Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their weekly sale of prime stock on Thursday 19th October 2023. Forward were 185 cattle and 2222 sheep.
97 Prime Bulls sold to 318ppk or £2577
17 Prime Steers sold to 330ppk or £2111
71 Prime Heifers sold to 368ppk or £2334
1847 Prime Lambs sold to 416ppk or £200
375 Cast Ewes/Rams sold to £145
Prime Bulls (97) – A booming bull trade as once again our excellent ringside of regular wholesale butchers bid freely regardless of age, weight or farm assured status. Dearer on the week as an impressive twenty-five bulls sold over 300 pence per kilo and an incredible fifty-five made the top side of £2000 helping this week’s averages to 274ppk and a stunning £1993 per head. Winning by a whisker was an excellent home bred Limousin bull from the Renton’s of High Highlaws, Morpeth when he sold for 318 pence per kilo; three other vendors with brilliant bulls were locked together in second place at 317ppk as local feeders Neil Brown, West Hartburn and the Watson’s of Nunstainton Grange were joined by Cumbrian raider Brian Hall of Ainstable Hall. The top gross valued bull was an excellent 862kg British Blue from R D Anderson, Middleham which sold for £2577; three super sorts from the Matten’s of Thirsk followed him over the line selling between £2445 and £2573 whilst both W J & A S Bowes & Sons and D Richardson & Co also sold bulls over £2400. The Layfield’s of Nackshivan Farm led the native trade with Aberdeen Angus selling to 274ppk and £2055 whilst the reliable R Hall & Son, Kilton Hall returned to the top of the Freisian standing with best prices of 234ppk and £1539. See below just a few of this week’s leading averages.
T N & J Hall, Ainstable sold 3 to average 307ppk and £2160
J H Brown, Darlington sold 6 to average 306ppk and £1957
J A Matten & Sons, Thirsk sold 3 to average 303ppk and £2519
Renton Highlaws, Morpeth sold 8 to average 303ppk and £2091
T A Horn, Great Asby sold 2 to average 298ppk and £2012
Continental Bulls – Top prices ppk 318 315 311 309×2 296 Renton Highlaws Ltd. 317 310 309 308 305 JH Brown. 317 309 296 TN&J Hall. 317 311 301 AG Watson & Sons. 312 310 288 JA Matten & Sons. 311 J Layfield. 308 JK&CE Farming. 308 GK KN & GJ Hird. 307 301 JJ Kemp & Son. 306 304 289 LR Welsh & Co. 302 286 TW Clark & Son. 299 RD Anderson. 298×2 TA Horn. 294 284 D Richardson & Co Ltd. 290 LS Staley. 289 K&A Harker. 286 WA Richardson Ltd. 285×2 JJ Horn.
Lead Grossing Continental Bulls £2577 RD Anderson. £2573 £2539 £2445 JA Matten & Sons. £2436 £2237 WJ&AS Bowes & Sons. £2416 £2364 £2307 £2130 D Richardson & Co Ltd. £2339 £2316 £2238 £2155 AG Watson & Sons. £2320 £2230 £2214 £2186 £2122 Renton Highlaws Ltd. £2306 JK&CE Farming. £2302 £2217 JJ Horn. £2298 £2158 TN&J Hall. £2293 £2244 WA Richardson Ltd. £2255 £2196 TW Clark & Son. £2239 LR Welsh & Co. £2201 P&E Rogerson.
Friesian Bulls – Top prices ppk 234 229 226 R Hall & Son. 218 212 GW Dobson & Son.
Lead Grossing Friesian Bulls £1539 £1419 £1412 R Hall & Son. £1509 £1436 GW Dobson & Son.
Native Bulls – Top prices ppk 274×2 246 J Layfield. 247 229 P&E Rogerson. 239 232 226 JA&A Herbert
Lead Grossing Native Bulls £2055 £1983 £1928 J Layfield. £1669 £1596 P&E Rogerson. £1529 £1469 £1398 JA&A Herbert.
