Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their weekly sale of prime stock on Thursday 9th May 2024. Forward were 173 cattle and 1421 sheep.
51 Prime Bulls sold to 320ppk or £2482
10 Prime Steers sold to 327ppk or £2369
105 Prime Heifers sold to 348ppk or £2426
7 Cast Cows sold to 284ppk or £1872
72 New Season Lambs sold to 506ppk or £248
1018 Prime Hoggs sold to 469ppk or £228
331 Cast Ewes & Rams sold to £200
Prime Bulls (51) – A sharp bull trade for all classes to see them average 270ppk and £1837 per head. Some classy lads up at the top were headed by a brilliant 759kg British Blue from the Renton’s of High Highlaws when he sold for 320 pence; Limousin bulls claimed the remainder of the top ten places per kilo including one from Robert Neill & Partners, Jedburgh at 315ppk followed by local feeders S & J Dent & Son at 311ppk. The remarkable Renton team also claimed the top gross value with another home bred British Blue, this one a thumping 833kg sold for £2482; second place in the bull gross values went to our second mentioned Scottish firm of the day as R M Adam & Son, Newhouse of Glamis sold a heavyweight Charolais for £2469, four further bulls sold over £2400. Two familiar feeders led the Friesian prices this week when R Hall & Son, Kilton Hall topped per kilo at 255 pence and G W Dobson & Son, Wood Close Farm led the gross values at £1465. Below are a handful of the top pen averages.
S & J Dent & Son, Darlington sold 4 to average 306ppk and £1903
Renton Highlaws, Morpeth sold 4 to average 294ppk and £2392
J J Kemp & Son, Stillington sold 4 to average 294ppk and £2047
Continental Bulls – Top prices ppk 320 298 294 270 Renton Highlaws Ltd. 315 270 R Neill & Partners. 311 310 305 300 S&J Dent & Son. 309 281 279 LR Welsh & Co. 301 298 292 287 JJ Kemp & Son. 300 JK&CE Farming. 294 275 269×2 J Gregory. 290 272 RW&R Henry. 280 270 269 SH Watson & Son. 275 263 260 E Scott. 275 JT Gilchrist. 265 TF Bothroyd.
Lead Grossing Continental Bulls £2482 £2428 £2407 £2251 Renton Highlaws Ltd. £2469 RM Adam & Son. £2416 R Neill & Partners. £2411 £2080 £1907 JJ Kemp & Son. £2292 £2192 £2115 RW&R Henry. £2240 £1978 £1969 LR Welsh & Co. £2217 £1888 £1844 SH Watson & Son. £2183 JT Gilchrist. £2081 E Scott. £2034 JK&CE Farming. £1996 £1906 £1869 S&J Dent & Son.
Friesian Bulls – Top prices ppk 255 R Hall & Son. 211 210 GW Dobson & Son.
Lead Grossing Friesian Bulls £1465 £1432 GW Dobson & Son. £1453 R Hall & Son.
Native Bulls – Top prices ppk 272 R Neill & Partners. 256 R Hall & Son. 236 JA&A Herbert. 235 HM& JS Hutchinson.
Lead Grossing Native Bulls £2140 R Neill & Partners. £1607 R Hall & Son. £1468 HM&JS Hutchinson. £1451 JA&A Herbert.
OTM – Top prices ppk 284 209 Renton Highlaws Ltd. 218 214 200 186 JT Gilchrist. 192 C Iveson Farms.
Lead Grossing OTM £1872 £1459 £1378 £1334 JT Gilchrist. £1698 £1672 Renton Highlaws Ltd. £1509 C Iveson Farms.
Clean Cattle (115) – The weather has heated up and so too has the clean beef trade with this week’s cattle an absolute flyer to see the handful of steers average a massive 303ppk and £2117 with a red-hot heifer trade levelling at 310ppk and £1881. Three hot heifers shared the top price per kilo selling for 348 pence as R Hirst, Neasham Grange, J V & J A Hodgson, The Grange and R A & B A Ridley & Son Ltd, Dipton Foot could not be separated. Thirteen further heifers sold 340-347ppk with another twenty-five 300-339ppk. Top steer per kilo at 327 pence was a smart Limousin from P J & M P Gilhespy, Low House with a pair from the Askwiths of Low Mown Meadows in close attendance at 318ppk an 324ppk. Some great gross values naturally go with a sharp trade like todays, no less than forty beasts sold over £2000; top of them all were a glorious run from Aberdeenshire and the super feeding of Messrs W A Fettes, Braes of Enzie who sold two steers to average £2286 with a top of £2369 and four superb heifers to average £2307 with a best of £2426 for a 742kg Limousin. Some stunning pen averages are listed below.
