Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their weekly sale of cast cattle, store and breeding stock and also their fortnightly sale of rearing calves on Monday 24th March 2025. Forward were 391 cattle, 352 sheep and 109 calves.
93 Cast Cows/OTM sold to 396ppk or £2795
2 Stock Bulls sold to 332ppk or £4090
18 In Calf Cows sold to £3100
6 Breeding Cows sold to £2000
13 Cows & Calves sold to £3080
38 Young Bulls sold to £2120
82 Store Steers sold to £2520
126 Store Heifers sold to £2460
14 Ewes with Lambs sold to £520
285 Store Hoggs sold to £150
34 Feeding Ewes/Rams sold to £260
109 Rearing Calves sold to £690
Cast Cattle – Another fabulous cow trade, the green market status once again proved requisite with a mix of both feeders and fleshed cows all finding homes with consummate ease to see the sale all in average 269 pence per kilo. We better begin with the bull news, an absolute humdinger of a Charolais from W A Wardman Ltd, Thrushwood Farm grabbed the headlines; the wonderful 4-year-old tipped the scales to 1232kg and sold for a magical 332ppk which equated to £4090 in the lump. Best of the rest on the day was a cracking 43-month-old Limousin steer from J E Grieves, Brackstone House when he sold for 396ppk and £2795. OTM heifers were in high demand as we saw Charolais to 394ppk from E Parsons, Newstead Farm; Limousin’s to 388ppk from Jack Henshaw, Mainsgill Farm plus Aberdeen Angus to 380ppk and Friesian’s to 300ppk from Deerness Valley Dairy. Top of the older cows was a super Limousin from I Marshall & Sons, Hope House when she sold at 370ppk and £2530 whilst W A Dinsdale & Son, Harkerside Place topped at 340ppk and £2781, also with a Limousin. Finally, to the Friesian cows and the twenty-five of them this week averaged 230ppk and £1365, top of them all at a brilliant £2444 was a thumper from W Walker & Sons, High Copelaw with A Sowray & Sons, Bowes House also selling over £2000.
Cast Cows/OTM Leading PPK – 396 J E Grieves. 394 E Parsons. 388 Jack Henshaw. 380 300 Deerness Valley Dairy. 376 J F Harland. 370 310 I Marshall & Sons. 364 A & M J Henshaw. 340 W A Dinsdale & Son. 334 T N Callender. 334 306 G C & K J White & Son. 326 324 J E Holliday & Son. 308 298 288(x2) 284 G B Forster. 302 D P Wood. 300 D G & P D Ayre. 300 286 C Harle & Sons. 296 292 A Crowder. 294 J A & U M Fawcett. 290 A Sowray & Sons. 286 F Watson. 286 H S Hutchinson. 284 M E Robinson & Sons.
Stock Bulls Leading PPK – 332 W A Wardman Ltd. 300 E A & N Thompson & Son.
Cast Cows/OTM Leading Gross – £2795 J E Grieves. £2781 W A Dinsdale & Son. £2530 £2064 I Marshall & Sons. £2444 £2402 W Walker & Sons. £2420 A & M J Henshaw. £2331 J F Harland. £2324 £2274 J E Holliday & Son. £2210 E Parsons. £2184 Jack Henshaw. £2137 G C & K J White & Son. £2110 £1985 A Crowder. £2090 A Sowray & Sons. £2074 Michael Sedman. £2050 £1980 £1898 C Harle & Sons. £1926 J Brearley. £1904 F Watson. £1878 D G & P D Ayre. £1871 G B Forster.
Stock Bulls Leading Gross – £4090 W A Wardman Ltd. £2403 E A & N Thompson & Son.
Breeding Cattle – A tidy gathering of breeding cattle attracted a plethora of ringside interest and a super trade as the Spring grass is now just weeks away. Most impressive were the fine run of in calf cows from D P Wood, Bridge End Farm, Thorpe Thewles which saw bidding reach at least £2000 on eleven occasions and top at £3100 for a smart 6-year-old Limousin. Top of the cows and calves was also a 6-year-old Limousin, this one with a tidy heifer calf at foot from C Harle & Sons, Brandon Hall sold for £3080. A nice run of Aberdeen Angus cows from Broom Mill Farms, High Hill House this week topped at £2000.