Clean Cattle (88) – Babet is barely news today as the storm shared its moment of fame with probably the best trade ever witnessed in the DfAM clean cattle ring; a good show of heifers averaged a jaw-dropping 337 pence per kilo. An insane twenty-seven sold over 350 pence per kilo with the terrific top nine all in the 360’s and over two thirds beyond 330ppk. Queen of the ring at 368ppk was a handy weight Limousin from Coxhoe based W A Armstrong; the hot Hall’s of Ainstable followed at 366ppk ahead of two more from the Armstrong pen and one from J V & J A Hodgson, The Grange all at 365ppk. More magic came in the 360’s from the Hodgson’s and the Hall’s ahead of a plethora in the 350’s which remarkably included eight of the ten forward from regular selling R Hirst, Neasham. A varied show of steers was by no means outdone, a handy weighted home bred Limousin from W J Smith & Partners, Belle Isle sold for 326ppk however top spot went to Geoff Marshall of Spaunton with a Limousin bought in Darlington from G Williamson, Copley back in March which today sold for 330ppk. Some grand old gross values with the top third all over £2000; four heifers checked in over £2200 as the aforementioned Wayne Armstrong joined Aberdeenshire’s Messrs W A Fettes and a pair from Witton-le-Wear’s A C Simpson & Son; the Simpson pen top of the lot with a home bred superstar weighing 699kg reaching £2334. Top gross valued steer was another from the Aberdonians Messrs Fettes, Braes-of-Enzie which sold for £2111 at the grand old age of 42 months proving once again that age in the live ring is but a number. Some staggering averages are listed below.
J B Luck & Son, Bowes sold 2 to average 353ppk and £2045
T N & J Hall, Ainstable sold 7 to average 350ppk and £1976
R Hirst, Neasham sold 10 to average 349ppk and £1936
J V & J A Hodgson, Summerhouse sold 16 to average 344ppk and £2025
E W Grieves, Stockton sold 2 to average 343ppk and £2005
A C Simpson & Son, Witton-le-Wear sold 3 to average 335ppk and £2253
T N Callender, Stockton sold 2 to average 331ppk and £1896
Steers- Top Prices PPK 330 297 262 G&JY Marshall. 326 317 314 WJ Smith & Partners. 304 290 261 260 J Gracey. 284 278 GW&L Marsay. 251 250 242 M Ord & Sons. 247 Messrs WA Fettes.
Lead Grossing Steers- £2111 Messrs WA Fettes. £1896 £1953 £1641 £1630 J Gracey. £1871 £1686 £1485 G&JY Marshall. £1796 £1740 £1730 WJ Smith & Partners. £1661 £1622 £1527 m Ord & Sons. £1576 £1426 GW&L Marsay.
Heifers- Top Prices PPK 368 365 x2 349 x2 329 WA Armstrong. 366 361 353 347 345 340 337 TN&J Hall. 365 361 360 x2 358 x2 357 356 354 348 344 339 334 322 318 JV&JA Hodgson. 358 319 Messrs WA Fettes. 357 356 x3 354 351 350 x2 339 322 R Hirst. 355 353 JB Luck & Son. 354 331 EW Grieves. 348 334 326 AC Simpson & Son. 335 WJ Smith & Partners. 334 330 TN Callender. 334 331 317 East Newbiggen Farm. 331 328 319 318 P&JH Davison. 329 Anthony Swinbank. 320 317 G&JY Marshall.
Lead Grossing Heifers- £2334 £2236 £2188 AC Simpson & Son. £2312 £2185 £2112 Messrs WA Fettes. £2259 £2135 £2087 £2045 £1924 £1898 WA Armstrong. £2196 £2177 £2148 £2115 £2112 £2105 £2084 £2080 £2069 £2010 £1999 £1949 £1925 £1857 £1816 JV&JA Hodgson. £2184 £1827 EW Grieves. £2139 £1952 JB Luck & Son. £2130 £2054 £2043 £1976 £1969 £1850 £1808 TN&J Hall. £2037 £1999 £1768 East Newbiggen Farm. £2026 £1766 TN Callender. £2011 £1988 £1979 £1956 x2 £1939 £1937 £1911 £1901 £1777 R Hirst. £1929 £1826 £1812 £1780 P&JH Davison. £1908 Anthony Swinbank. £1899 G&JY Marshall. £1879 WJ Smith & Partners.
