Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their weekly sale of prime stock on Thursday 30th October 2025. Forward were 216 cattle and 1560 sheep.
79 Prime Bulls sold to 435ppk or £3514
41 Prime Steers sold to 459ppk or £3346
96 Prime Heifers sold to 497ppk or £3155
1411 Prime Lambs sold to 418ppk or £208
149 Cast Ewes/Rams sold to £284
Prime Bulls (79) – Less weight offered than usual met with a sharper trade to see the pence per kilo average lift to 378 whilst the pounds per head average actually fell due to the lighter types forward to £2588. The top twenty all sold at 400ppk or more, of these seven sold in the 320’s and our terrific top two reached the 330’s per kilo. The two at the top were both excellent Limousin bulls from WM Fleming, Moss Tower, Kelso; a cracker at 717kg sold for 435ppk and was duly followed by his 751kg compatriot at 430ppk. Just eight bulls forward over 800kg this week yet still fifteen found their way over £3000. Top spot went to Durham based TW Clark & Son, Frankland Farm with a well finished 883kg Limousin at £3514, the flying Fleming’s followed at £3493. The native breeds were led today by another raider from across the border as the smart Beef Shorthorn’s of Stephen Allardyce, East Town, Tarland sold to highs of 370ppk and £2811. Just a few Friesians forward also found a sharper trade on the week, the best of them at 330ppk and £2151 came from EA Martin & Son, Manor Grange. Some of the top averages are listed below.
WM Fleming sold 5 averaged 427ppk
GK, KN & GJ Hird sold 3 averaged 418ppk
LS Staley sold 2 averaged 414ppk
M & G Chantrell Ltd sold 12 averaged 399ppk
TW Clark & Son sold 3 averaged 399ppk
TW Clark & Son sold 3 averaged £3334
WM Fleming sold 5 averaged £3248
SH Watson & Son sold 2 averaged £3207
LS Staley sold 2 averaged £3196
GW Dobson & Son sold 2 averaged £3113
Continental Bulls – Top prices ppk 435 430 428 424 420 WM Fleming. 428 422 405 GK KN & GJ Hird. 421 409 LS Staley. 421 398 TW Clark & Son. 417 GC&KJ White & Son. 414 412 411 410×2 403 396 395 390×2 M&G Chantrell Ltd. 410 Messrs R Miller. 400 FW Hodgson & Son. 392 388 GW Dobson & son. 390 S Allardyce. 387 376 SH Watson & Son. 386 C Binks & Son. 386 EA Martin & Son. 384 HW&J Birkbeck.
Lead Grossing Continental Bulls £3514 £3403 £3085 TW Clark & Son. £3493 £3244 £3229 £3158 £3118 WM Fleming. £3357 £3057 SH Watson & Son. £3290 £2936 GW Dobson & Son. £3215 GC&KJ White & Son. £3198 £3195 LS Staley. £3086 £2995 £2916 £2843 £2834 S Allardyce. £2907 GK KN & GJ Hird. £2884 JK&CE Farming. £2884 JK&CE Farming. £2853 £2768 FW Hodgson & Son. £2798 EA Martin & Son.
Native Bulls – Top prices ppk 370 363 362 360 353 352 328 S Allardyce. 352 335 330 MA&PD Foster. 347 GS Dowson. 342 JA&A Herbert.
Lead Grossing Native Bulls £2811 £2619 £2573 £2533 £2407 £2322 £1995 S Allardyce. £2220 £2200 £2102 MA&PD Foster. £2033 GS Dowson. £1945 JA&A Herbert.
Friesian Bulls – Top prices ppk 330 EA Martin & Son. 323 GS Dowson. 307 JK&CE Farming.
Lead Grossing Friesian Bulls £2151 EA Martin. £1983 JK&CE Farming. £1666 GS Dowson.
