Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their weekly sale of prime stock on Thursday 8th June 2023. Forward were 164 cattle, 2085 sheep and 13 pigs.
43 Prime Bulls sold 319ppk or £2711
31 Prime Steers sold to 330ppk or £2319
90 Prime Heifers sold to 353ppk or £2157
1305 Prime Lambs sold to 390ppk or £182
458 Prime Hoggs sold to 310ppk or £140
322 Cast Ewes/Rams sold to £190
13 Prime Pigs sold to 165ppk or £135
Prime Bulls (43) – Poor numbers as the June haymakers are in full swing, trade for the best heavy bulls appeared strong with the lighter weights and leaner types perhaps a shade easier on the week leaving a sale average of 269ppk and £1825. Eight sold over 300 pence and thirteen beyond £2000, one bull topped both lists as a brilliant 850kg homebred Limousin from A C Simpson & Son, McNeil Farm sold for 319ppk and £2711. Another McNeil machine impressed at 316ppk and £2689 as did smart Limousin’s from S H Watson & Sons, Winston (317ppk), Messrs Renton, Morpeth (316ppk) and R W & R Henry, Worsall (£2457). A fine Fleckveih led the dairy breeds today when J K & C E Farming, Piercebridge sold a well-fed example for 265ppk and £1791. Below are some of the day’s top pen averages.
A C Simpson & Son, Witton-le-Wear sold 4 to average 311ppk and £2592
R W & R Henry, Worsall sold 3 to average 302ppk and £2340
Renton Highlaws, Morpeth sold 2 to average 302ppk and £2336
S H Watson & Son, Winston sold 3 to average 291ppk and £2007
J E Jordon & Son, Morpeth sold 2 to average 289ppk and £1889
Continental Bulls – Top prices ppk 319 316 312 298 AC Simpson & Son. 317 280 275 SH Watson & Son. 316 290 Renton Highlaws Ltd. 314 300 294 RW&R Henry. 300 265 JK&CE Farming. 294 290 284 JE Jordon & Son. 290 240 LS Staley. 284 267 258 JR Knox & Son. 279 Lupton. 273 265 248 C&M Atkinson & Sons. 265 260 JC&P Tallentire.
Lead Grossing Continental Bulls £2711 £2689 £2549 £2422 AC Simpson & Son. £2457 £2319 £2245 RW&R Henry. £2398 £2275 Renton Highlaws Ltd. £2266 £1940 £1815 SH Watson & Son. £2241 £1874 LS Staley. £2019 £1975 £1785 JR Knox & Son. £2009 £1940 £1718 JE Jordon & Son. £1953 £1791 JK&CE Farming. £1855 £1630 JC Tallentire. £1820 J Norman. £1685 31646 C&M Atkinson & Sons.
Friesian Bulls – Top prices ppk 234 228 225 R Hall & Son. 234 224 222 JK Gregory. 232 JK&CE Farming. 219 190 D Walker.
Lead Grossing Friesian Bulls £1525 £1345×2 R Hall & Son. £1464 £1374 £1346 JK Gregory. £1350 JK&CE Farming. £1145 D Walker.
Clean Cattle (121) – Dearer on the week as the live ring continues at quite some pace, heifers averaged 300ppk and steers 283ppk as the good old fashioned independent wholesale meat trade creates no waiting lists, enforces no weight caps, ensures that age is irrelevant and exposes farm assurance as a thoroughly spent force. Some 34 cattle sold over 320 pence per kilo, the top dozen heifers beyond 340ppk and a pair over 350ppk. Pick of the pack was the best from a quite superb run offered by regular sellers Robin and Imogen Hirst, Neasham Grange; a majestic 595kg Limousin heifer selling for 353 pence per kilo topped the sale with a plethora of stunning butcher’s heifers in her slipstream including W Swinbank & Sons, Caldwell at 350ppk and the consistent J V & J A Hodgson, Summerhouse at 349ppk. Top steer per kilo was also a Limousin, this one with meat in all the right places weighed 670kg and sold for 330 pence hailing from M J & E A Sedgewick, Long Myers Farm; just a penny behind came a handy weight 580kg Limousin from Commondale based L W Martin, Wayworth Farm. For those doubting their deadweight dictators please note that a third of our cattle sold over £1900 today, despite all four of the Sedgewick steers topping £2200 it was the in form I Marshall & Sons, Hope House Farm, Bishop Middleham who set the pace when a beautiful 727kg Limousin steer sold for £2319. Three of the top four gross valued heifers came from W Swinbank & Sons, Greystones, Caldwell with their best a 666kg Limousin selling for £2157, only the red-hot Hirst’s prevented a Swinbank sweep at the top of our gross value heifer leader board. See below some of the vendors on song today.
