 D Walker.
Lead Grossing Friesian Bulls £1451 JK&CE Farming. £1305 £1171 C&M Atkinson & Sons. £1054 £1044 £1037 D Walker.
Native Breed Bulls – Top prices ppk 274 242 AG Watson & Sons. 236 JA&M Boyes Ltd.
Lead Grossing Native Breed Bulls £1848 £1833 AG Watson & Sons. £1843 JA&M Boyes Ltd.
Clean Cattle (149) – Marvellous – the good ship clean beef certainly had the wind in her sails this week. By no means a world beating show still witnessed over half the cattle reaching at least 300 pence with the heifers averaging 290ppk, the steers a stunning 278ppk and the whole show levelling up beyond £1700. The sixteen super heifers which sold in the 320’s all failed to make our top three, in joint second place selling at 330ppk were a Limousin from J E Suddes & Son and also a British Blonde from M Robinson & Sons however an absolute superstar waited in the wings. Congratulations to W J Scott Ltd, Low Leam Farm, West Woodburn who showed a stunning 583kg homebred British Blue cross heifer which deservedly topped this week selling for a wonderful 333 pence per kilo to J A Jewitt Ltd, Spennymoor. Five steers, all from different vendors sold over 310ppk and despite another strong offering from the team at Low Leam it proved to be a good day on the calendar for the Callender’s of Ox Eye Farm, Whinney Hill when they led at 315ppk with their 625kg Limousin. The live ring once again left the deadweight with egg on its face as nine beasts sold over £2000 with a further twenty between £1900 and £2000; back came the super Scott’s of Low Leam when they topped the steers at £2139 however better still proved to be a fabulous 729kg Limousin heifer from Foxton Livestock, Barnard Castle when she reached £2187.
Heifers
B Walker, Dalton-on-Tees sold 3 to average 318ppk and £1856
W J Scott Ltd, West Woodburn sold 4 to average 317ppk and £1985
J E Suddes & Son, Cornsay Colliery sold 3 to average 316ppk and £1928
M F Hall, Ponteland sold 7 to average 315ppk and £1638
T N Callender, Stockton sold 2 to average 314ppk and £1716
R Hirst, Neasham sold 10 to average 310ppk and £1722
K & J Heslop, Fishburn sold 5 to average 310ppk and £1675
J V & J A Hodgson, Summerhouse sold 12 to average 306ppk and £1890
Steers
W J Smith & Partners, Richmond sold 4 to average 306ppk and £1716
J E Suddes & Son, Cornsay Colliery sold 2 to average 300ppk and £2044
Askwiths, Crook sold 2 to average 297ppk and £1884
W J Scott Ltd, West Woodburn sold 4 to average 288ppk and £1973
Steers – Top prices ppk 315 TN Callender. 315 312 307 291 WJ Smith & Partners. 314 295 294 260 WJ Scott Ltd. 312 289 JE Suddes & Son. 311 M Robinson & Sons. 308 287 Askwiths. 303 PJ&MP Gilhespy. 288 JR Spink. 273 255 JM Smith. 251 GW&L Marsay. 240 R Laws & Sons.
Lead Grossing Steers £2139 £2015 £1966 £1770 WJ Scott Ltd. £2106 £1982 JE Suddes & Son. £1968 TN Callender. £1952 £1816 Askwiths. £1884 R Laws & Sons. £1859 M Robinson & Sons. £1848 £1716 JM Smith. £1834 JR Spink. £1812 £1735 £1646 £1641 WJ Smith & Partners. £1796 PJ&MP Gilhespy. £1480 A Swinbank & Son. £1438 GW&L Marsay.
Heifers – Top prices ppk 333 328 322 WJ Scott Ltd. 330 M Robinson & Sons. 330 314 JE Suddes & Son. 328 326 322×2 312×2 JV&JA Hodgson. 326×2 318 316 314×2 R Hirst. 326 321 313 312 WA Armstrong. 326 322 320 319 315 MF Hall. 324 WL Robinson & Partners. 323 318 315 B Walker. 321 313 K&J Heslop. 319 316 East Newbiggin Farms. 318 311 TN Callender. 316 310 308 PJ&ES Rogerson. 315 312 JA Gilson. 313 307 PJ&MP Gilhespy. 311 305 P&JH Davison. 311 JM Smith.