Clean Cattle (137) – Not the scintillating scenes of last week however trade still looks very solid indeed and very much on par with a fortnight ago to see the heifers average 428ppk and £2586 whilst the steers levelled up at 408ppk and £2661. Nobody quite reached the dizzy heights of last weeks five hundred pence quintet, short by a whisker as three heifers made the 490’s, three more in the 480’s and the next half dozen sold in the 470’s. Top of the pops at 497ppk was an excellent 570kg Limousin from JV & JA Hodgson, The Grange, Summerhouse; following the leader over the line at 491ppk and 492ppk were a cracking pair of Limousin’s from the in-form WM Fleming, Moss Tower, Kelso. Steers topped twice at 459ppk as a super sort from the consistent Five Houses joined a cracking Limousin from Taylor Bros Ltd, Belle Isle on a day which saw twenty-four of the forty-one steers surpass 400 pence per kilo. Gross values look impressive again with the top fifteen cattle all sailing beyond £3000; the top spot went to a thumping 890kg Limousin steer from Messrs R Miller Ltd, Arkleby Hall when he sold for £3346. More artistry from Arkleby followed with steers at £3160 and £3121 whilst the top heifer was a beautiful 709kg Limousin from AC Simpson & Son, McNeil Farm at an impressive £3155.
Clean Cattle- PPK Top Averages
WM Fleming sold 5 (610kg) Average 471ppk
R Hirst sold 8 (581kg) Average 465ppk
MF Hall sold 2 (577kg) Average 462ppk
JV&JA Hodgson sold 9 (610kg) Average 447ppk
W Miller sold 5 (552kg) Average 445ppk
Clean Cattle- Lead Grossing Top Averages
Messrs R Miller Ltd sold 8 (801kg) Average £3082
AC Simpson & Son sold 3 (654kg) Average £2883
WM Fleming sold 5 (610kg) Average £2876
P Langstaff sold 4 (681kg) Average £2823
Askwiths sold 4 (657kg) Average £2771
Steers – Top prices ppk 459 435×2 434 Taylor Bros. 459 457 444 434 424 408 402 Five Houses. 434 426 416 411 Askwiths. 433 411 399 Messrs R Miller. 430 405 398 A Crowder. 418 HW&J Birkbeck. 422 420 418 410 404×2 399 397 M&G Chantrell Ltd. 395 394 JR&B Anderson & Son. 378 Messrs R Miller.
Lead Grossing Steers £3346 £3160 £3121 £3082 £3016 £3004 £2963 £2961 Messrs R Miller. £3107 £2988 £2783 £2712 £2582 Five Houses. £3076 £2693 £2657 A Crowder. £3072 HW&J Birkbeck. £2895 £2838 £2724 £2628 Askwiths. £2689 K&HJ Fawcett. £2657 £2531 £2521 £2492 Taylor Bros. £2490 JR&B Anderson & Son. £2464 32404 £2394 £2351 M&G Chantrell Ltd.
Heifers – Top prices ppk 497 480 476 454 443 433 JV&JA Hodgson. 492 491 472 464 WM Fleming. 489 MF Hall. 488 476 474 468×2 465 443 440 R Hirst. 478 464 448 447 438 PJ&MP Gilhespy. 474 448 W Miller. 457 448 444 W Swinbank & Sons. 456 450×2 440 P&N Tattersall. 449 P&JH Davison. 448 440 439 Five Houses. 448 JE Suddes & Son. 447 445 AC Simpson & Son. 444 439 438 M&G Chantrell. 438 P Langstaff.
Lead Grossing Heifers- £3155 £2756 £2740 AC Simpson & Son. £3085 £2823 £2764 £2665 W Swinbank & Sons. £3055 £3024 £2940 £2909 WM Fleming. £3051 MF Hall. 3039 £2991 £2637 P Langstaff. £2888 £2870 £2768 £2751 £2648 R Hirst. £2853 £2663 NE Dyson. £2836 £2832 £2742 JV&JA Hodgson. £2801 £2723 £2638 PJ&MP Gilhespy. £2765 Anthony Swinbank. £2747 P&JH Davison. £2741 £2638 Five Houses. £2668 W Miller. £2662 £2661 £2639 JE Suddes & Son. £2657 Stephen Allardyce. £2655 P&N Tattersall.
