Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their ‘Stars of the Future’ Show and Sale of Store Cattle in conjunction with their weekly sale of Cast Cattle, Store & Breeding Stock on Monday 20th April 2023. Forward were 493 Cattle, 515 Sheep and 2 Pigs.
81 Cast Cows & OTM sold to 272ppk or £1991
3 Stock Bulls sold to 268ppk or £2190
19 Cows & Calves sold to £2850
2 In Calf Heifers sold to £1900
4 Bulling Heifers sold to £1240
60 Young Bulls sold to £1700
100 Store Steers sold to £1780
204 Store Heifers sold to £2150
152 Ewes & Lambs sold to £260
62 Store Hoggs sold to £108
34 Feeding Ewes sold to £132
2 Store Pigs sold to £148
Show Cattle – Thanks go to Mr Robert Gray of Amble, Northumberland for making the trip South this morning to ably judge our show classes, thanks also go to our generous sponsors. Winning both the Championship and Reserve were a superb pair of yearling British Blue crossed calves from the renowned Stones family of Nun Cote Nook Farm, Marrick. The top prize went to a beautiful Blue and White heifer sired by the consistent Lune Valley Forester, a bull which is certainly no stranger to producing show winners. The Nun Cote Nook team are serial winners here in Darlington and once again their quality stock, unquestionable effort and attention to detail served them well; all this despite the shocking revelation that senior stockman apparently did not choose the champion as the best of their own packet of beast, we therefore must print today the 20th April 2023 that for the first time ever Keith got it wrong. Sweeping the board in the bull classes were more raiders from the Richmond vicinity as J A & U M Fawcett of Manor House, Marske enjoyed a successful day with a tidy packet of June and July 22 born Limousin calves.
Champion
Heifer from K O Stones, Nun Cote Nook Farm sold for £1680 to C W Gray, Amble
Reserve Champion
Steer from K O Stones, Nun Cote Nook Farm sold for £1540 to D & J Oxtoby, Bishop Burton
Best Steer
1st K O Stones, Nun Cote Nook Farm sold for £1540 to D & J Oxtoby, Bishop Burton
2nd C T Gibson, Elm Bank Cottage sold for £1410 to R S Hall & Sons, Driffield
3rd G W Dent, The Bungalow sold for £1190 to Askwiths, Crook
Best Heifer
1st K O Stones, Nun Cote Nook Farm sold for £1680 to C W Gray, Amble
2nd K O Stones, Nun Cote Nook Farm sold for £1460 to T Ducker, Sheffield
3rd T L Holmes & Son, White House Farm sold for £1810 to M R Joseph, Darlington
Best Young Bull
1st J A & U M Fawcett, Manor House sold for £1180 to L R Welsh & Co, Spennymoor
2nd J A & U M Fawcett, Manor House sold for £1180 to L R Welsh & Co, Spennymoor
3rd J A & U M Fawcett, Manor House sold for £1080 to L R Welsh & Co, Spennymoor
Breeding Cattle – A super show of breeders including two small dispersals which duly attracted a great crowd to ringside. Some wonderful Limousin bred cows and calves shown by A Blackett of Hall Heads Farm, Middlestone Moor enjoyed the trade of the day and peaked at £2850 for a 2019 born cow with a lovely February born heifer calf at foot. Our other dispersal came from G Simpson of Orchard Farm, Middleton-in-Teesdale whose half a dozen outwintered Beef Shorthorn’s peaked with a 4-year-old cow and her heifer calf at £2150 with an impressive in calf heifer selling for £1900.
Cows & Calves – £2850 £2800 £2450 £2350 £2300(x3) £2200 £2000 A Blackett. £2150(x2) £2000 G Simpson. £2100 £1750 £1700 £1550 K Mellor. £1800 I & R A Watson. £1700 G M Blair & Partners.
In Calf Heifers – £1900 £1700 £1550 G Simpson.
Bulling Heifers – £1240 £1080 £1070 £920 I Newton & Son.
