Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their weekly sale of cast cattle, store and breeding stock and their fortnightly sale of rearing calves on Monday 12th August 2024. Forward were 257 cattle, 31 calves and 859 sheep.
55 Cast Cows/OTM sold to 258ppk or £2049
5 Stock Bulls sold to 218ppk or £2107
18 Cows & Calves sold to £2280
12 Young Bulls sold to £880
62 Store Steers sold to £1550
87 Store Heifers sold to £1570
31 Rearing Calves sold to £560
745 Store Lambs sold to £139
114 Feeding Ewes/Rams sold to £149
Cast Cattle – Cow trade continues in terrific form; let us begin with a fanfare for a Friesian as a remarkable cow from N & A D Brass & Son, Ox Close Farm, Shadforth achieved a gross value of a mind blowing £2049, seldom do we ever see dairy cows join the £2k plus club. Top per kilo this week was an excellent five-year-old British Blue cow from T N Callender, Ox Eye Farm, Whinney Hill when she sold for 258 pence, following her over the line were a pair of dairy OTM’s at 236ppk (Norwegian Red from Wilkinson, Carsides Farm) and 232ppk (Holstein Friesian), other healthy feeding or well fleshed cows sold regularly beyond 200ppk including a smart Limousin cow from first time vendors J C Hope & Son, Cornhow Farm, Cockermouth at 224ppk. An excellent 39-month-old Limousin from local producer A P Taylor, Ox Close Farm led the bulls per kilo when he sold for 218 pence; top gross valued bull was a gargantuan Beef Shorthorn from Messrs Heathcote, Greengate Farm weighing 1158kg and selling for £2107.
Cast Cows – Top prices ppk 258 186 TN Callender. 236 Wilkinson & Son. 232 Tallentire. 224 200 188 182×2 176 JC Hope & Son. 212 W Swinbank & Sons. 210 184 R&W Todd. 206 176 N&AD Brass & Son. 202 A Wilson. 200 Anderson. 196 182 SH Watson & Son. 188 Duell Partners. 182 R White. 180 T James.
Lead Grossing Cast Cows £2049 £1304 31276 N&AD Brass & Son. £1829 W Swinbank & Sons. £1820 A Wilson. £1630 £1190 TN Callender. £1600 Wilkinson & Son. £1512 Tallentire. £1432 £1376 £1358 SH Watson & Son. £1430 £1339 £1167 £1147 £1139 JC Hope & Son. £1360 £1107 R&W Todd. £1349 Duell Partners. £1256 Anderson. £1147 £1144 R white.
Cast Bulls – Top prices ppk 218 AP Taylor. 184 160 GM Blair & Partners. 182 A&W TA AP E & J Heathcote. 178 OJ Kendall.
Lead Grossing Cast Bulls £2107 A&W TA AP E & J Heathcote. £1705 £1521 GM Blair & Partners. £1510 AP Taylor. £1454 OJ Kendall.
Rearing Calves
£407 was todays average for the calf sale, fewer calves entered, however trade better and calves wanted. Top Price of the day for bulls went to Wilkinsons & Son, Carrsides Farm, with a British Blue making £560, whilst also achieving top priced Heifer at £530, with another British Blue. Following with the Blues was Miresdale Dairy Holding, making £520 with a Bull calf. Inra 95 Bull calf from J&A Stevenson, Blue House Farm, made £430, whilst Friesian Bulls from Quality Calves Scotland LTD, made £390.
More British Blue Heifers followed Wilkinsons of Carrsides, with S Beeforth, High Crookleith, making £480, whilst the same home also had Herefords and Simmentals to £470. Angus Calves from Quality Calves Scotland LTD, made £290. Whilst N&AD Brass followed with an Angus Heifer at £220.
Bulls-
British Blue- £560 £555 £535 x3 £525 Wilkinson & Son. £520 Miresdale Dairy Holding LTD. £455 Quality Calves Scotland LTD.
Inra 95- £430 J&A Stevenson & Sons.
Friesian- £390 x7 Quality Calves Scotland LTD.
Brown Swiss- £200 J&A Stevenson & Sons.
Ayrshire- £160 J&A Stevenson & Sons.
Danish Red- £160 N&AD Brass & Son.
Heifers-
British Blue- £530 x2 Wilkinson & Son. £480 S Beeforth. £360 x2 Quality Calves Scotland LTD.
Hereford- £470 S Beeforth.
Simmental- £470 £420 S Beeforth.
Angus- £290 Quality Calves Scotland LTD. £220 N&AD Brass & Son.
Danish Red- £120 N&AD Brass & Son.
Cows & Calves – The first part of a super herd dispersal from D & M Lowes, Wilson House, Barningham dominated the breeding cattle today and given their quality quite rightly accumulated a large crowd of bidders. An excellent 8-year-old Limousin cow with a 4-month-old Aberdeen Angus bull calf at foot topped the day when she sold for £2280, the same good home sold no less than seven others over £2000, all cows ranging from 7 to 10 years old and all suckling Aberdeen Angus calves.