Cows In Calf – £3100 £2700 £2650 £2500 £2350 £2100(x2) £2080 £2000(x3) £1850 £1700 £1680 £1550 £1480 D P Wood.
Breeding Cows – £2000 £1980 £1780 £1700 £1620 £1550 Broom Mill Farms.
Cows & Calves – £3080 C Harle & Sons. £2850 £2300 £2200 £2150 £1900 J D Vipond. £2320 S & H Hodgson. £2320 £1920 £1900 £1880(x2) £1700 Broom Mill Farms.
Store Cattle – The spectacular store trade continues to bowl along at unprecedented levels, the splendid steers this week averaged £1688 with the hot heifers following in close attendance at £1597, all this with arguably a plainer show of quality on offer. Setting the bar highest today were a beautiful run of 21-23-month-old Limousin crosses from D W Dresser, Hall Farm as they produced steers to a top of £2520 and heifers to reach £2460, a quality quartet from this home averaged £2385. Mention must also go to some super sorts from A Newton, Tutta Beck who sold a 14-month-old Limousin steer at £2280 and a 16-month-old heifer at £2340. A brilliant British Blue heifer from B & J Bainbridge, Cockfield Hall impressed at £2380 whilst of the 12-month-old cattle special mention must go to A & A G Moralee, Lowfield Farm with Limousin steers to £2240 and £2080. A marvellous Limousin steer at just 8-months-old from D G & P D Ayre, Roger Moor sold for £1930 and a well grown yearling Charolais heifer from E Parsons, Newstead sold at £1950. An eclectic mix of young bulls this week were once again highly sought after, a higher proportion of native breeds amongst them saw the Hereford come out on top when Zac Housby of Peepy Farm sold a strong pair for £2120 apiece.
Young Bulls – £2120(x2) Zac Housby. £2010 D G & P D Ayre. £1900 £1810 £1800 £1780 I R Appleton. £1720 £1660 £1600 £1460 A Gregg. £1210 S & H Hodgson. £1180(x2) £1090(x2) Stanners Farm.
Store Steers – £2520 D W Dresser. £2280 £1860 A Newton. £2240(x2) £2080 A & A G Moralee. £2180 £2080 £2000 J G Wilkinson & Son. £2080(x2) £1810(x2) B J S Farms. £2000 I W Cairns. £1970 £1920 £1890 E Taylor & Son. £1930 £1840 D G & P D Ayre. £1900(x2) £1870(x2) D Walker. £1900 £1840(x2) W A Wardman Ltd. £1850 I R Appleton. £1840 R N Foord & Son. £1790 C H & M C Phalp. £1790 Beckwith.
Store Heifers – £2460 £2280(x2) D W Dresser. £2380 B & J Bainbridge. £2340 A Newton. £2200(x2) £2160 £1980 R L Walker. £2080 R Peart. £2030 £1960 E Taylor & Son. £2000 £1960 W & C Iceton. £1960 C N Whitaker. £1950 £1860 E Parsons. £1950(x4) £1880(x5) £1870 B J S Farms. £1940(x2) J G Wilkinson & Son. £1920 £1900 £1860 R Errington & Son. £1860(x3) R N Foord & Son. £1840(x2) S N Bird & Sons. £1830 J J Horn.
Store & Breeding Sheep – The ewe and lamb trade set of like lightning, with the grass cattle on fire its perhaps unsurprising that the sheep buyers were fighting fit. Top of the day was an exceptional three shear Beltex ewe with a pair of cracking lambs at foot from J R & J A Wharton, Segbushwell when she sold for £520; the Segbushwell supremos continued their good form as they also sold five Texel crossed shearlings with seven lambs at foot for £390 per family.
