Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their weekly sale of prime stock on Thursday 7th September 2023. Forward were 163 cattle, 2269 sheep and 11 pigs.
73 Prime Bulls sold to 321ppk or £2615
14 Prime Steers sold to 317ppk or £2028
76 Prime Heifers sold to 365ppk or £2200
1879 Prime Lambs sold to 386ppk or £174
390 Cast Ewes & Rams sold to £200
11 Prime Pigs sold to 205ppk or £159
Prime Bulls (73) – Another good week in the bull ring, a plainer bottom end but still a healthy sale average of 263ppk and over £1800. Setting the pace per kilo today were the regular selling A G Watson & Sons, Nunstainton Grange when they topped at 321 pence with an excellent 702kg Limousin; a further six bulls sold over 300 pence per kilo. Way out ahead on the gross value front was a thumping British Blonde from F & J S Gargett, Westwick Farm when the 19-month-old weighing 934kg sold for a wonderful £2615; an amazing twenty-eight other bulls sold over £2000. Friesian feeders R Hall & Son of Kilton Hall again led the way topping at 230ppk and £1423 whilst the native breed winners were Herefords from W & R Kemp & Son, Wigdon Walls Farm at 245ppk and £1602.
Below as always are some of the leading pen averages.
Rochester & Murray, Butsfield sold 2 to average 300ppk or £2206
GK, KN & GJ Hird, Whashton sold 2 to average 299ppk and £1998
JH & M & NW Brown, Darlington sold 2 to average 299ppk and £1982
AG Watson & Sons, Rushyford sold 8 to average 289ppk and £2178
LR Welsh & Co, Spennymoor sold 4 to average 286ppk and £2033
F & JS Gargett, Barnard Castle sold 3 to average 281ppk and £2269
LS Staley, Marwood sold 2 to average 281ppk and £2166
Continental Bulls – Top prices ppk 321 309 289×2 282 279 277 273 AG Watson & Sons. 313 288 JH&M&NW Brown. 312 300 285 GK KN & GJ Hird. 310 296×2 LR Welsh & Co. 306 296 Rochester & Murray. 298 JJ Horn. 295 280 272 F&JS Gargett. 289 284 275 265 GA Swinbank. 283 281 LS Staley. 282 LW Martin. 281 WJ&AS Bowes & Sons. 278×2 274 D Richardson & Co Ltd. 267 JE&B Morgan & Sons.
Lead Grossing Continental Bulls £2615 £2113 £2079 F&JS Gargett. £2337 £1963 WJ&AS Bowes & Sons. £2285 £2271 £2253 £2213 £2187 £2115 £2074 AG Watson & Sons. £2284 £2169 £2054 LR Welsh & Co. £2261 JJ Horn. £2230 £2181 Rochester & Murray. £2218 £2146 £2135 £2136 £2087 D Richardson & Co Ltd. £2211 £2122 LS Staley. £2121 £1974 £1900 GK KN & GJ Hird. £2069 TF Bothroyd & Son. £2049 £2035 GA Swinbank
Friesian Bulls – Top prices ppk 230 R Hall & Son. 221 214 205 199 HM&JS Hutchinson. 219 217 GW Dobson & Son.
Lead Grossing Friesian Bulls £1423 R Hall & Son. £1412 £1357 GW Dobson & Son. £1272 £1185 HM&JS Hutchinson.
Native Bulls – Top prices ppk 245 244 233 W&R Kemp & Son. 233×2 222 JK Gregory. 232 224 GS Dowson.
Lead Grossing Native Bulls £1602 £1540 £1446 WR Kemp & Son. £1286 £1279 JK Gregory. £1245 £1209 GS Dowson.
Clean Cattle (87) – Wow, what a trade the clean beef was this week, the heifers averaged 304ppk and the steers 293ppk, the sellers of the best butcher’s shop cattle achieved some flabbergasting returns along the way. Top of the shop at 365 pence per kilo was DfAM stalwart Brian Walker of Birch Springs Farm with a superb 532kg Limousin heifer selling to H Taylor & Sons, Darlington. A red-hot run from the Hirst’s of Neasham Grange claimed a silver medal at 360ppk with the bronze at 359ppk going to the pick of a high-quality pen from N L Dalton, High Stanghow. The steers twice topped at 317ppk as another from the Dalton’s matched the price set by local producers J H & M & N W Brown, West Hartburn Farm. With the cattle from the East in fine form today it was duly they who led the gross values; the on-song Dalton’s of Stanghow led the steer trade at £2028 and the top heifer, a 677kg British Blue, hailed from W Lewis & Sons, Kettleness Farm at a terrific £2200. A further dozen heifers sold over £2000 with the impeccable feeding we see so often from the Hirst’s and the Hodgson’s responsible for nine of the twelve. Some mind-blowing averages are listed below with three vendors all the top side of 340 pence.
Heifers
R Hirst, Neasham sold 10 to average 346ppk and £1961
B Walker, Dalton-on-Tees sold 3 to average 345ppk and £1917
NL Dalton, Saltburn sold 3 to average 340ppk and £1896
WJ Smith & Partners, Richmond sold 2 to average 326ppk and £1789
A Crowder, Butsfield sold 2 to average 315ppk and £1839
P & N Tattersall, York sold 5 to average 315ppk and £1654
JV & JA Hodgson, Summerhouse sold 12 to average 311ppk and £1920
MF Hall, Ponteland sold 6 to average 311ppk and £1860
Steers
JH & M & NW Brown, Darlington sold 2 to average 312ppk and £1900
WJ Smith & Partners, Richmond sold 2 to average 302ppk and £1645
NL Dalton, Saltburn sold 3 to average 301ppk and £1695
A Crowder, Butsfield sold 2 to average 296ppk and £1915
Steers – Top prices ppk 317 308 JH&M&NW Brown. 317 311 NL Dalton. 309 A Crowder. 309 282 AC&CA Stanwix. 305 MF Hall. 304 301 WJ Smith & Partners.