Cows & Calves £2280 £2200 £2150 £2100×2 £2050×3 £1950×2 £1920 £1900×3 £1850 D&M Lowes. £1780 £1300 JW Richardson.
Store Cattle – Feeding firms remain keen to source stores of all classes as the clear shortage nationally keeps the finished beef easy to sell. Top this week at £1570 was an excellent 14-month-old Limousin steer from N B & R Hird, Gillfield; leading the heifers was a super Simmental from A Wilson, Calf Close Farm at £1550 with Hereford’s also from Calf Close next in line at £1540. A fine run of Holstein Friesian steers made their way across the Pennines from Messrs Ashley, Bolton, Appleby-in-Westmorland and impressed as the forty-one topped at £1230 and averaged £1073. A lesser showing in the young bulls remained a good trade, the top five all sold for £880 which included a Charolais from J Jimminson, East Oakley House and a quartet of British Blues from J T Forster & Son, Killerby Farm.
Store Bulls £880×4 £790 £730×2 JT Forster & Son. £880 J Jimminson. £810 WO Alderson.
Store Steers £1550 £1540 £1490 £1400×2 £1360 A Wilson. £1295×2 G Beadle. £1240 Wilkinson & Son. £1230×3 £1150×4 £1140×6 £1100×5 £1090×4 £1080×6 £1020×5 Messrs Ashley. £1200 W Walker & Sons. £1200×2 Humbleton Farm. £1190 NB&R Hird. £1150 DR Smith. £1110 W Love Ltd. £1030 TE Dobson.
Store Heifers £1570 £1250 £1210 £1190 NB&R Hird. £1490 £1460 £1430 GW&L Marsay. £1485 £1400 £1350 £1330 £1295 DR Smith. £1460 £1420 £1340×3 £1290 £1280 £1260×3 A Wilson. £1440 £1390 £1360 £1350 £1310 £1280 £1270 £1260 £1240 WSI Anderson. £1420 W Walker & Sons. £1330×2 £1300×3 £1290 Wilkinson & Son. £1260 £1190×2 W Walker & Sons. £1255 W Love Ltd.
Store Lambs – The store lamb trade continues to fly along with buyers aplenty and all shapes and sizes in real demand to see the sale average £105.32. Top of the day at £139 was an excellent single Texel lamb from W Wearmouth & Son, Rose Hill Farm closely followed by thirteen Suffolk’s from D Alderson, Cockleberry at £136 and nine Texel’s from C E Smith, High Faverdale at £135. Hill lambs continue to appear and those drawing early are surely not wrong, this week’s pick would be a run of 145 hill Cheviot’s from S Hallam, Grange Head Farm which sold to at top of £97 (see photo) to average £87.83.
Store Lambs:
Texel – £139 £109 W Wearmouth & Son. £135 £117 £116 CE Smith. £126 £125 JR&J Crowe. £126 £116 C&M Burnett. £116 £112 JD&MS Mortimer. £114 £105 S Pyebourne. £113 £112 GH Lister. £112 £111 £105 A Swinbank. £112 £107 W Wilkinson & Sons. £111 £97 £87 L J Daley. £110 RW Dalton. £110 £100 A Spence. £106 JS Wiper. £105 £97 £94 A Hughes. £100 RB Watson.
Suffolk – £136 £116 D Alderson. £130 £114 JJM Lonsdale. £115 £100 LJ Daley. £92 GW Dobson & Son. £91 K Liversedge.
Continental – £126 £100K Sayer. £91×2 GW Dobson & Son.
Charollais – £123 W Wearmouth & Son.
Beltex – £114 W Wearmouth & Son.
Mule – £100 W Wearmouth & Son. £94 W Burton. £92 JJM Lonsdale. £80 W Burton.
Cheviot £97 S Hallam. £90 £88 £85 £70 S Hallam.
Feeding Ewes – The ewe trade stays very sharp, top this week were Charollais from Helen Elliot, East Farm reaching £149; the same home sold Suffolk’s to £135 whilst D G & P D Ayre, Roger Moor sold Mule’s to £105 and Cheviot’s to £109.
Feeding Ewes:
Charollais – £149 £86 H Elliott.
Texel – £149 £137 S Straughan. £130 £101 £100 JD&MS Mortimer.
Suffolk – £135 H Elliott. £128 W Wearmouth & Son.
Continental £128 Duell Partner. £100 £80 £67 £60 C Harle & Sons.
Cheviot – £109 DG&PD Ayre. £90 W Burton. £87 S Hallam.
Mule – £105 DG&PD Ayre. £96 £90 WK Wilkinson & Sons. £89 S Pybourne. £78 D Alderson. £58 S Straughan.
Zwartbles – £94 WK Wilkinson & Sons.
Swale – £55 £42 W Coatsworth. £37 W Burton.
Tups – Texel £99 £81 £70 £68 S Straughan.