Store Cattle – Credit must go to the vendors for the excellent show of grazing cattle they put before a packed ringside of eager buyers, trade proved to be absolutely exceptional for all types. Granted, we witnessed a better show than on this day last year but averages shot through the roof with many vendors £150 to £200 up; young bulls averaged £1100, steers £1134 and heifers £1113.
The top prices beggar belief and what turned out to be a wonderful day for Eileen Wilson of White Hills, Scorton began early in the sale with our leading young bull, a brilliant British Blue just 11-months-old sold for a stunning £1700, his pen mate at 10-months sold for £1620 with a smart pure Limousin at 11-months of age from O J Kendall, Reeth completing the podium places when selling for £1490. Top of the steers was a strong 25-month-old Charolais from J Robson, Greta Bridge which held off the younger fancy types when he sold for £1780, his closest rival at £1660 all the way from Horncastle, Lincolnshire was a double muscled British Blue from Kevin Mellor on just his second trip to DfAM. Heifers, and the top nine were remarkably all British Blue’s, best by a margin was a magnificent 11-month-old with real show potential and coming once again from the great breeding of Eileen Wilson, she sold for a whopping £2150. Superb heifers from T L Holmes & Son of White House Farm, Craghead at £1760 and £1810 found themselves sandwiched between a top run of expertly reared 18-month-old dairy bred British Blue crosses from DfAM’s very own Colin Barker; a terrific trade making even Colin’s substantial Domino earnings of late seem pitiful as the 20 averaged £1428 with a top of £1840.
Young Bulls – £1700 £1620 £1280 E Wilson. £1490 £1275 O J Kendall. £1470(x2) £1390(x3) £1090(x2) A Gregg. £1445(x3) G M Elstob. £1400 £1185 S G Horn. £1370 J Bircham. £1200(x2) F Watson. £1190(x2) £1160(x2) £1150(x2) M J Hutchinson. £1180(x2) £1120 £1110(x3) £1100 £1080(x2) J A & U M Fawcett.
Store Steers – £1780 £1380 £1345 £1310(x2) J Robson. £1660 K Mellor. £1540 K O Stones. £1500 £1440(x5) £1410 £1300 C T Gibson. £1500 £1300 Tennant. £1400(x3) A Thompson. £1400 £1390 £1290 R & W Todd. £1390(x2) £1385 N & A D Brass. £1390(x2) £1280 W Denham. £1295(x4) G & E M Nixon. £1280 K Sayer. £1270 £1260 G W Dent. £1270 J S Foster & Son. £1270 R Hall.
Store Heifers – £2150 £1540 E Wilson. £1840 £1685(x3) £1610 £1405(x2) £1370(x3) V Barker & Sons. £1810 £1760 £1670 £1485 £1380 T L Holmes & Son. £1680 £1460 K O Stones. £1650 Rachel Valks. £1590 £1575 £1560 N & A D Brass & Son. £1560 G Scott. £1520 C T Gibson. £1500 W A Dinsdale & Son. £1490 £1460 £1440 £1395(x2) £1375 K Mellor. £1485 R Lawson & J Farley. £1485 £1380 £1375 £1370 J Robson. £1440 J C Thwaite & Son. £1380 Northfield Farms. £1370 F H Hutchinson.
Cast Cattle – The cow train steams along nicely, a good fleshy top end today with several well-fed youngsters mixed effortlessly with a somewhat delicate collection of old aged pensioners resulted in a sale average of 194ppk and £1263. Top per kilo at 272 pence was a fleshy Limousin OTM heifer from G H Farms Ltd, Grange Hill with her Simmental stablemate just tuppence adrift in second place. Top older cow per kilo was also a Limousin, this fine sort from K O Stones, Nun Cote Nook, Marrick sold for 250ppk. Top gross value was the same good cow from the show winning Nun Cote Nook when she sold for £1991, less than a tenner behind her came a hefty Charolais from F E Pinkney, The Holt whilst two other vendors also sold cows beyond £1900. The Hereford’s won the native breed battles this week when an OTM heifer from Whitehall Farm reached 258ppk and a thick fleshed older cow from M Barker Farms sold for £1694. Jersey’s, Montbelliarde’s, Fleckveih’s and Friesians made up the thirty dairy sorts this week, the traditional black and white breed reigned supreme as Deerness Valley Dairy sold an OTM heifer to a stunning 248ppk and a fine 928kg cow from J T Parkin, Shepherds Lodge topped the gross values at £1837. Finally, a foray in to the brilliant bull trade, top per kilo at a massive 268ppk was a Hereford from Whitehall Farm whilst perhaps the most impressive proved to be a Limousin from B Watson, Baal Hill Farm when he sold for 258ppk and £2190.
