Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their weekly sale of cast cattle, store and breeding stock and their fortnightly sale of rearing calves on Monday 14th July 2025. Forward were 354 cattle and 78 calves.
66 Cast Cows/OTM sold to 336ppk or £2924
5 Stock Bulls sold to 306ppk or £3251
6 Cows & Calves sold to £2000
47 Young Bulls sold to 2080
64 Store Steers sold to £2420
160 Store Heifers sold to £2270
78 Rearing Calves sold to £860
Cast Cattle – The cow trade is a wow trade, reasonable numbers for the time of year continued last weeks flyer to average all included 271ppk and £1804 per head, a remarkable ninety pence per kilo up on the year. Topping the sale per kilo at 336 pence was a smart OTM Limousin heifer from H S Hutchinson, White House Farm; tidy OTM’s from E W Grieves, Oakdene at 334ppk and J P Phelan, Mill Pond Farm, Essex at 330ppk followed close behind. Top priced older cow per kilo was a Whitby world beater, a particularly smart British Blonde from J & C Barker, Greylands Farm sold for 327 pence, no less than four fabulous Limousin snapped at her heels reaching 326ppk which included our top gross valued cow at £2924 from T N Callender, Ox Eye Farm. Plenty of native breeds involved this week and very keenly bid for, top prices of £2192 went to a Beef Shorthorn from Clervaux Trust Ltd and 324ppk for a Galloway OTM from the aforementioned Essex based J P Phelan. Dairy cows next and a varied show met with a lively trade, the best return belonged to Messrs Beckwith, Brough Castle with a 9-year-old Dairy Shorthorn at £1708 and 272ppk. Finally, to the bulls and some fleshy lads around saw Charolais sell to 306ppk and £3154 from P Foster, Guisborough and Limousin to 298ppk and £3251 from J A Gilson, Heugh Farm not to mention Aberdeen Angus to £2621 from G E Raw, Toft Hill and Hereford to £2468 from Allison Devereux Farms, Low Harperley.
Cast Cows/OTM Leading PPK – 336 318 H S Hutchinson. 334 E W Grieves. 330 324 J P Phelan. 327 318 308 J & C Barker. 326 318 275 274 J A Gilson. 326(x2) 322 W Lodge & Sons. 326 302 T N Callender. 324 Crooks Alter Farming. 313 296 E R & G I Younger. 310 298 278 T W Clark & Son. 302 E A & N Thompson & Son. 288 J N Swinbank. 288 A Davison. 282 278 J Bennison. 280 Clervaux Trust Ltd. 280 Tallentire. 280 E & N Farms. 276 S & J Dent & Son. 275 D & P H Brown.
Stock Bulls Leading PPK – 306 P Foster. 298 J A Gilson. 254 G E Raw. 228 Beckwith. 220 Allison Devereux Farms.
Cast Cows/OTM Leading Gross – £2924 £2135 T N Callender. £2782 £2321 £2060 J A Gilson. £2702 E A & N Thompson & Son. £2693 £1993 £1862 T W Clark & Son. £2680 £2563 £2430 J & C Barker. £2401 E W Grieves. £2397 £1897 E R & G I Younger. £2211 £1867 A Davison. £2192 Clervaux Trust Ltd. £2149 £1970 D Clemitson. £2084 D & P H Brown. £1989 £1956 J P Phelan. £2054 £1920 W Lodge & Sons. £1976 Crooks Alter Farming.
Stock Bulls Leading Gross – £3251 J A Gilson. £3154 P Foster. £2621 G E Raw. £2468 Allison Devereux Farms. £1390 Beckwith.
Store Cattle – A remarkable 65% increase in numbers compared with the corresponding week last year; two reasons for this are most likely the excellent trade of late and the alarming lack of grazing in the region due to this unprecedented dry spell. The drought is beyond our control however the numbers we can accommodate and can certainly be handled with ease, a super trade materialised for all classes, wonderful returns in particular for the short keep cattle that can be housed and fed intensively straight away. Beginning with a barnstorming bull trade, pick of the pack were a fine pair of 14-month-old British Blondes from T W Brown & Sons, Brokes Farm which sold for £2080 and £2000.Strong Hereford bulls from A P Taylor, Ox Close Farm impressed with a top of £1960 whereas the boom for the baby beef was more than apparent when J A & U M Fawcett, Manor House sold a super run of 9-and-10-month-old Limousin bulls to top at £1890 to average £1620. The clean dream continues with a marvellous twenty-three over £2000 today, plaudits firstly go to D R Smith, East Roughlea who topped the steers at £2420 and heifers at £2270 with tidy 25-month-old Limousin’s. Three excellent 17-18-month-old Aberdeen Angus steers from N & A D Brass & Son, Ox Close Farm led the natives at £2380 whilst of the under-year cattle impressing again were the Fawcett’s of Manor Farm with nine smart Limousin heifers to a top of £1960 (average £1765) and six super steers from I Newton & Son, Gibbet Hill which topped at £1930 (average £1803).