Prime Lambs (1411) – Happy Halloween says the lamb trade, the export (38-45kg) lambs in particular chose flight not fright and jumped some £15 to £18 per head. The sale averaged a weighed straight 331ppk with an SQQ of 345ppk which equated to £154.73 per head. Top per kilo at 418 pence was a sweet 38kg Beltex lamb from AWSM Farms, Hutton Magna; further Beltex followed at 408ppk from CH & MC Phalp, Aireyholme and 400ppk from R Atkinson, High Greenbury. Stacks of the best-bred lambs followed 350-380ppk as the lively lambs finished October with a flourish. Top price per head at £208 went to an enormous 68kg pet lamb from Charlie and Heidi Marshall of Hope House Farm, Bishop Middleham. Next in line at £203 were a smart trio of 54kg Texel’s from Anna Herbert, West Shaws followed by a 58kg Beltex from GP & A Carter, Woodlands Close at £201. Plenty of the best bred and best fed lambs traded this week between £170 and £200 however the biggest lift was certainly apparent for the commercial 38-45kg lambs out of Mules which traded £135 to £155 throughout the sale.
Lambs- Lead Grossing Top Averages
Anna Herbert sold 8 (55kg) Average £197
I Marshall & Sons sold 11 (63kg) Average £189
M&A Gaskin sold 50 (52kg) Average £170
D&PH Brown sold 16 (53kg) Average £169
J&S Barnes sold 23 (46kg) Average £167
Lambs- PPK Top Averages
R Atkinson sold 93 (43kg) 372ppk
J&S Barnes sold 23 (46kg) 360ppk
CH&MC Phalp sold 47 (42kg) Average 355ppk
Anna Herbert sold 8 (55kg) Average 355ppk
GP&A Carter sold 30 (41kg) Average 351ppk
Lead Grossing Lambs- £208 £192 £175 I Marshall & Sons. £203 £200 £186 Anna Herbert. £201 GP&A Carter. £198 Ruby Thompson. £198 £173 JE Suddes & Son. £192 AS&AJ Horner. £191 £176 £174 £170 D&PH Brown. £187 £186 £173 £171 J&S Barnes. £184 £170 x2 JN Brown & Son. £181 £167 PR&V Barlow & Son. £180 AR EE & JS Davison. £180 £175 £170 R Wood & Son. £180 £170 M&A Gaskin. £178 JK Gill & Son. £177 £170 £169.50 K Hall. £173 x2 £168 G Thompson & Sons. £171 £170 JC Thwaite & Son. £170 TA Greensit & Sons. £170 R Atkinson. £170 £167 GW Whittington Livestock. £170 W Ramsay & Sons. £169 £167 CK&D Muir Ltd. £168 W Denham. £167 LW Martin. £167 Double O Livestock.
Lambs- Top Prices PPK 418 362 354 352 348 347 AWSM Farms. 408 382 372 354 x2 CH&MC Phalp. 400 377 376 369 x2 360 R Atkinson. 381 377 372 351 J&S Barnes. 377 375 Anna Herbert. 376 AS&AJ Horner. 372 357 Double O Livestock. 367 R Wood & Son. 362 TA Greensit & Sons. 362 361 W Ramsay & Sons. 362 355 CK&D Muir Ltd. 361 351 GP&A Carter. 360 Reay & Walton. 357 350 W Denham. 355 LW Martin. 353 D&PH Brown. 353 Ruby Thompson. 353 D Richardson & Co Ltd. 353 347 K Hall. 353 G Thompson & Sons. 351 JC Thwaite & Son. 350 AW Sanderson. 348 PR&V Barlow & Son. 347 AR EE &JS Davison. 347 GW Whittington Livestock.
Cast Ewes/Rams (149) – Fit ewes in demand as the mutton trade tries it’s best to emulate the increasing lamb prices to all in average £142.10 this week. Top of the tree were a trio of tidy Beltex from W Ramsay & Son, Blakeley Hill which sold for £284 per head. Several other vendors followed £200 and above. A good day for the Appleton family of Pudding Poke Farm as father Ian topped the Mule ewes with a pen of five at £179 and daughter Rebecca led the horned ewe trade with three fit Blackface at £131.
Lead Grossing Cast Sheep £284 £180 W Ramsay & Sons. £233 £215 £181 £169 £166 MF Hall. £217 £211 £153 D&PH Brown. £200 £192 £191 £186 £160 PR&V Barlow. £196 £166 £159 £141 K&PM Lough. £191 £179 IR Appleton. £156 £151 CK&D Muir Ltd. £155 £151 £140×2 WL Robinson & Partners. £150 Carr & Smith. £150 WR Thompson. £140 £120 A Hall & Son. £131 R Appleton. £130 JC Thwaite.