Cast Cows & OTM Leading PPK – 272 270 244 G H Farms Ltd. 268 208 K O Stones. 262 210 M Barker Farms. 258 230 Whitehall Farm. 248 208 Deerness Valley Dairy. 238 230 224 Wolsingham Park Farms. 236(x2) 216 D W Humphrey. 226 L Booton. 226 J B Luck & Son. 222 A E Barker. 220 A Blackett. 218 216(x2) G W & M Singleton & Sons. 218 B & B Kitching & Son. 216 H M Dent. 216 W B Rutter & Sons. 212 J T Parkin. 210 F B Wreford & Co. 210 W Denham. 208 A J Gibson Farming. 206 R & W Todd.
Stock Bulls Leading PPK – 268 Whitehall Farm. 258 B Watson. 168 B & B Kitching & Son.
Cast Cows & OTM Leading Gross – £1991 £1460 K O Stones. £1983 F E Pinkney. £1923 L Booton. £1917 £1819 £1694 M Barker Farms. £1838 £1779 £1743 D W Humphrey. £1837 £1757 J T Parkin. £1728 J B Luck & Son. £1696 A Blackett. £1667 £1601 W Denham. £1626 H M Dent. £1611 £1536 G H Farms Ltd. £1587 £1557 £1533 G W & M Singleton & Sons. £1571 Whitehall Farm. £1560 C N & P Penk. £1543 B & B Kitching & Son. £1532 Deerness Valley Dairy. £1527 W B Rutter & Sons. £1483 £1478 A J Gibson Farming. £1477 Wolsingham Park Farms. £1438 R G Richardson. £1424 G Thompson & Sons.
Stock Bulls Leading Gross – £2190 B Watson. £1942 B & B Kitching & Son. £1661 Whitehall Farm.
Store & Breeding Sheep – The few remaining store hoggs continue to look a fabulous price, top this week unusually went to a pair of Greyfaced Dartmoor’s which sold for £108. Many more ewes and lambs are now appearing and a good entry met what looked like a fine trade indeed, the ewes with stronger lambs certainly enjoyed the best returns. Top price of £260 went to E Scott & Sons, Middridge Grange with Mule ewes suckling strong twins, between £60 and £80 per life is very achievable provided that the lambs have some age on their side.
Store Hoggs – £108 Sophie Chrystal. £84 P Armstrong. £84 £75 G Bolton.
Feeding Ewes – £132 £110 T & C Smith. £100 £86 £77 £72 M & G Hodgson. £78 £68 P Armstrong.
Ewes & Lambs – £260 £230 E Scott & Sons. £250 £180 I Spedding. £235 E W Grieves. £225 £210 £180 £170 D & M Buck. £200 £180 £160 W Burton. £190 £180 £175(x2) £165 £160 T & C Smith. £180(x2) W Wearmouth & Son. £170 £160 J Wigham. £160(x2) J D Teasdale.
Store Pigs – Who knew we had a phenomenal pig trade in our locker? A little Oxford Sandy & Black sow with a pair of piglets placed herself as leading contender to be our pig of the year when she sold (unless it’s a miss print) for £148.
Miracle, noun; an extraordinary and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore attributed to a divine agency.
Pigs £148 £60 R Dayle-Dews.
