Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their weekly sale of prime stock on Thursday 3rd November 2022. Forward were 172 Cattle, 2149 Sheep and 17 Pigs.
67 Prime Bulls sold to 285ppk or £2314
23 Prime Steers sold to 314ppk or £1896
76 Prime Heifers sold to 324ppk or £2176
6 Cast Cows sold to 243ppk or £1873
1793 Prime Lambs sold to 325ppk or £160
356 Cast Ewes & Rams sold to £240
17 Prime Pigs sold to 140ppk or £107
Prime Bulls (67) – Bull trade very similar averaging 240ppk and £1683, five sold over £2000 this week. In comparison to the sizzling summer and early autumn prices the buyers have their foot just pressing gently on the brake pedal. The top two bulls per kilo were both 285 pence and both brilliant Limousin’s from Rochester & Murray, West Butsfield; the bigger of the two also led the gross values at a whopping £2314. Closest to the Butsfield belters were a fine pair from longstanding DFAM customers K & A Harker, Worsall which both sold over £2100. The Friesian trade looks relatively unaffected by the recent price drop and again today the black and whites sold well, top of the tree were D A & C Henry, Deighton at 214ppk and the consistent R Hall & Son, Brotton at £1393. Below as usual are some of our top performers.
Rochester & Murray sold 2 to average 285ppk and £2131
K & A Harker, Worsall sold 2 to average 274ppk and £2150
J H & M & N W Brown, Darlington sold 4 to average 265ppk and £1854
N White, Marrick sold 4 to average 261ppk and £1716
Continental Bulls – Top prices ppk 285×2 Rochester & Murray. 279 270 K&A Harker. 278 267 265 255 JH&M&NW Brown. 270 269 260 249 N White. 269 259 AG Watson & Sons. 265×2 249 JE Jordon & Son. 265 TW Clark & Son. 264 240 LS Staley. 261 255 249 JJ Kemp & Son. 260 249 WJ&AS Bowes & Sons. 260 F&JS Gargett. 258×2 S Luck. 258 250 249 244 D Richardson & Co Ltd. 257 M Hutchinson. 243 240 JR Knox & Son.
Lead Grossing Continental Bulls £2314 £1949 Rochester & Murray. £2157 £2142 K&A Harker. £2082 £1972 £1922 £1827 £1764 D Richardson & Co Ltd. £2059 £1738 WJ&AS Bowes & Sons. £1995 £1824 LS Staley. £1991 £1834 £1825 £1765 JH&M&NW Brown. £1982 £1976 AG Watson & Sons. £1952 £1885 £1787 F&JS Gargett. £1939 £1872 JR Knox & Son. £1937 £1847 M Hutchinson. £1868 £1744 TW Clark & Son. £1860 £1857 S Luck & Son. £1845 £1790 JJ Kemp & Son.
Friesian Bulls – Top prices ppk 214 208 189 188 D&CA Henry. 208×2 200 R Hall & Son. 188 164 GS Dowson.
Lead Grossing Friesian Bulls £1393 £1331 £1282 R Hall & Son. £1378 £1310 £1160 £1114 D&CA Henry. £1228 £1024 GS Dowson.
Native Breed Bulls – Top prices ppk 225 JC&P Tallentire. 207 197 GS Dowson.
Lead Grossing Native Breed Bulls £1525 JC&P Tallentire. £1163 £1154 GS Dowson.
Prime Cattle (99) – Fantastic! Back come the butcher’s beast with a terrific trade today, despite doom and gloom from other outlets our clean cattle ring was flying, heifers averaged a stunning 292 pence per kilo and the steers 283ppk. Hats of to the hot Hirst’s of Neasham Grange who sold not once, twice but thrice to the days top price of 324 pence per kilo; the terrific trio all weighing around 580kg consisted of two Limousin’s which sold to H Taylor & Sons, Darlington and a beautiful British Blue bought by Bowland Foods, Preston. King of the steers was without doubt Leicestershire’s Graham Chantrell who produced a remarkable nine beyond 300 pence, top of the illustrious Leicestershire shop was a handy weight Limousin at 314ppk. Handsome heifers dominated the top gross values, a super six sold in the £1900’s with just one star climbing over £2000; the consistent feeding of A C Simpson & Son, McNeil Farm produced the 769kg sensation which sold for £2176. Top gross valued steer hailed from A & C A Stanwix, Gayles Hall with a well finished Limousin reaching £1896. As always below are listed some of the days leading lights.
Heifers
R Hirst, Neasham sold 10 to average 316ppk and £1832
W A Armstrong, Coxhoe sold 7 to average 306ppk and £1725
M & G Chantrell, Leicestershire sold 8 to average 305ppk and £1564
J V & J A Hodgson, Summerhouse sold 10 to average 296ppk and £1795
N White, Marrick sold 6 to average 293ppk and £1641
Steers
M & G Chantrell, Leicestershire sold 13 to average 302ppk and £1662
W J Smith & Partners, Richmond sold 2 to average 293ppk and £1718
P J & M P Gilhespy, Ponteland sold 2 to average 289ppk and £1654
Steers – Top prices ppk 314 313 310 306 304×2 303 302×2 297 294 293 290 M&G Chantrell Ltd. 298 289 WJ Smith & Partners. 290 289 PJ&MP Gilhespy. 275 C&N Waters. 256 240 JH&M&NW Brown. 243 225 A&CA Stanwix. 241 D Lupton.