Cows & Calves £2000 P Donnelly. £1880 M Radford. £1700 £1480 £1220 C Bewley.
Store Bulls £2080 £2000 TW Brown & Sons. £1960 £1840 AP Taylor. £1890×3 £1750×2 £1530×2 JA&UM Fawcett. £1710 £1700 £1530 DG Sayers. £1680×5 £1520 Wilkinson & Son. £1580 £1480 £1440 £1390 £1380×2 P Donnelly. £1390 TT Hall & Son. £1390 £1320×2 HG Lynus & Son.
Store Steers £2420 £2380 £2300 DR Smith. £2380×3 £1820 £1800×2 £1700 N&AD Brass & Son. £2320 L Booton. £2300 JE Holiday & Son. £2020 High Mains Partnership. £1990 £1740 £1600 P Tindale. £1930×2 £1830 £1800 £1730 £1600 I Newton & Son. £1820 JP Phelan. £1800×3 N&A Hunter. £1760 £1710 £1600 £1540×2 £1520×2 A Wilson. £1600 £1590 K&T Wilson. £1580×2 C&N Waters. £1540 G Bolton.
Store Heifers £2270 £2180 DR Smith. £2220 £1980 £1940 £1860×2 L Booton. £2200 J&C Barker. £2190 £2080 £1960 £1920 J Corner. £2160×2 S Clark. £2160 £2060 £2000×2 £1990×2 Wilkinson & Son. £2060×2 £1950×2 £1860 JJ Horn. £1990×6 £1870 N&AD Brass & Son. £1970 £1920×4 £1840×3 High Mains Partnership. £1960 JA&UM Fawcett. £1950 RB Farming Ltd. £1940 £1900 £1880×2 £1850 P Tindale. £1920×2 £1900×3 RB Farming Ltd.
Rearing Calves – The calf trade stays strong, as it should with the store cattle next door in fine form, week in, week out. This week a younger than usual offering with decidedly more pure dairy breeds averaged £473.91. Top of the day at £860 was an excellent 3-month-old British Blue bull calf from H M Dent, East Farm, the same good home followed at £830 and £810 as they proved to be the best of the bulls on the day. Hottest of the heifers was a suckler bred Limousin from B R Lowson, Podge Hole Farm when she sold for an impressive £820 at just a few days over 2-months-old.
Bull Calves:
British Blue £860 £830 £810 £640 £560 HM Dent. £680 £630 £550 £540 Miresdale Dairy Holding Ltd.
Parthenais £730 £560 £520 HM Dent.
Aberdeen Angus £700 JL Miles & Sons. £660 Miresdale Dairy Holding Ltd. £580 JE&MP Else. £330 ML Farming. £270 Kitchings of Summerfield.
Stabiliser £440 JE&MP Else.
Brown Swiss £435 JE&MP Else.
Hereford £380 JE&MP Else.
Inra 95 £610 £605 £590 £575×2 £560×2 £500 £460×2 Kitchings of Summerfield. £485 J&A Stevenson & Sons.
Charolais £600 JE&MP Else.
Simmental £580×2 £540 £520×2 £500×2 £460×3 £430×3 JE&MP Else.
Friesian £260×2 £230×2 £225 £220×2 SJ Kellett & Son. £165 J&A Stevenson & Sons.
Heifer Calves:
Limousin £820 B Lowson. £530 HS Hutchinson. £500 P Leese.
Inra 95 £610 £530 £480×2 Kitchings of Summerfield. £445 J&A Stevenson & Sons.
Angus £500 Miresdale Dairy Holding Ltd. £450 JL Miles & Sons. £375×2 £360×2 £240 ML Farming.
British Blue £400 ML Farming.