Steers
P R & V Barlow & Son, Nottinghamshire sold 2 to average 317ppk and £1971
I Marshall & Sons, Bishop Middleham sold 3 to average 301ppk and £2145
M J & E A Sedgewick, Durham sold 4 to average 298ppk and £2257
L W Martin, Commondale sold 3 to average 297ppk and £1873
Heifers
I Marshall & Sons, Bishop Middleham sold 5 to average 340ppk and £1955
R Hirst, Neasham sold 10 to average 336ppk and £1968
Askwiths, Crook sold 3 to average 333ppk and £1786
W Swinbank & Sons, Caldwell sold 5 to average 331ppk and £2052
P R & V Barlow & Son, Nottinghamshire sold 3 to average 319ppk and £1805
J V & J A Hodgson, Summerhouse sold 10 to average 318ppk and £1889
Steers – Top prices ppk 330 295 288 287 MJ&EA Sedgewick. 329 303 265 LW Martin. 319 296 290 I Marshall & Sons. 319 317 PR&V Barlow & Son. 315 300 299 263 250 DK Barker. 313 273 266 JM smith. 313 Askwiths. 311 G&JY Marshall. 305 W Swinbank & Sons. 254 K&MM Henderson. 243 J Norman. 240 237 A&MJ Henshaw.
Lead Grossing Steers £2319 £2184 £1931 I Marshall & Sons. £2318 £2256 £2243 £2211MJ&EA Sedgewick. £2133 £1808 PR&V Barlow & Son. £2100 £1717 £1699 JM Smith. £2002 £1998 £1974 £1921 £1910 DK Barker. £1911 £1908 £1799 LW Martin. £1859 Askwiths. £1762 W Swinbank & Sons. £1752 K&MM Henderson. £1625 J Norman. £1610 G&JY Marshall.
Heifers – Top prices ppk 353 346 345 344 341 339 337 333 315 314 R Hirst. 350 343 327 324 315 W Swinbank & Sons. 349 348 338 328×2 316 310 JV&JA Hodgson. 348 344 340 336 334 I Marshall & Sons. 339 336 324 Askwiths. 337 334 320 312 310 WF Hustwit. 334 300 MF Hall. 334 G&JY Marshall. 322×2 315 PR&V Barlow & Son. 312 311 C Binks & Son.
Lead Grossing Heifers £2157 £2147 £2131 £1997 W Swinbank & Sons. £2141 £2100 £1993 £1984 £1981 £1978 £1961 £1926 R Hirst. £2094 £2011 £1975 £1895 I Marshall & Sons. £1997×2 £1968 £1916 £1912 £1884 JV&JA Hodgson. £1987 £1977 £1897 WF Hustwit. £1970 MF Hall. £1909 £1892 A&MJ Henshaw. £1899 PR&V Barlow & Son. £1884 JM Smith. £1850 DK Barker.
New Season Lambs (1305) – A two tier show of quality and a slightly variable trade reflective of this, lambs are now appearing in numbers and trade nationally doing what it so often does in June; even the lighter and leaner types today may look very well sold during the coming weeks and months, if only we had a crystal ball. The best lambs still very keenly bid for and it was a resounding return to the top of our pence per kilo table for J C Simpson, Caldwell with the top six prices, fifty-eight of this excellent run today sold over 380 pence per kilo to a top of 390ppk with a pen of ten weighing 42kg. Heavy weights from Richard Bailes, Cole Hill Farm, Elwick led the gross values for the second week running when half a dozen 54kg Texel’s sold for £182, close behind twice selling at £179 came T W & P T Moss, Nottinghamshire on a day which still witnessed bidding go beyond £160 on 34 occasions (170 lambs). As always in Darlington all lambs weighed straight and with another new account in operation today more sheep are certainly sought after for next week’s sale.