R Hirst, Neasham sold 10 heifers to average 340ppk and £1938
B Walker, Dalton-on-Tees sold 2 heifers to average 338ppk and £1880
I Marshall & Sons, Bishop Middleham sold 3 heifers to average 334ppk and £2144
J E Suddes & Son, Cornsay Colliery sold 4 heifers to average 334ppk and £2024
W & M Knaggs & Son, Sadberge sold 3 heifers to average 334ppk and £1824
Anthony Swinbank & Son, Sedgefield sold 3 heifers to average 332ppk and £1816
Askwiths, Crook sold 2 steers to average 321ppk and £2078
Steers – Top prices ppk 327 PJ&MP Gilhespy. 324 318 Askwithys. 311 JK&CE Farming. 306 JR&B Anderson. 299 290 Messrs WA Fettes. 298 284 P&JH Davison. £2073 P&JH Davison.
Lead Grossing Steers £2369 £2203 Messrs WA Fettes. £2220 £2158 P&JH Davison. £2125 £2032 Askwiths. £2074 JK&CE Farming. £2073 I Marshall & Sons. £2047 PJ&MP Gilhespy. £1875 JR&B Anderson.
Heifers – Top prices ppk 348 339 336 RA&BA Ridley & Son Ltd. 348 347 346×2 344 343 339 331 330 R Hirst. 348 346 343×2 331 328 JV&JA Hodgson. 347 WF Hustwit. 340 337 333 330 JE Suddes & Son. 340 339 PJ&MP Gilhespy. 340 336 327 W&M Knaggs & Son. 340 338 B Walker. 339 338 330 D Robson. 337×2 A Swinbank. 337 WJ&AS Bowes & Sons. 336 335 331 I Marshall & Sons. 333 330 P&JH Davison. 331 329 325×2 J&JP Sim. 327×2 Askwiths. 327 Messrs WA Fettes.
Lead Grossing Heifers £2426 £2375 £2236 £2191 Messrs WA Fettes. £2318 £2094 WJ&AS Bowes & Sons. £2311 £2115 £2006 I Marshall & Sons. £2247 £2061 JE Suddes & Son. £2220 £2034 P&JH Davison. £2164 £2146 £2138 £2093 J&JP Sim. £2143 £2017 £1992 R Hirst. £2124 £2072 £2040 £2016 £2012 £1999 JV&JA Hodgson. £2107 £2106 TW Clark & Son. £2061 £1930 D Robson. £2052 P&E Roger. £2042 £2003 £1948 RA&BA Ridley & Son Ltd. £2031 B Walker. £1981 WF Hustwit. £1951 PJ&MP Gilhespy. £1937 A Swinbank & Son.
Prime Lambs (72) – Slowly the springers begin to appear, they need baking twice, once in the sun and once in the oven. Weighed straight as always and trade proved excellent to average 455ppk and £203 apiece which is £30 per head up on this week last year. Top of the day were a well-bred and well-fed trio of Texel lambs from W Lewis & Sons, Kettleness weighing 49kg and selling for £248 (506ppk) to Roots Farm Shop, East Rounton. A sift through the 2024 crop for W & M Knaggs & Son, East Newbiggin Farm impressed reaching tops of £244 whilst lower down the list we saw some more unusual breeds holding their own with Shropshire’s to £190 and perhaps the most impressive of all a pen of solely grass fed Llanwenog’s weighing 39kg and selling for £186.
Spring Lambs- Top Prices PPK 506 500 x2 487 W Lewis & Sons. 489 485 478 W&M Knaggs & Son. 476 AW Sanderson. 466 465 455 440 409 PJ Tindale. 465 452 433 418 WA Wardman LTD. 459 400 Anna Herbert. 450 DW Ewin. 439 377 CA&JG Skidmore. 422 404 D Coupland. 411 T&J Hunter. 388 I Curry.
