Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their weekly sale of cast cattle and store stock on Monday 5th February 2024. Forward were 300 cattle and 829 sheep.
109 Cast Cows/OTM sold to 288ppk or £1959
5 Stock Bulls sold to 230ppk or £2108
26 Young Bulls sold to £1720
76 Store Steers sold to £2080
84 Store Heifers sold to £1660
605 Store Hoggs sold to £144
224 Feeding Ewes sold to £109
Cast Cattle – Up another gear goes the cow trade with a below par show of quality today on the whole averaging an impressive 184ppk and £1227 per head. Top per kilo at an excellent 288 pence was a smart empty bellied Limousin OTM heifer from B Watson, Baal Hill Farm, Wolsingham. Next mention goes to a stunning pure Limousin 37-month-old heifer from S & J Dent & Son, Great Burdon Farm at 274ppk, this super sort also claimed the top gross value for a female at £1959 on a day which saw some 39 Limousin cows average over 200 pence per kilo. Native breeds were topped by a fleshy Beef Shorthorn OTM heifer at 240ppk and £1725 from Messrs Tallentire, Cockfield and the same firm’s Beef Shorthorn’s also topped the stock bulls per kilo with a 33-month-old reaching 230ppk. Top of the stock bulls per head was a 1054kg 10-year-old Limousin from C H & M C Phalp, Great Ayton which sold for £2108 with an honourable mention well deserved for a super Belted Galloway bull from D Walker, High Woodifield Farm East which impressed at £1589. Thirty dairy cows left their clusters for a day at the mart this week and sold to extreme rates as the milk maids all in averaged 165ppk and £1120. Holstein Friesian OTM heifers twice sold to 228ppk as the buyers couldn’t split good sorts from G Thompson & Sons, Softley Farm and Reveley Farms, Lingdale; the Reveley Farms run also turned out the top gross valued dairy cow with an excellent 6-year-old at £1538.
Cast Cows/OTM Leading PPK – 288 B Watson. 274 236 S & J Dent & Son. 266 262 222 J Corner. 254 G K, K N & G J Hird. 240 Tallentire. 228 Reveley Farms. 228 220 G Thompson & Sons. 226 C W Jackson. 226 B Storey. 220 R Tookey & Son. 212 J W Chamley & Son. 212 200 W A Wardman Ltd. 210 B & B Kitching & Son. 210 206(x2) 200 R Mortimer. 200 Reed & Hill.
Stock Bulls Leading PPK – 230 Tallentire. 200 C H & M C Phalp. 172 D Walker. 152 C Newcomb.
Cast Cows/OTM Leading Gross – £1959 £1909 S & J Dent & Son. £1755 £1424 G K, K N & G J Hird. £1751 B Storey. £1725 Tallentire. £1538 £1525 Reveley Farms. £1523 E A & N Thompson & Son. £1523 B Watson. £1518 £1426 £1415 B & B Kitching & Son. £1502 £1492 £1426 £1412 W A Wardman Ltd. £1498 £1483 Reed & Hill. £1465 £1398 R Mortimer. £1405 G Thompson & Sons. £1393 Northfield Farms. £1388 J T Forster & Son.
Stock Bulls Leading Gross – £2108 C H & M C Phalp. £1589 D Walker. £1405 Tallentire. £1214 C Newcomb.
Store Cattle – The trade continues at a very fast pace as all shapes and sizes are in demand, the short keep sorts in particular today appeared the best sold. The young bulls set the sale away in the liveliest of fashions when a brilliant 12-month-old Limousin from Hughes Brothers Farms, Sockburn Hall stole the show and sold for £1720; seven of his 10–12-month-old pen mates followed the leader and sold over £1400. A wonderful 2-year-old Limousin steer from D W Dresser, Hall Farm, Greatham set the bar highest in the store cattle when he sold for £2080, three more from Hall Farm sailed beyond £1800. Best of this week’s heifers came from regular selling E Parsons of Newstead Farm, Little Stainton when a smart Simmental reached £1660.
