Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their weekly sale of cast cattle, store & breeding stock along with their fortnightly fodder sale on Monday 17th February 2025. Forward were 327 cattle, 1043 sheep, 10 pigs and 1088 lots of fodder.
79 Cast Cows/OTM sold to 380ppk or £2990
6 Stock Bulls sold to 306ppk or £2993
14 Breeding Cattle sold to £1800
49 Young Bulls sold to
67 Store Steers sold to £2550
161 Store Heifers sold to £2310
5 Ewes & Lambs sold to £265
126 In Lamb Ewes sold to £360
714 Store Hoggs sold to £158
193 Feeding Ewes/Rams sold to £186
10 Store Pigs sold to £160
1088 lots of Fodder sold to £48
Cast Cattle – Please stand well clear of the tracks if you see the cow train coming as it’s travelling full speed and stopping for nothing; dearer again to average a sublime 251ppk and £1654 per head. Top per kilo at a massive 380 pence was a brilliant 5-year-old 787kg British Blue cow from F & J S Gargett, Westwick Farm. The same good home also checked in at 338ppk with a 9-year-old British Blonde whilst some others over 300ppk included a remarkable Limousin at 14-years-old from K & M M Henderson, West Witton and also our top native per kilo, a Beef Shorthorn, from Upsall Castle Farms at 308ppk. The wonders from Westwick topped their second list when it came to gross values as the brilliant Blue added up to £2990 with her Blonde stable companion £2531. Top gross valued native breed cow was a terrific 861kg 5-year-old Aberdeen Angus from J L & J A Sunter, Downholme Manor with Beef Shorthorn’s to £2239 and Hereford’s to £2192 also worthy of mention. Pause the parlour, cast away the clusters, what a trade the milkers are this week as a good quality offering saw the twenty-two of them average 236ppk and over £1700 per head; tops of the day were F S Surrock & Sons, Home Farm at £2127 and J L & J A Sunter, Downholme Manor at £280ppk. Finally, an eclectic mix of bulls also enjoyed a roaring trade; top per kilo was an OTM Dairy Shorthorn at 306 pence and the top gross value was a wonderful British Blonde at £2993 from T W Brown & Sons, Brokes Farm whilst a strong Stabiliser from Skelton Farming Ltd, Stanghow also impressed at £2969.
Cast Cows & OTM- Top Prices PPK 380 338 322 290 F&JS Gargett. 320 268 K&MM Henderson. 314 253 J&F Hartley & Sons. 308 252 Upsall Castle Farms. 298 288 CN Whitaker. 298 284 HS Hutchinson. 296 280 272 246 G Beadle. 294 268 AC Simpson & Son. 288 P Weightman & Sons. 285 280 JL&JA Sunter. 275 JS Lynas. 274 268 Sanderson & Bell. 272 E Scott & Sons. 272 262 R Bradley & Son. 269 252 JR Fell. 253 C Dawson. 250 Tarn. 248 G Thompson & Sons. 247 FS Sturrock & Sons.
Lead Grossing Cast Cows & OTM- £2990 £2531 £2395 £1980 F&JS Gargett. £2453 £2108 JL&JA Sunter. £2412 £2160 K&MM Henderson. £2386 £2245 J&F Hartley & Sons. £2239 Upsall Castle Farms. £2237 £1712 AC Simpson & Son. £2192 R Bradley & Son. £2130 C Dawson. £2127 £2045 £1873 £1821 £1759 £1710 £1700 FS Sturrock & Sons. 2053 P Weightman & Sons. £2027 PT Stephenson & Son. £1953 £1673 JT Forster & Son. £1899 J Murray. £1787 £1668 Sanderson & Bell. £1783 F Hare & Sons. £1750 £1686 £1670 Little Newsham Farms. £1731 CN Whitaker. £1726 G Thompson & Sons. £1705 E Scott & Sons. £1657 Tarn.
Stock Bulls- Top Prices PPK 306 294 K Tallentire. 268 TW Brown & Sons. 258 Skelton Farming LTD. 222 DC Smith & Sons. 218 P Donnelly.
Lead Grossing Stock Bulls- £2993 TW Brown & Sons. £2969 Skelton Farming LTD. £2510 DC Smith & Sons. £1949 £1575 K Tallentire. £1839 P Donnelly.
Breeding Cattle – Big up the Belted Galloway’s as sizeable interest gathered to see the in-calf cows from Baystone Bank Farm Partnership make their way to DfAM all the way across from the Whicham Valley in West Cumbria. A fabulous five-year-old (six months in calf) topped the trade at £1580, three four-year-olds followed at £1550 as the excellent run of ten in clavers averaged a pleasing £1497. Elsewhere a Friesian heifer with a 1-month-old Limousin calf at foot from P Leese, Fryup Hall Farm sold well at £1800.
