Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held a special show and sale of forward store cattle in conjunction with their weekly sale of cast cattle, store and breeding stock on Monday 30th October 2023. Forward were 594 cattle and 2014 sheep.
154 Cast Cows/OTM sold to 238ppk or £1713
9 Cast Stock Bulls sold to 246ppk or £1873
3 Breeding Cattle sold to £1120
27 Young Bulls sold to £1820
163 Store Steers sold to £1910
238 Store Heifers sold to £2200
1733 Store Lambs sold to £109
281 Feeding Ewes sold to £100
Show Cattle – Thanks go to our judge this morning, loyal DfAM supporter Ricky Alder of M F Hall, Ponteland for making a thorough and excellent job. Gratitude also goes to our sponsors this year Dots Café, H.H.Smith & Son, Brockhills of Yorkshire, Vicky Anderson Training, NFU Mutual Durham Districts, Swale Vets, S&A Fabrications, Stokesley Show, David Chapman Property & Garden Maintenance, Allflex Livestock Intelligence, Thornton Breakers, Dugdale Nutrition, C&A Embroidery, Vickers & Barrass Chartered Surveyors, Grahams Logs, Stoneygate Farm Shop & Café, Agrisource Farm Machinery, East Oakley Servicing & Repairs, Bennison Groundworks, Hutchinson Sheep Shearing.
The Champion came from the keenly contested heifer class, an absolute humdinger of a 27-month-old British Blue cross from the Dent’s of Northfield Farms, Bowes proved to be the winner. Alwent Farm Partnership, Staindrop picked up the steer prize and the Reserve Champion ticket with an excellent British Blue. Winning the bull class was a terrific 16-month-old Limousin from Nick Gill, Moory Lea Farm. Full results below.
Champion
Northfield Farms, South Thornberry sold for £2200 to M F Hall, Ponteland
Reserve
Alwent Farm Partnership, Staindrop sold for £1640 to J A Matten & Sons, Thirsk
Best Young Bull
1st N Gill, Moory Lea sold for £1620 to A S & S M Kemp, Sherburn
2nd N Gill, Moory Lea sold for £1300 to D Richardson & Co, Melsonby
3rd B J S Farms, Knavesmire sold for £840 to A S & S M Kemp, Sherburn
Best Steer
1st Alwent Farm Partnership, Staindrop sold for £1640 to J A Matten & Sons, Thirsk
2nd H S Hutchinson, White House sold for £1300 to M & A Bainbridge Ltd, Caldwell
3rd Alwent Farm Partnership, Staindrop sold for £1900 to N Marwood, York
Best Heifer
1st Northfield Farms, South Thornberry sold for £2200 to M F Hall, Ponteland
2nd Alwent Farm Partnership, Staindrop sold for £1800 to N Marwood, York
3rd H S Hutchinson, White House sold for £1390 to W Swinbank & Sons, Caldwell
Sale of Store Cattle – Credit to the vendors as a terrific top end was apparent within todays sale; the decision to move the older cattle to this week following last week’s suckled calf show was certainly justified as feeding cattle numbers grew by over 130 on the same week last year allowing the buyers of over-year beast able to press on and fill orders. Top of the day at £2200 was our stunning Champion from Northfield Farms whilst the next in line were two superb British Blue crossed steers from Alwent Farm Partnership at £1910 and £1900. Topping the native breeds were a brilliant pair of Aberdeen Angus steers from B & B Kitching & Son, Elstob Cottage Farm at £1850 whilst the best young bull proved to be a magical 18-month-old Limousin from J C Thwaite & Son, Cragg Hill Farm at £1820. A remarkable day’s trading saw the top sixty-five cattle all sell over £1400 which left averages of £1005 for heifers, £1065 for the young bulls and a whopping £1174 for the much sought-after steers.
Bulling Heifer – £1120 Godschalk Partners.
Cow & Calf – £1490 Godschalk Partners.
Young Bulls – £1820 J C Thwaite & Son. £1620 £1300 N Gill. £1590 T Ducker. £1510 £1410 W B Rutter & Sons. £1490(x2) £1410 D Dixon. £1260 £1190 £1000 D & M Lowes. £1040 J A Hodgson. £860 G Beadle. £850 N & A Hunter. £840 B J S Farms.
Store Steers £1910 £1900 £1640 £1500 Alwent Farm Partnership. £1850 £1750×2 £1680×2 £1510×3 B&B Kitching & Son. £1610×2 £1590×2 £1570×2 £1520 £1490×3 £1460×5 £1380×2 JH Johnson. £1540 £1490 £1340 WA Wardman Ltd. £1510 £1440 £1335 RJ Bradshaw. £1470 £1410×3 £1380 £1340 F Ward. £1460 £1395×2 £1380 ME&TD Tailford. £1430×3 N&AD Brass & Son. £1420 N Gill. £1360 £1300 £1270 MH Hodgson.
Store Heifers £2200 Northfield Farms. £1800 £1620 £1570×2 £1300 Alwent Farm Partnership. £1620 £1480 £1340 £1230 WA Wardman Ltd. £1510 £1290 M Gallon. £1460 £1440×2 £1330×2 £1280×2 £1235 RL Walker. £1460 T Ducker. £1430 £1350 £1250×2 £1210×2 D&M Lowes. £1420 £1410 £1390 F Ward. £1400×2 £1390 £1370×2 HS Hutchinson. £1390 B&B Kitching & Son. £1385 D&HM Hodgson. £1350×5 Wilkinson & Son. £1340 J Atkinson. £1290×2 LW Martin.