Store Bulls- £1720 £1480 x3 £1460 £1440 £1400 x2 £1370 £1250 Hughes Bros Farms LTD. £1220 £1190 x2 £910 x2 WT Hall. £1180 £790 RN Foord & Son. £1090 CW Jackson. £865 £790 JD Teasdale. £805 GC Hubert.
Store Steers- £2080 £1890 £1840 £1830 DW Dresser. £1800 £1770 PRE Marwood. £1560 £1510 £1370 L&BM Kidd & Son. £1490 £1380 £1370 £1220 £1180 x2 £1160 £1150 x2 A Wilson. £1435 £1390 J&MJ Walton. £1425 x2 £1395 x2 £1370 £1355 x2 T Coulthard & Son. £1395 x2 £1295 x2 GW&M Singleton & Sons. £1370 DH Craig. £1290 £1185 x2 £1145 R&W Todd. £1285 £1195 x3 £1190 x2 £1190 P&S Wood. £1185 C&M Burnett. £1180 RI&MJ Murray.
Store Heifers- £1660 £1210 x2 £1200 x2 E Parsons. £1470 £1375 x2 £1305 LW Martin. £1430 £1380 JR&J Crowe. £1400 £1335 £1325 £1320 £1270 £1230 £1220 IW Cairns. £1300 C&M Burnett. £1290 £1265 x2 DM McClurg. £1285 £1190 £1165 x3 £1140 x3 £1100 x3 BJS Farms. £1190 £1170 x4 £1095 Leslie Brown. £1150 £1105 J&JW Kenney. £1150 B Watson. £1100 P&S Wood. £1060 x2 R&RE Everitt.
Store Sheep – Absolutely incredible, the dearest they have ever been, a rather ordinary show on the whole still somehow averaged £104. A super pair of Suffolk cross hoggs from the regular selling D R Smith, East Roughlea led the way when selling for £144 apiece, the same good home also topped the Beltex’s at £136 and the Mule’s with a pen of seventeen at £113. Northfield Farms topped the Texel’s at £134 whilst lower down the rankings the trade remained unprecedented with Cheviot’s to £124, Jacob’s to £100, Herdwick’s to £88 and horned hoggs sold frequently into the £70’s. An increased offering of feeding ewes this week as the scanners are now doing their thing, healthy straight ewes remained good to sell.
Store Hogg Leading Prices-
Suffolk- £144 DR Smith. £129 £97 D Alderson. £128 CE Smith. £122 Northfield Farms. £97 W Burton. £95 L Fowler.
Beltex- £136 £110 DR Smith. £134 £127 £126 £120 SA Braithwaite. £125 £121 £93 Northfield Farms. £122.50 Beckwith. £105 GS Dixon. £
Texel- £134 £133 £130 £118 Northfield Farms. £133 W Love LTD. £132 £127 £121 Beckwith. £127 £121 £119 DR Smith. £127 £119 CE Smith. £123 M&G Hodgson. £118 GS Dixon.
Cheviot- £124 S Beeforth. £97 GH&RG Stobbs.
Continental- £118 Barker Farming Partnership. £116 £84 Northfield Farms. £112 £93 x2 Dan Clark. £110 £109 Ivanhoe Livestock Partnership. £108 Beckwith. £101 GH&RG Stobbs. £100 £90 £78 A Rooke & Sons. £84 Chris Spence. £82 P falls.
Mule- £113 DR Smith. £103.50 £88 GS Dixon. £97 £95 GH&RG Stobbs. £95 x2 D Alderson. £89 SM Rigg.
Jacob- £100 EV Jones. £82 W Coatsworth.
Swale- £76 £70 SM Rigg.
Herdwick- £88 SM Rigg.
Store Ewes- £109 £85 £81 £75 S Beeforth. £106 £88 £76 W Burton. £104 £98 £93 £80 £78 £76 £70 A Rooke & Sons. £97 £86 £85 £74 Beckwith. £96 £90 £84 £72 R Bell. £95 £89 £74 Ivanhoe Livestock Partnership. £89 £70 TB Walton. £80 EV Jones. £79 S Hallam. £78 £76 Chris Spence. £76 Petch Farms.