In Calf Cows- Belted Galloways- £1580 £1550 x3 £1520 x2 £1500 £1450 £1400 £1350 Baystone Bank Farm Partnership.
Breeding Cow- Belted Galloway- £680
Breeding Bull- Belted Galloway- £1150 Baystone Bank Farm Partnership.
Cows & Calves- £1800 P Leese.
Store Cattle – With the cast cows crackers and the breeder’s bananas there is little wonder that the stores were simply stupendous. Dearer again as the brilliant young bulls averaged £1448, the heroic heifers £1522 and the staggeringly sublime steers £1722 per head. Top call of the day was an excellent two-year-old Limousin steer from P & J H Davison, Morley Farm at £2550; the same good home followed at £2530 and £2380 as their sensational six averaged £2386. Top of the heifers and also top native breed was a 2-year-old Aberdeen Angus from F Crawford, Park Farm when she sold for £2310 whilst the top pure dairy breeds saw an excellent run from A Willey, Broomfield Farm sell Montbeliarde steers to £2060 and Friesian’s to £1990. Of the younger cattle highlights included a wonderful 13-month-old Limousin heifer from S & J Dent & Son, Great Burdon Farm reaching £1900; Limousin heifers from C G Robinson, South View Farm at £1900 (12m) and £1720 (11m) plus Limousin steers from W Emerson, Landieu Farm to a top of £1710 (11m). Some native breed power at the top end of the young bulls as two-year-old Beef Shorthorn’s from Mayfield Beef Shorthorn’s and Aberdeen Angus from S Jackson, Tuthill each reached £2300. Smart 10-month-old Limousin bulls from the high-flying S & J Dent & Son sold twice to £1760 with Charolais and Simmental’s of the same age from E Parsons, Newstead Farm not far adrift at £1680.
Store Cattle-
Store Bulls- £2300 £1820 x3 Mayfield Beef Shorthorn’s. £2300 £2200 x2 S Jackson. £1760 x2 £1710 £1650 x3 £1580 £1500 x3 S&J Dent & Son. £1680 x5 E Parsons. £16001540 x2 £1500 x2 £1300 Wilkinson & Son. £1500 x2 JJ Seaman. £1480 M Ewebanks. £1460 £1200 CN Whitaker. £1420 £1100 E Scott & Sons. £1360 J Jimminson. £1280 x2 CG Robinson. £1260 HN&R Tweddle. £1100 W Lodge & Sons.
Store Steers- £2250 £2530 £2380 £2380 £2300 £2180 P&JH Davison. £2220 CH&MC Phalp. £2200 £2130 £2080 £2060 MH Hodgson. £2170 x2 £2100 £2060 £1990 £1980 £1910 £1800 x3 £1720 A Willey. £2020 IW Cairns. £1970 £1930 E Taylor & Son. £1810 x2 GA Willey. £1780 CH&MC Phalp. £1710 W Emerson. £1710 JR&J Crowe. £1700 x3 D Walker. £1680 £1650 £1620 T Coulthard & Son. £1660 x2 J&JW Kenney. £1610 W Love LTD. £1610 W&C Iceton.
Store Heifers- £2310 F Crawford. £2120 £2060 £1990 x2 RL Walker. £2050 Cowclose Farm. £2030 £2020 £1980 x3 £1960 £1950 J Thompson & Sons. £2030 £1960 JS Wiper. £1980 x2 £1900 x3 S&J Dent & Son. £1970 AJ Hunter. £1940 £1930 £1880 CH&MC Phalp. £1900 £1840 CG Robinson. £1890 £1820 W Denham. £1870 x3 £1800 x2 Wilkinson & Son. £1870 J Atkinson. £1780 x3 W&JM Clifford. £1770 DG&PD Ayre. £1750 x2 BJS Farms.
Breeding Sheep – Following last weeks tentative toe dip in to the in-lamb ewe trade this week exceeded expectations as host of ringside interest resulted in a flying trade throughout, undoubtedly dearer to all in average £241.58. The top spots belonged to some excellent Beltex shearlings from K O Stones, Nun Cote Nook which sold away between £330 and £360 per head. Mule ewes scanned with triplets from Aldersdale & Mulley, Huller Bush Farm impressed when selling for £282 with the same good home selling Mules scanned twins at £275 and £270. Blue Texel ewes sold at £265 from J W Collin, Intake Farm with first cross Texel’s from C & N Waters, Little Ayton Hall topping at £252. Our first scattering of ewes with lambs at foot appeared today, all Zwartbles cross ewes with single Texel sired lambs they sold to average £118.20 per life.