Lead Grossing Spring Lambs- £248 £230 £210 £200 W Lewis & Sons. £244 £240 £228 W&M Knaggs & Son. £217 £207 £205 £200 £182 PJ Tindale. £210 T&J Hunter. £202 £168 Anna Herbert. £200 £195 £190 £180 WA Wardman LTD. 200 £180 CA&JG Skidmore. £190 x2 D Coupland. £186 AW Sanderson. £180 DW Ewin. £140 I Curry.
Prime Hoggs (1018) – Given the marvellous trade so far this year perhaps the most remarkable statistic is that more hoggs were forward today than on the same week last year, trade improved on the week to average a weighed straight 387ppk with an SQQ average of 393ppk. Top of the prices per kilo this week at 469 pence was regular supporter R Atkinson, High Greenbury, Scorton with thirteen terrific 43kg Texel’s; the excellent weekly run of 404 clipped hoggs (av. 45kg) from this good home averaged 413ppk which included 76 Cheviots, 49 Suffolk’s, 37 Mules, 15 Blackface and 14 two toothers. With the Robert Akinson king of the pence per kilo’s the prince of the pounds per head was undoubtedly Mark Simpson of A C Simpson & Son, McNeil Farm, Witton-le-Wear who led the day with 62kg Texel’s at £228. Plenty of others from the super Simpson’s run featured at the top of the leader board as their fifty-three hoggs averaged 59kg and an impressive £212 per head.
Hoggs- Top Prices PPK 469 463 461 453 441 417 x2 415 413 408 x2 404 x5 389 387 R Atkinson. 208 407 x2 403 402 J&A Layfield. 416 395 P Hutchinson. 414 S Crossland. 413 408 x2 395 389 PJ Tindale. 410 WA Stephenson. 409 407 393 PR&V Barlow & Son. 404 390 JM&S Walton. 404 393 390 TW Clark & Son. 400 W Walker & Sons. 400 N&LL Brown & Son. 400 TE Dobson. 400 EA Martin & Son. 392 AC Simpson & Son. 391 JR Tiplady. 391 AW Sanderson. 391 CJM Hedley. 389 J&J Clark & Sons. 387 H Emerson.
Lead Grossing Hoggs- £228 £226 £225 £220 £218 £216 £215 x6 £210 x2 £204 AC Simpson & Son. £214 £x2 £210 £208 x3 £205 £203 x2 £200 x2 £198 J&A Layfield. £212 200 TE Dobson. £204 x2 £203 x2 £202 £194 £192 R Atkinson. £204 K Tallentire. £200 £193 WA Stephenson. £200 £192 PJ Tindale. £200 £199 JM&S Walton. £200 JP Floyd. £200 D Coupland. £196 £192 W Walker & Sons. £195 TW Clark & Son. £194 H Emerson. £192 JR Tiplady.
Cast Ewes & Rams (331) – The ewes remain good to sell to average £117 this week, first mention must go to the Dent Family of The Bungalow, Gordon House Farm, Cockfield who today donated a Beltex ewe in memory of the late George Dent with proceeds heading to the Sepsis Trust ‘Big Breakfast’ which will be held here in Darlington Mart on Saturday morning. Thanks go to buyers Andrew Atkinson Livestock, Jewitt’s of Spennymoor and Shan’s Group who ensured that £600 will now be added to the income at the Big Breakfast. Four vendors shared the top spot at £200 as the aforementioned ewe from the Dent’s was joined by T & J Hunter, Hunmanby; P R & V Barlow, Nottinghamshire and P Cockburn, Heighington. Mule ewes averaged £113 to a top of £132, Cheviots topped at £142 (av £81), Horned ewes topped at £90 (av £84) and impressive Easycare’s topped at £129 (av £124).
Lead Grossing Cast Ewes- £200 £132 T&J Hunter. £200 £160 x2 £144 SG Dent. £200 £150 PR&V Barlow & Son. £200 £156 £150 £134 P Cockburn. £178 £146 £141 N White. £161.50 £161 M Hutchinson. £160 x2 £155 £150 £144 TW Brown & Sons. £160 £131 TM Darling & Son. £160 M Dawson. £156 £138 J&J Clark & Sons. £156 £150 £146 £145 £140 x2 £134 WA Wardman LTD. £154 P Wilson. £150 IR Appleton. £148 K Tallentire. £146 £144 RA Patterson & Son. £142 DW Ewin. £142 £142 Rebecca Appleton. £140 x2 £134 JM&S Walton. £140 WL Robinson & Partners. £140 S Crossland. £140 £136 RE&L Frank. £132 RA Smith & Son.