Lead Grossing Heifers £2187 Foxton Livestock. £2044 £1937 £1912 £1901 East Newbiggin Farms. £2041 £2017 £1941 £1940 WJ Scott Ltd. £2020 £1972 £1958 £1951 £1948 £1893 £1868 JV&JA Hodgson. £2009 £1888 £1887 JE Suddes & Son. £1981 £1953 JA Gilson. £1965 JM Smith. £1943 £1918 B Walker. £1912 £1816 WA Armstrong. £1905 PJ&ES Rogerson. £1885 WL Robinson & Partners. £1869 £1868 JR&M Richardson. £1853 TN Callender. £1847 P&JH Davison.
Prime Hoggs (1347) – Back bounced the hogg trade, all hail the live auctions and the wonderful butchers and wholesalers who attend them across the nation 52 weeks of the year. After last week’s slump nationally, trade rallied back to average a weighed 100% straight 245ppk and £110 per head. We can then only thank the supermarket supplying deadweight firms for this recent blip as they busy themselves processing lamb from the other side of the world, the live ring today offers them the famous Harvey Smith salute and trusts that the honourable producers remember this past fortnight when numbers tighten. Back to today, light hoggs enjoyed the biggest price rise, easily £10 head up on the week and proved so when a terrific trio of 38kg Beltex topped the sale per kilo at 336 pence from J D Brannen, Red Barns. An excellent 49kg Texel hogg from T H Richardson & Son, Low Moor Hill led the gross values when it sold for £156. Well fleshed Mule hoggs sold frequently £105 to £115 whilst the best of the Swaledale’s sold nicely beyond 200 pence per kilo.
Hoggs – Top prices ppk 336 279 275 271 255 JD Brannen. 318×2 293 257 TH Richardson & Son. 292 A Graham. 285 261 JK&CE Farming. 274 254 A Crowder. 272 GC&JC Pullan. 272 255 254 A&PA Jopling. 267 SM Donaldson. 265 255 253×2 J Thompson & Sons. 263 JR&J Crowe. 263 258 Cole Hill Farm Ltd. 263 256×2 255 AC Simpson & Son. 262 261 260 A Layfield. 261 K Raine. 259 D&PH Brown. 259 254 J&A Layfield. 257 252 WR Thompson. 256 255 JJ Horn. 256 N Medd & Son. 255 JH&D Wise. 255 G&JH Tomlinson.
Lead Grossing Hoggs £156 £140×2 £138 TH Richardson & Son. £154 £128 JD Brannen. £147 £125 GC&JC Pullan. £147 £146 £145 £142 £141×2 £140.50 £140 £139×2 £138 £136 AC Simpson & Son. £140 £135 £130 £125 JR&M Richardson. £137 £132 Cole Hill Farm Ltd. £137 £135 £131 A Crowder. £136 £131 £122.50 MW Barker & Son. £131 D&PH Brown. £130×2 £128 £127 J&A Layfield. £127 £124.50×2 DK Barker. £126 R Wood & Son. £125×2 £122×2 G&JH Tomlinson. £125 A&PA Jopling. £124 RO Gilson. £123.50 I Marshall & Sons.
Cast Sheep (371) – Fit ewes a fine trade again, best of all on the day proved to be an excellent pure Texel from Abigail Laws of Leyburn which sold for £250. Plenty of Mule ewes today sold beyond £100 with a top for the breed of £112 coming from D K Barker, Ketton. Horned ewes again out in numbers, the best a pen of 22 Blackface from W Tyreman & Sons, Danby at £72 with Swaledale’s topping at £52 for a pen of 17 from M W Reed, Frosterley.
Lead Grossing Cast Sheep £250 AG Laws. £150 £101 TW Thompson. £140 £111 £97 W Denham. £140 £130 £115 JV&JA Hodgson. £135×2 A Newton. £134 £118 £100 WR Thompson. £134 £125 £120 Anna Herbert. £130 K Raine. £128 £118 £115 £98 William Tindale. £125 £118 AC Simpson & Son. £122 JJ Horn. £120 £107 SM Donaldson. £118 G Thompson & Sons. £118 JJ&C Welford. £118 WM Reed & Sons. £117 K Tallentire. £116 JR&J Crowe. £115 JR&M Richardson. £113 £109 I Marshall & Sons.
Pigs (6) – Following last week’s grand total of zero, the porkers made a pleasing return today which alleviated our fears that the pig farmers had done the fashionable thing and taken industrial strike action. Phew.
Pigs – Top prices ppk 115 110×2 C Weightman.
Lead Grossing Pigs £88 £73 £71 C Weightman.