In Lamb Ewes- £360 £340 £330 KO Stones. £282 £275 £270 £260 £248 Alderslade & Mulley. £265 £255 JW Collin. £252 £232 £228 x2 £195 C&N Waters. £250 £248 DR Smith. £248 £200 £168 WC Barker & Son. £215 Dan Clark.
Ewes with Lambs at foot- £265 £262 £245 £210 £200 LJ Thompson.
Store Sheep – The brake pedal is on for the smaller, long keep hoggs however the shorter-term projects remain extremely easy to sell bringing an all in average of £107. Top of the day were a cracking pair of Texel hoggs from C Rhea, Stanley Hall Farm which sold for £158, others reaching £150 were Blue Texel’s from C R McLaren, Grindon Grange, Texel from K Mowbray, Coatham Lane Cottage and Beltex from S A Braithwaite, Prys House Farm. Mule hoggs topped at £137 from EMS Engineering, Brough with Blue Faced Leicester’s to £134 from J & J Clark, Bowlees Farm plus Cheviot’s to £118 from W H Brown, Swale Hall and Swaledale’s to £84 from G S Dixon, Low Scargill. Feeding ewes remain firm and claimed another three-figure average; tops at £186 were two strong Suffolk cross ewes from D M McClurg, Blakely Hill Farm. Mule ewes average £105 and topped at £133 whilst Swaledale’s average £57 and topped at £96; top of the tups were a hefty pair of North Country Cheviot’s from C H & M C Phalp, Aireyholme Farm at £160.
Store Hoggs
Texel- £158 C Rhea. £153 K Mowbray. £144 A&R Thompson. £143 £120 W Ramsay & Sons. £142 £126 £122 £120 £118 CA&J Kipling. £129 £109 P Kirk. £129 A Newton. £127 £111 D Alderson. £125 DR Smith. £123.50 £112 A Tunstall. £121 RO Gilson. £114 GS Dixon. £113 EMS Engineering Consultants LTD. £112 x2 R&J Myers.
Beltex- £150 £139 £137 SA Braithwaite. £138 £130 KA&V Armstrong. £120 WH Brown.
Continental- £150 £114 CR McLaren. £136 £135 DR Smith. 130 C Rhea. £126 £116 £110 CH&MC Phalp. £124 £92 GS Dixon. £120 S Plews. £117 £114 CA&J Kipling. £109 D Smith. £109 P Armstrong. £106 M&E Burrell. £105 WH Brown. £100 A&R Thompson. £99 P Kirk. £90 RO Gilson.
Charollais- £119 KA&V Armstrong.
Suffolk- £135 £116 D Smith. £124 RO Gilson. £112 £98 D Alderson.
Cheviot- £118 WH Brown. £95 S Plews. £94 A Donkin.
Mule- £137 EMS Engineering Consultants LTD. £121 x2 P Broughton. £118 DR Smith. £105 £91 GS Dixon. £104 WH Brown. £97 £75 R&J Myers. £88 D Alderson.
Dutch Spotted- £118 £100 RO Gilson.
Swale- £84 GS Dixon. £70 £37 R&J Myers. £50 C&JC Stephenson.
Feeding Ewes- £186 £133 DM McClurg. £170 £158 £142 £130 £120 WB Rutter & Sons. £164 £140 FM Armstrong. £161 £142 £134 A&R Thompson. £160 £143 £138 x2 RO Gilson. £160 CH&MC Phalp. £159 £142 £132 £123 K Mowbray. £148 P Kirk. £148 CA&J Kipling. £140 £130 AF Smith. £145 £134 £124 £121 £120 D Alderson. £134 S Plews. £132 B&J Bainbridge. £129 £127 C&JC Stephenson. £120 FM Armstrong.
Fodder – The fortnightly foray into fodder gains momentum again with a record entry, an 86% clearance and some excellent prices across the board. Top call of the day were forty-eight six string quadrant bales of wheat straw which sold for £48 each. Staying with the straw trade and thirty quadrant bales of oat sold at £40 each whilst seventy-two round bale barley sold for £38. Fodder beet continues to sell well with eighty tonnes changing hands to top at £38 and average £33 per ton. Grass based feed was also easy to move, wrapped bales saw fifty big squares make £40 and one hundred and fifty rounds change hands at £20. Round hay bales sold to a top of £28 whilst two-hundred conventional bales sold at £3 apiece. The next sale is in a fortnight’s time, please contact Megan with any enquiries.
Store Pigs – Even the pigs took the hint and went dearer thus rounding off a great day in DfAM, next week… sand to the Arab’s and ice to the Eskimo’s!
Leading Prices
£160(x2) £140(x2) C Weightman.