Cast Cows & OTM – Cows forward in droves as Autumn threatens to turn to winter and the surplus are shipped out before the imminent housing. A sale average of 150 pence per kilo and £992 per head would see trade down a touch with some forty native bred beast and twenty-five milk cows included this week. The top five females per kilo were all OTM heifers, pick of them all a sweet Aberdeen Angus from R Smith, Bolton Hill Farm at 238 pence and £1568. Best of the older cows was an excellent British Blue from C & R Metcalf, Park House Farm which sold for 208ppk and also the day’s top gross value of £1713. Dairy cows peaked at £1475 from J Ramsay & Son, The Grange or an impressive 194ppk for a youngster from Stainton Hill Farms. Twice bulls sold for 246 pence per kilo, both had youth on their side as a Salers from Allison Devereux Farms, Low Harperley matched an Aberdeen Angus from S J Saville & Sons, Ravenhill Farm; the top gross valued bull was a British Blonde from I R Appleton, Pudding Poke Farm at £1873, remarkably five of the nine bulls today were Galloway’s.
Cast Cows & OTM Leading PPK – 238 R Smith, 234 220 W & Herbert. 232 226 180 170(x2) S J Saville & Sons. 208 C & R Metcalf. 202 D & M Lowes. 202 174 170 F & J S Gargett. 200(x2) 192 180 W & M Knaggs & Son. 196 T Burke. 194 Stainton Hill Farms. 192 R E Shield. 180 Mayfield Beef Shorthorns. 170 D E Stones. 170 Deerness Valley Dairy. 170 J M Ramsay & Son.
Stock Bulls Leading PPK – 246 S J Saville & Sons. 246 Allison Devereux Farms. 202 190 I & S Beeforth. 196 I R Appleton. 148 138 K T Anderson & Son. 134 J Brearley. 132 D Harris.
Cast Cows & OTM Leading Gross – £1713 C & R Metcalf. £1568 R Smith. £1534 £1412 £1357 W & M Knaggs & Son. £1533 £1385 £1334 £1272 S J Saville & Sons. £1475 £1300 J M Ramsay & Son. £1438 £1346 £1331 Mayfield Beef Shorthorns. £1433 £1401 F & J S Gargett. £1423 Wilkinson & Son. £1341 D & M Lowes. £1301 C Dawson. £1282 K T Anderson & Son. £1276 Deerness Valley Dairy.
Stock Bulls Leading Gross – £1873 I R Appleton. £1675 Allison Devereux Farms. £1672 S J Saville & Sons. £1258 J Braerley. £1250 K T Anderson & Son. £1123 £1062 I & S Beeforth. £1017 D Harris.
Store Sheep – With the prime lambs just faltering nationwide the store buyers exercised more caution today with all classes a shade easier. Pick of the bunch were a cracking pair of Beltex lambs from R G Richardson, East Farm which sold for £109; many others sold in the £90-£99 bracket today but three figures were somewhat of a rarity. Over 300 Mule lambs offered averaged £70 to a top of £86 for a pen of 21 strong tup lambs from A Wilson, Calf Close whilst the 150 Swaledale lambs averaged £39 to a top of £48.50 for a pen of 36 from T E Dobson, Unthank Farm. The feeding ewes this week were largely Mule’s with tops of £82 going to J A & U M Fawcett, Manor House with the same good home selling Texel’s to £100.
Store Lamb Leading Prices
Beltex – £109 £99.50 R G Richardson. £95(x2) £88 £81 D & M Lowes. £88 W B Rutter & Sons.
Texel – £99.50 R G Richardson. £98.50 W A Stephenson. £97 £91 D Alderson. £95.50 £93(x2) D Clarke. £95 D & G Spry. £94 £86 L D Laws. £93.50 G P Addison. £92 Castlewood Farm. £91(x2) A Wilson. £91 J H Johnson. £90 A J Addison. £89 B Iceton. £87 W H Brown. £86 C & M Burnett. £85.50 T & A Walton.
Suffolk – £95 D Alderson. £95 A & B Herworth. £91.50 K Mowbray. £91 J H Johnson. £90 Josh Burton. £89 C Longstaff. £85 C G Barraclough. £84 L Fowler. £81.50 J J M Lonsdale. £78 G Williamson. £75 B R & S Fell.
Continental – £92.50 L Fowler. £92(x2) £88 K Cator. £90 £80 J Dixon. £88 D & M Lowes. £84 £82.50 W H Brown. £81.50 £81 W Denham. £81 A Wilson. £81 £80.50 A W Sanderson. £80 K Mowbray. £80 Wolsingham Park Farms.
Cheviot – £88 W Burton. £60 S Dodsworth.
Mule – £86 A Wilson. £84 L Fowler. £78.50 £74 M G & W D Burton. £76 D Alderson. £75 C G Barraclough. £75 W H Brown. £75 G N & V Bayles. £73 £71 Wolsingham Park Farms. £71 D Rutter. £70 C & M Burnett.
Swaledale – £48.50 £44 T E Dobson. £43 £28 J D Heavisides. £42 Wolsingham Park Farms. £30 B Iceton.