Prime Lambs (1847) – The sheep trade continues in good form and a good 20-25 pence per kilo ahead of the same week last year, still the best fed and best bred are easiest sold as this weeks weighed straight sale averaged 255ppk with an SQQ average of 258ppk. Top of today’s sale at £200 was an excellent 48kg Charollais lamb kindly donated by C Moralee & Sons, Blackburn Farm, Langley Park and bought by Mr Andrew Atkinson with proceeds going to Cancer Research UK. Best of the rest today at £163 were five terrific 56kg Aberfield crosses from M & A Gaskin, Holdsworth Farm with a host of other well-fed lambs in the £150’s. The charitable donation also topped the prices per kilo, behind this came five fantastic 45kg Beltex from W Ramsay & Sons, Blakely Hill at 333 pence and twice some excellent sorts from W B Mitchell & Sons, Howlett Hall at 325 pence.
Lambs – Top prices ppk 416 C Moralee & Sons. 333 295 278 W Ramsay & Sons. 325×2 300 297 292 285 278 272×2 WB Mitchell & Sons. 304 284 W.K M.M Lamb. 302 284 275 MW&M Skidmore. 302 M Barley. 300 284 AS&G Donaldson. 300 291 M&A Gaskin. 295 G Sedgewick. 295×2 293 289 288 283 F&JS Gargett. 291 283 D&PH Brown. 288 Tallentire. 287 281 AS Whitfield. 285 279 277 276 PJ&MP Gilhespy. 284 JA&A Herbert. 283 TH Richardson & Son. 278 RO Gilson. 277 272 T Duckitt. 277 276 AS Whitfield.
Lead Grossing Lambs £200 C Moralee & Sons. £163 £144 M&A Gaskin. £156 TT Hall & Son. £153 £150 £132 £130 W Ramsay & Sons. £153 I Burn & Sons. £150×3 £142 £130 T Duckitt. £150 £130 TH Richardson & Son. £147 PJ Tindale. £144×2 £142 £140 RO Gilson. £143 RO Gilson. £142 G Sedgewick. £142 M Barley. £140×2 £132 £130.50 D&PH Brown. £140 £135 £131 W.K M.M Lamb. £139 £135 £133×3 F&JS Gargett. £138 S Thompson & Son. £137.50CJM Hedley. £137 £131.50 £130 PJ&MP Gilhespy. £137 £130×2 WB Mitchell & Sons. £137 AWSM Farms.
Cast Ewes & Rams – Fit (not fat) ewes probably a shade dearer on the week as numbers tighten across the country with tupping time imminent to leave a sale average of £82. Top of the day was a lovely Texel ewe from K O Stones, Nun Cote Nook Farm, Marrick at £145 with the same home also picking up top tup at £138 and also leading the Cheviot trade at £119. Mule ewes peaked at £95 from Stanley Gargett, Barnard Castle with £80 and beyond realistic for the fitter end of the Mule’s whilst Swaledale ewes topped at £48 with the breed averaging £32.
Lead Grossing Cast Sheep £145 £138×2 £119 KO Stones. £144 J Hird. £140 £110 M&A Gaskin. £140 N Medd & Son. £140 £121 J Hird. £136 £106 TT Hall & Son. £136 £124 £112 DM Tiplady. £130 J Thompson. £127 £110 F&JS Gargett. £125 £124 £110 W.K M.M Lamb. £124 JS Wiper. £120 AS&G Donaldson. £120 AWSM Farms. £113 J Atkinson. £112 A&PA Jopling. £110 TH Richardson & Son. £110×2 Castle Croft Farm.
