Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their opening sale of store lambs in conjunction with their weekly sale of cast, store and breeding cattle on Monday 22nd July 2024. Forward were 260 cattle and 324 sheep.
51 Cast Cows/OTM sold to 298ppk or £2137
2 Stock Bulls sold to 198ppk or £2136
1 Cow & Calf sold for £1400
19 Stirks sold to £700
18 Young Bulls sold to £1250
62 Store Steers sold to £1570
106 Store Heifers sold to £1780
324 Store Sheep sold to £139
Cast Cattle – Trade set away sharp and if anything improved along the way to see the all in average reach a remarkable 200 pence per kilo and £1329 per head. British Blonde’s from P Weightman & Sons, Hallfield Farm, Easington blew away the competition when selling an OTM heifer for 298ppk and £2121 and also a fabulous 7-year-old cow for 248ppk and £2137. Excellent OTM heifers from M Shaw, Ness Farm (Limousin 280ppk) and G & J H Tomlinson & Son (Aberdeen Angus 274ppk & £1775) proved to be the pick of the other beef breeds. Only half a dozen parlour dwellers forward today, the Holstein Friesians came out on top selling to 204ppk and £1062 from Stainton Hill Farms, Streatlam whereas the stock bull trade belonged to a 9-year-old Limousin from Reed & Hill, Riding Mill which sold for 198ppk and £2136.
Cast Cows/OTM Leading PPK – 298 248 P Weightman & Sons. 280 216 M Shaw. 274 234 222 G & J H Tomlinson & Son. 258 J J Horn. 232 Mayfield Beef Shorthorns. 228 D R Smith. 228 Forster Hall & Sons. 226 220 M W Reed. 222 216 C G & K J White & Son. 222 J N Swinbank. 218 214 212 210(x2) A Wilson. 216 H E Jewitt. 214 J Bennison. 210 Duell Partners.
Stock Bulls Leading PPK – 198 Reed & Hill. 146 Reveley Farms.
Cast Cows/OTM Leading Gross – £2137 £2121 P Weightman & Sons. £1775 £1542 £1385 G & J H Tomlinson & Son. £1699 £1507 Forster Hall & Sons. £1647 M W Reed. £1617 J J Horn. £1584 £1536 £1396 Stevens & Son. £1549 £1535 £1489 £1388 £1369 £1335 A Wilson. £1511 £1422 J N Swinbank. £1499 £1311 G Anderson. £1457 Duell Partners. £1440 M Shaw. £1386 J Bennison.
Stock Bulls Leading Gross – £2136 Reed & Hill. £1722 Reveley Farms.
Store Cattle – No real signs of a let up in the store trade as all classes remain in demand. A tidy run of 4-6-month-old Limousin stirks from Patricia Sobota kicked off proceedings and found healthy interest to see both steers and heifers top at £700 with the whole packet averaging £634. A pen of three dairy crossed British Blue’s from J K Gregory, Porch House Farm, Hett Village topped the young bulls selling for £1250 with the same good home then selling their second trio at £1185. A superb show of heifers this week averaged an impressive £1276 whilst the steers levelled at £1182. Top of the shop this week were a brilliant run of strong heifers from A Wilson, Calf Close Farm, Easington with no less than ten from the packet selling over £1500 and the top pair (29-month-old British Blue’s) selling for a fantastic £1780 apiece. Top of the steers today at £1570 came a smart Aberdeen Angus cross from M H Hodgson, East Greystones, three other steers followed closely including two more from East Greystones and a tidy Limousin from G S Bainbridge, Ketton Lodge whilst mention must be made of some strong Friesian steers from W Walker & Sons, High Copelaw which topped at £1430.
Cow & Calf – £1400 K Mitchelson.
Stirks – £700(x4) £680 £660(x3) £650(x2) £630 £620(x2) £610 £600 £595 £570 £520(x2) Patricia Sobota.
Young Bulls – £1250(x3) £1185(x3) J K Gregory. £1030(x2) £900 £860 £710 H E Jewitt. £825 S G Hall. £670 £660 Pear Tree Projects.
Store Steers – £1570 £1530(x2) M H Hodgson. £1550 £1490 £1410 £1370 £1310 G S Bainbridge. £1470 J Bennison. £1460 £1365 A Wilson. £1430 £1390(x2) W Walker & Sons. £1360 W A Wardman Ltd. £1300 £1295 £1250(x2) £1240 £1230(x2) C B Maddison. £1300 J N Swinbank. £1240(x3) £1225(x2) B J S Farms. £1200 G W & M Singleton & Sons.
Store Heifers – £1780(x2) £1660(x2) £1580(x3) £1545(x2) £1475(x5) A Wilson. £1600 £1560 £1440 £1390 W A Wardman Ltd. £1580 D R Smith. £1570 £1500 J & F Hartley & Sons. £1540 £1420 £1395 G S Bainbridge. £1520 £1500 G W & L Marsay. £1520 Duell Partners. £1450(x3) N B & R Hird. £1375(x4) Wilkinson & Son. £1375 D R Smith.
Store Lambs – Off we go for the 2024 crop and the lambs made a blistering start to average £104.02 compared to £80.30 at the same sale last year. Six super Texel’s from G H Lister, Holebeck House, Wolsingham set the pace when they sold for £139, the same good home sold a pen of eleven at £132 which was duly matched by another Wolsingham consignor Mr S Pybourne with twenty Texels out of Mule ewes. Plenty of the stronger end sold well up and over £100 with the smaller runners typically £85 to £100; stacks of interest ringside with grass seemingly abundant, plenty of buyers bring about flyers.
Texel – £139 £132 £120 G H Lister. £132 £124 S Pybourne. £126 £115 £110 £108 L J Daley. £125 S & D Ferrie. £109 D Alderson. £104.50 £90 D W Ewin. £94 £90 T & C Smith. £90 Foxton Livestock.
Suffolk – £126 £104 L J Daley. £94 £88 T & C Smith.
Continental – £123 £108 £99.50 J Wigham. £108 M Radford. £99 £97 D Alderson. £88 D W Ewin.
Charollais – £113 S & D Ferrie.
Cheviot – £111.50 S & D Ferrie.
Dutch Spotted Texel – £103 M Radford.
Feeding Ewe – £111 L J Daley.