Lambs – Top prices ppk 390×2 385 384 381 380 378 371 JC Simpson. 376 355 347 PJ Tindale. 373 348 340 337 I&A Holmes. 372 359 348 339 D&PH Brown. 368 364 352 348 343 W&M Knaggs & Son. 368 MW Cook & Son. 368 358 357 I Hedley. 367 359 356 352 340 JR&M Richardson. 366 W Simpson. 361 352 350 K&PM Lough. 358 P Stewart. 355 Thoresby Livestock. 350 342 340 337 Cole Hill Farm Ltd. 348 JR Knox & Son. 340 336 AWSM Farms. 340×2 M&A Gaskin. 339 AS&G Donaldson.
Lead Grossing Lambs £182 £175 £170×2 £168 Cole Hill Farm Ltd. £179×2 £155 TW&PT Moss. £178 £171 £169 £164×2 £160 £158 £156 JC Simpson. £173 £164 £158 D&PH Brown. £171 £168 £167 £165 £154 I Burn & Sons. £170 £164 £158×2 3155 JR&M Richardson. £169 Duell Partners. £168 £164 £160 £157 £155 I&A Holmes. £166 £153 W&M Knaggs & Son. £165 P Stewart. £165 £162 I Hedley. £160×3 PJ Tindale. £160×2 M&A Gaskin. £157 JR Knox & Son. £156 AWSM Farms.
Prime Hoggs (458) – Unsurprisingly prices were unable to match last week’s scorcher, thus said hoggs with plenty of flesh on their backs remain easy to sell. The consistent T N Callender of Ox Eye Farm once again topped per kilo with smart pens of 40kg Beltex twice selling for 310 pence, a quartet of 50kg Texel’s from M R Madrell, Whorlton proved the best per head selling for £140 apiece.
Hoggs – Top prices ppk 310×2 307 275 266 TN Callender. 287 269 250 RE&L Frank. 282 280 267 262 254×2 M Madrell. 280×2 277 262 238 TH Richardson & Son. 275 CH Tindale. 275 FM Martindale. 273 269 262 255 J Gilson. 272 JE Stobbs & Son. 272 268 J Butterfield & Son. 265 MW&M Skidmore. 263 GP&A Carter. 260 240 JL Gill & Son. 260 246 242 A Wilson. 254 P Stewart. 250 G Bolton. 250 P Douglas.
Lead Grossing Hoggs £140 £112 £110 £107×2 M Madrell. £138 £125 P Douglas. £132×2 £125 £120 RE&L Frank. £132×2 £113 TH Richardson & Son. £132 CH Tindale. £132 P&CM Graham. £130 £120 JL Gill & Son. £130 £111 A Wilson. £130 P Stewart. £130 £126 £120 J Butterfield & Son. £124×2 £120 £113 TN Callender. £124 J O Hare. £120 JE Stobbs & Son. £120 FM Martindale. £120 Barker Farming Partnership. £120 £118 C&M Atkinson & Sons.
Cast Ewes & Rams (322) – Another £110 plus sale average as ewe trade rumbles along nicely, with just two Thursday’s left now before Qurbani the old girls and boys are most likely best moved in the not-too-distant future. Top today at £190 was a hefty Texel tup from W & M Knaggs & Son, Sadberge, top of the ewes at £170 were a pair of Beltex from C H Tindale, Sherburn Hill. Heavy Mule ewes frequently North of £120 and very fleshy Swaledale ewes sold over £90.
Lead Grossing Cast Sheep – £190 £170 £150 £142 £140 £129 X2 W&M Knaggs & Son. £170 CH Tindale. £164 £122 AW Sanderson. £157 x2 £130 JC Simpson. £156 Cole Hill Farm LTD. £152 £128 TH Richardson & Son. £150 Barker Farming Partnership. £148 £125 CE Smith. £146 TN Callender. £145 £131 P&CM Graham. £143 £134 G Horner. £142 D&PH Brown. £140 £135 £130 x2 £126 BR&R Routledge. £140 £128 I Hedley. £138 £123 W Kirk & Sons. £136 £135 £125 £124 JR&M Richardson. £134 P Douglas. £132 F Johnson. £131 £129 I&A Holmes. £131 PJ Tindale. £130 £128 Anna Herbert. £129 F Kearton. £124 F Myers & Sons. £123 JS Wiper. £123 B&SM Rutherford & Son.
Prime Pigs (13) – A slight setback on our quest to become the biggest and best pig market in Western Europe, astoundingly only one vendor came forward. Following the store pig trade on Monday this week we had sincerely hoped that the proverbial pig floodgates would now open.
Pigs – Top prices ppk 165 135 J Mitchell & Son.
Lead Grossing Pigs £135 £113 J Mitchell & Son.
