Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held a special sale of cows and heifers with calves at foot in conjunction with their weekly sale of cast cattle, store and breeding stock. Forward were 405 cattle, 73 Sheep and 35 pigs.
90 Cast Cows & OTM sold to 278ppk or £1982
5 Stock Bulls sold to 302ppk or £2446
4 Breeding Cows sold to £1400
68 Cows/Heifers & Calves sold to £2750
16 Young Bulls sold to £1560
60 Store Steers sold to £1570
91 Store Heifers sold to £2350
50 Store Hoggs sold to £116
14 Feeding Ewes sold to £135
3 Ewes & Lambs sold to £230
Cast Cattle – The cast beef trade continues at full throttle, a tidy show of quality resulted in this week’s ninety-five over the scale averaging a fabulous 202ppk and £1345. Starting with a blistering bull trade and some brilliant British Blue’s setting the pace, a youngster from G Coates, Rainscar Farm, Stainforth reached a massive 302 pence per kilo whilst the top gross value went to a superb 1073kg 9-year-old from W J Scott Ltd, Low Leam Farm, West Woodburn when he sold for £2446. More bragging rights for the British Blue’s in the females as a sweet OTM heifer from J Dixon, Stainton Manor Farm topped at 278ppk, top older cow per kilo at 254ppk proved to be a fleshy Limousin from W Swinbank & Sons, Caldwell. Seven cows sold over £1700, two Limousin’s, three Charolais and a British Blue all however failed to catch a thumping 833kg British Blonde from W M Bainbridge, Bogg House Farm, Egglestone when she grossed a massive £1982. Native breeds today were headed by the Aberdeen Angus as G & J H Tomlinson & Son, Knitsley sold to 256ppk and E A & N Thompson & Son, Ormside reached £1673. Finally, a foray in to the Friesian fraternity and this week’s bragging rights belong to A R & C Booth. Bolton-on-Swale who topped at 196ppk and £1440.
Cast Cows & OTM Leading PPK – 278 206 J Dixon. 256 G & J H Tomlinson & Son. 254 W Swinbank & Sons. 250 214 A B P Wilsons. 246 226 D F & E J Nicholson. 242 208 J & M J Walton. 238 W M Bainbridge. 236 E A & N Thompson. 230 228 220 D A & M A M Brown. 230 216 W J Scott Ltd. 228 W Wearmouth & Son. 226 C G Robinson. 226 W R Thompson. 224 210(x2) 208 A Wilson. 216 206(x2) H S Hutchinson. 214 208 A E Iceton & Son. 210(x2) L W Martin. 208 F Hickson & Sons. 208 W A Wardman Ltd. 208 T & R Quinn & Son. 208 E Parsons. 206 N White. 206 R A & S L Wearmouth.
Stock Bulls Leading PPK – 302 G Coates. 266 E Wilson. 228 W J Scott Ltd. 216 F W Hodgson & Son. 212 W M Bainbridge.
Cast Cows & OTM Leading Gross – £1982 W M Bainbridge. £1876 £1748 £1645 D A & M A M Brown. £1822 £1701 D F & E J Nicholson. £1757 £1518 W J Scott Ltd. £1725 J & M J Walton. £1699 W Swinbank & Sons. £1690 W R Thompson. £1673 E A & N Thompson. £1670 R A & S L Wearmouth. £1651 A E Iceton & Son. £1649 F Hickson & Sons. £1606 £1496 A Wilson. £1584 G & J H Tomlinson & Son. £1575 C G Robinson. £1571 E Scott & Sons. £1562 W A Wardman Ltd. £1560 £1555 A B P Wilsons. £1548 J Dixon. £1538 P & P J Sayer. £1512 £1490 R A & S L Wearmouth. £1480 L W Martin.
Stock Bulls Leading Gross – £2446 W J Scott Ltd. £2351 W M Bainbridge. £2276 F W Hodgson & Son. £2186 G Coates. £1979 E Wilson.
Cows, Heifers and Calves – A great gathering of genuine breeding cattle attracted a full compliment of buyers to ringside; a solid trade was duly witnessed throughout. Topping the sale at £2750 was a super dairy bred British Blue heifer with a March born Limousin heifer calf at foot from the far flung Beslee Farms all the way from Gravesend, Kent which sold to Nick Gill of Moory Lea, Langleydale. A strong Simmental second calver with a Charolais crossed bull calf from J W Richardson, New Herrington followed closest at £2500 with another classy Blue outfit from Beslee Farms and a sharp Limousin and her calf from S Love, Wolsingham following next at £2450. An excellent dispersal from P Foster, Scugdale Farm was without doubt responsible for a large proportion of the crowd gathered and the terrific cows topped at £1950 twice for 4-year-old Aberdeen Angus and a Charolais of the same age both with Charolais sired calves at foot.