Lead Grossing Steers £2028 £1791 NL Dalton. £1968 £1832 JH&M&NW Brown. £1949 £1881 A Crowder. £1931 £1655 A&CA Stanwix. £1788 £1704 MF Hall. £1650 £1640 WJ Smith & Partners.
Heifers – Top prices ppk 365 357 315 B Walker. 360 355×2 354 349 345×2 343×2 R Hirst. 359 340 324 NL Dalton. 347 343 336 327 320 311 310 308 304 JV&JA Hodgson. 347 341 329 MF Hall. 341 325 FW Hodgson & Son. 337 316 WJ Smith & Partners. 326 319 318 310 306 P&N Tattersall. 325 W Lewis & Sons. 321 SH Watson & Son. 318 313 A Crowder. 313 309 305 WF Hustwit. 304 GH Farms Ltd. 302 Askwiths.
Lead Grossing Heifers £2200 W Lewis & Sons. £2137 £2113 £2066 £2063 £2025 £2002 £1954 £1914 £1886 JV&JA Hodgson. £2127 £2070 £2034 £1994 £1992 £1980 £1971 £1941 R Hirst. £2097 £1971 £1842 MF Hall. £2034 £1926 £1855 FW Hodgson & Son. £2002 £1941 £1808 B Walker. £1972 J Richmond. £1937 £1910 £1841 NL Dalton. £1870 £1863 WF Hustwit. £1840 £1838 A Crowder. £1840 WJ Smith & Partners. £1836 SH Watson & Son.
Prime Lambs (1879) – The best fed and best-bred lambs up easily £10-£12 on the week, a much leaner and plainer show for the large part left todays straight weighed average of 256ppk not even telling half the story as the creep feeder created a monumental divide throughout the sale. George and Richard Whittington of Railway View Farm produced the lamb of the day, an absolute barrel of a Beltex weighing 45kg which sold for £174 (386ppk). Ricky Alder of Ponteland went closest with a well shepherded 54kg Charollais selling for £172 whilst a magical run of thirty-nine thumping Aberfield crosses from Martin Gaskin, Eggleston averaged a stunning £154. Closest to the Whittington wonder lamb in the pence per kilo race were Wolsingham’s Ken Lough and the regular selling Davies family of Lough House Farm, Bolam. Special thanks must today go to Helen Hodgson of Dyke Nook Farm today who kidly donated a lamb to R.A.B.I.
Lambs – Top prices ppk 386 314 G Whittington. 344 321 316 K&PM Lough. 341 304 HT Davies & Partners. 334 306 291 W.K M.M Lamb. 331 302×2 F&JS Gargett. 329 318 MF Hall. 328 297 PJ Tindale. 324 309 AS&G Donaldson. 322 319 304 300 M&A Gaskin. 320 293 Ritchie Bland Estates. 319 W Wearmouth & Son. 318 311 309 306 JR&M Richardson. 315 312 F Hare & Sons. 314 J Curry. 311 J Pallister & Sons. 310 309×2 295 JA&A Herbert. 309 P&CM Graham. 306 JE Stobbs. 302 299 294 FP&IM Jefferson. 302 MW&M Skidmore.
Lead Grossing Lambs £174 G Whittington. £172 £145 £136 MF Hall. £164.50 £158 £156 £150 £147 M&A Gaskin. £162 £155 £148 K&PM Lough. £159 £153 £152.50 £147 £144.50 £136×2 FP&IM Jefferson. £155 £133×2 £130×2 JA&A Herbert. £150 £147 £131 W.K M.M Lamb. £149.50 J Pallister & Sons. £149 £139 F&JS Gargett. £149 £145 JR Knox & Son. £147 £139 W Wearmouth & Son. £145 F Hare & Sons. £144 Ritchie Bland Estates. £140 HT Davies & Partners. £140 £139 £137 JR&M Richardson.
Ewes & Rams (390) – Here come the hill dwellers with over a third today horned ewes. Continental ewes and Suffolk’s probably dearer on the week whilst the others remained a similar trade. Pick of the pack by a distance were two terrific Texel’s from one of our regular travelled vendors P R Weaver, Nottinghamshire; the same good home also topped the tups at £152. Straight Mule ewes regularly £70-£90 with odd exceptions beyond with horned ewes topping at £55 for a pen of thirty stretchy Scotch Blackface.
Lead Grossing Cast sheep £200 £152 £146 £108 PR Weaver. £150 GP Addison. £146 £127 EW Grieves. £140×2 £130 £105 HT Davies & Partners. £130 £120 £112 £110 MF Hall. £130 £106 CM Rushby. £125×2 F Hare & Sons. £124 £122 £120 TH Richardson & Son. £122 £120 JR&M Richardson. £120×2 E Scott & Sons. £120 £112 JA&A Herbert. £120 £112 £110 SM Donaldson. £118×3 £109 E Cruddas & Son. £112 JR Mann. £110 Rebecca Appleton.
Prime Pigs (11) – As the unexpected Indian summer drags the barbeques out of the garden sheds across the nation our sausage flavoured favourites have gone dearer again.
Pigs – Top prices ppk 205 175 J Mitchell & Son.
Lead Grossing Pigs £159 £136 J Mitchell & Son.