Despite reaching the stage where the spatula is scraping towards the bottom of the store hogg barrel the trade remains outstanding. Topping the day at £150 was a fine Texel hogg from C A & J Kipling, Stone Close; following at £149 was P A Stacey, Thorn Fields Close. Mule hoggs sold to a top of £119.50 from R Simpson & Sons, Temperance Farm whilst the ninety-four Swaledale’s averaged £75.52 to a top of £97 from R W Ridley, Tongue Hill.
Feeding ewes and rams were flying as we near the end of Ramadan, top price of £260 went to continental ewes from J & H M Jenkins, Low Grewburn whilst Mule ewes sold to a top of £166 from P Kirk, Stonehouse Cote.
Ewes & Lambs – £520 £390 J R & J A Wharton. £270 £250 £230 £220 £210 T & C Smith.
Store Hoggs
Continental – £150 C A & J Kipling. £149 P A Stacey. £140 G S Dixon. £137 £133 £115 C H & M Phalp. £129 R Simpson & Son. £111 £102 G Bolton £100 R Wade & Son.
Mule – £119.50 R Simpson & Sons. £104 R L Dent. £101 G S Dixon. £98 G Bolton
Swaledale – £97 £93 £72 £71 R W Ridley. £95 £80 R L Dent. £90 £73 R W Simpson & Sons.
Rearing Calves – The calf trade remains strong to see them average £407.75. Top call of the day was £690 paid for an excellent January born Aberdeen Angus bull calf from R Tookey & Son, South Side, Butterknowle. Following next was another Butterknowle based vendor when a smashing seven-week-old British Blue bull calf from G Thompson & Sons, Softley Farm sold for £670. Top of the heifer calves at £550 was a February born British Blue from H Gibb & Son, Eachwick Red House whilst in the black and white bull calves the top form of the Tookey’s continued selling one at £510 with three others at £500. See below the all-inclusive sale averages.
17x British Blue Bulls average £491
8x Aberdeen Angus Bulls average £463
4x Limousin Bulls average £448
12x Hereford Bulls average £440
3x Inra 95 Bulls average £440
23x Friesian Bulls average £341
2x Jersey Bulls average £50
7x British Blue Heifers average £455
3x Inra 95 Heifers average £411
6x Limousin Heifers average £390
15x Aberdeen Angus Heifers average £384
8x Hereford Heifers average £383
1x Brown Swiss Heifer average £260
Leading Prices
Aberdeen Angus Bulls – £690 R Tookey & Son. £600 £590 G Thompson & Sons. £385(x3) £335(x2) Baysleap Dairy Farm Ltd.
British Blue Bulls – £670 £645 G Thompson & Sons. £655(x2) £645 £620(x2) £505(x2) H Gibb & Son. £425 £405(x2) Deerness Valley Dairy.
Inra 95 Bulls – £540 £520 Kitchings of Summerfield. £440 J & A Stevenson & Sons.
Limousin Bulls – £530 £370 Brenjulin Farm. £505 £390 R W Raper & Sons.
Hereford Bulls – £520 £500(x4) £490(x2) £480 £450 John Archer.
Friesian Bulls – £510 £500(x3) R Tookey & Son. £440 £340 £295 R W Raper & Sons. £410(x4) £365 £280(x3) Deerness Valley Dairy. £320 G Thompson & Sons. £270 J & A Stevenson & Sons. £265(x2) Kitchings of Summerfield.
British Blue Heifers – £550 £480 H Gibb & Son. £510 £415(x2) £410(x2) Deerness Valley Dairy.
Limousin Heifers – £510 £440 £300 Brenjulin Farms. £390 £380 £320 R W Raper & Sons.
Aberdeen Angus Heifers – £500(x2) R Tookey & Son. £440 G Thompson & Sons. £435 H Gibb & Son. £390 Deerness Valley Dairy. £300 £295(x3) Baysleap Dairy Farm Ltd.
Inra 95 Heifers – £425 £400 Kitchings of Summerfield. £410 J & A Stevenson & Sons.
Hereford Heifers – £410(x3) £400 £370(x2) John Archer. £350(x2) Deerness Valley Dairy.
Brown Swiss Heifer – £260 J & A Stevenson & Sons.