Leading Prices
Breeding Cows – £1400 £1300 P Foster. £1220 £880 K B & S Roche.
Cows/Heifers & Calves – £2750 £2450 £2200 £2150 £2100(x2) £2050(x2) £2020 £2000 £1900(x4) £1850 £1820 £1800 £1780(x3) Beslee Farms. £2500 £2150(x2) J W Richardson. £2450 S Love. £1980 £1880 R Watson. £1950(x2) £1850 £1820 £1800(x2) £1780(x2) P Foster. £1800 K O Stones. £1780 Ivanhoe Livestock. £1780 T Hodges.
Store Cattle – No doubting today’s highlight as we had the honour of selling a generous charitable donation of a 23-month-old Limousin heifer on behalf of Tony Watson, East Thorn Farm, Kirkley, Ponteland with all proceeds going to the ‘Breast Cancer Now’ charity in memory of Tony’s wife Zilla who sadly passed away recently. With the heifer generously sold, re-donated and ultimately auctioned thrice over, along with some fabulous contributions going feely in to the charity bucket we can announce that the total raised to date already exceeds £7500. The heifer ultimately headed back up the road she came down to Ponteland with Ricky Alder of M F Hall, Woodhill Farm.
Young bulls sold exceptionally well, none more so than the sale leader a smart 11-month-old Limousin from G M Elstob, Mill Hill Farm which realised £1560. Naturally the charity heifer led the store prices, behind her it was a superb run of cattle from W A Wardman Ltd, Thrushwood Farm Yearby which dominated the top of our leader board. Limousin heifers from the good Yearby yard topped at £1540 and steers an excellent £1570 achieved by a 15-month-old Limousin. Still strong signs of life in the store ring as we enter June, the prime beef in live auctions remains highly sought after and as numbers of finished cattle tighten traditionally during the summer months the full-time feeders are fighting hard to keep their yards full.
Young Bulls – £1560 £1470 £1240 G M Elstob. £1415 £1375 £1295 £O J Kendall. £1255 £1180(x2) £1120(x2) £830 R N Foord & Son. £1190 £1040 £1035 W T Hall. £1065 P Foster.
Store Steers – £1570 £1405 £1210 £1140 W A Wardman Ltd. £1470 £1360 G L & M Steel. £1355 £1255 £1095 R Errington & Son. £1355 £1315 M H Hodgson. £1350 £1280 £1195 I W Cairns. £1220 J R & L Harding. £1175 £1165 £1110(x2) R & W Todd. £1155(x3) A Wilson. £1150(x2) C L Clark. £1145 T T Hall & Son. £1130 G Bolton. £1120 R Potts. £1110 M L Tallentire. £1075 W Taylor & Son.
Store Heifers – £2350 £2300 £1600 Breast Cancer Now. £1540 £1380 £1360 £1325 £1270 W A Wardman Ltd. £1480(x3) G H Tomlinson & Son. £1460(x2) £1430 £1380 S & J Dent & Son. £1350 W Taylor & Son. £1350 R & W Todd. £1350 £1195 £1190 F Hickson & Sons. £1300 C & I Watson & Sons. £1300 £1235 J S Wiper. £1300(x2) G W & M Singleton & Sons. £1290 M J Hutchinson. £1260(x2) D W Walton. £1240 G Bolton. £1175 J R & L Harding. £1165 A Wilson. £1160 A W Gray.
Store Sheep – The end of the store sheep is now nigh, just a light offering however still plenty of enthusiasm apparent. Topping at £230 was a smart Texel shearling with twin lambs from H Foster, The Meadows; feeding ewes sold to £135 from I W Cairns, Pespool Hall and store hoggs a best of £116 for a strong pen of seven Texel’s shown by R Worthy, East Edmondsley Farm.
Ewes & Lambs – £230 £220 H Foster. £90 P Henderson.
Store Hoggs – £116 £70 £42 R Worthy.
Feeding Ewes – £135 I W Cairns. £128 £110 S Straughan.
Store Pigs – Saint Anthony is widely regarded as the Patron Saint of Pigs, no question at all that somebody somewhere prayed solemnly and deeply to him last night as we witnessed an absolute humdinger of a trade. Please book in your store pigs early for next week as on the back of today’s shenanigans we anticipate that thousands of our bacon flavoured buddies will surely be in attendance.
Leading Pig Prices – £120 £110 £108 £88 £62 £58 £45 A Dixon.