Lead Grossing Steers £1896 £1674 A&CA Stanwix. £1823 £1784 £1766 £1707 £1701 £1695 £1653 £1651 £1633 M&G Chantrell Ltd. £1771 £1591 JH&M&NW Brown. £1737 £1699 WJ Smith & Partners. £1705 £1603 PJ&MP Gilhespy. £1603 C&N Waters.
Heifers – Top prices ppk 324×3 320 315×2 314 313 310 308 R Hirst. 320 316 309×3 301 294 M&G Chantrell Ltd. 319 316 310 309 305 298 WA Armstrong. 318 317 313 309 306 300 JV&JA Hodgson. 316 299 297 N White. 311 PJ&MP Gilhespy. 306 296 293 WF Hustwit. 302 AC Simpson & Son. 298 JC Johnson. 291 290 P&JH Davison. 289 JH&M&NW Brown. 289 S&J Dent & Son. 289 JB&N Harrison & Sons.
Lead Grossing Heifers £2176 £1975 £1876 AC Simpson & Son. £1975 JC Johnson. £1973 £1850 JB&N Harrison & Sons. £1934 A Tindale. £1930 £1912 £1870 31854 £1844 £1816 JV&JA Hodgson. £1898 £1875 £1872 £1858 £1840 £1815 £1814 £1808 R Hirst. £1897 £1778 £1736 WA Armstrong. £1831 £1764 £1750 WF Hustwit. £1776 £1731 £1713 £1699 P&JH Davison. £1755 M&G Chantrell Ltd. £1750 £1692 N white. £1707 PJ&MP Gilhespy.
Cast Cows (6) – The charging Chantrell consignment as you have read impressed in the clean cattle, the same good home filled the lorry this morning with six superb cows and averaged a stunning 225 pence per kilo and £1660 with tops of 243ppk and £1873.
Cast Cows – Top prices ppk 243 239 228 219 213 209 M&G Chantrell Ltd.
Lead Grossing Cast Cows £1873 £1865 £1674 £1644 £1567 £1337 M&G Chantrell Ltd.
Prime Lambs (1793) – A better show on the week but make no mistake the trade lifted dramatically, do not be fooled, the buyers still need good tops on their lambs but this week the average was a staggering £16 per head up; as always weighed straight today’s sale averaged 255 pence per kilo and £114.25; interestingly the first week in November last year the lamb trade also took a major boost. Plenty of lambs over and around 300 pence per kilo, best of all a superb trio of 40kg Beltex from M W & M Skidmore, Wynyard sold for £130 (325ppk). The super heavies climbed regularly above £145, biggest of all at a tremendous 81kg came a strong Texel from C S & V Whitfield, High Knitsley which sold for £160, close behind a fine pen of eleven weighing 55kg from M & A Gaskin, Marwood sold for £157.50, the glorious Gaskin consignment of 48 lambs averaged over £142; five further vendors also sold in the £150’s.
Lambs – Top prices ppk 325 MW&M Skidmore. 311 291 284 273 CS&V Whitfield. 302×2 290 281 W Ramsay & Sons. 300 297 273 272 J&A Moralee. 295 LD Laws. 288 281 279 271 AWSM Farms. 288 JA&UM Fawcett. 283 WA Wardman Ltd. 281 275 FP&IM Jefferson. 278 T&R Quinn & Son. 277 269 G Thompson & Sons. 277×2 T Duckitt. 276 WR Ward. 275 A&V Wade. 274 272 M&A Gaskin. 274 JG Hall. 274 F&JS Gargett. 273 A&EJ Dobinson. 271 JJ Horn. 270 W.K M.M Lamb. 269 JE Suddes & Son.
Lead Grossing Lambs £160 £151 £134 £131 CS&V Whitfield. £157.50 £145 £136 £134.50 M&A Gaskin. £155 WR Ward. £155 £152 L Wilkinson. £153 £141 AWSM farms. £151 PR&KM Brown. £148 £136 £135 W Ramsay & Sons. £146 £136×2 T Duckitt. £146 3142 £141 £137.50 £135.50×2 £135×2 AC Simpson. £140 £135 W.K M.M Lamb. £140 KJ&SS Bell. £140 M Dent. £139 SM Donaldson. £137.50 £135 FP&IM Jefferson. £136.50 J Milbank & Sons. £136 G Thompson & Sons. £134 A&EJ Dobinson. £133.50 DK Barker. £132.50 LD Laws. £132 £131.50 WA Wardman Ltd.
Cast ewes & Rams (356) – Following the lambs the ewes also appeared dearer, again those with most flesh upon them demand a premium. A stunning Texel ewe from M Dent, Frosterley led the way when she sold for £240, top of the tups was also a Texel, this time from Frank Johnson, Hamsterley reaching £220. The better end of the Mule’s typically sold £85 to £100 whilst the pick of this weeks high gone ewes were also from Frank Johnson with some thumping Swaledale’s selling for £60.
Lead Grossing Cast Sheep £240 M Dent. £220 3124 £120 F Johnson. £160 £108 C Moralee & Sons. £140 W Ramsay & Sons. £140 £130 £114 JJ Horn. £132 M&A Gaskin. £126 £120 RG&G Rutter. £122 £94 DK Barker. £120 T Duckitt. £116 A&V Wade. £110 IR Appleton. £110 £100 KJ&SS Bell. £100 HH Smith & Son. £100 M&J Dryden. £100 D Jackson. £100×2 395 HN&R Tweddle. £100 £90 A&EJ Dobinson.
Prime Pigs (17) – The popular pig report has mirrored the interest rates and gone up quickly today; this rather conveniently allows plenty of spare time (for those who obviously wait with bated breath to read it) to now relax and enjoy this dark Autumnal evening. May I suggest reading a book, the three little pigs would be too obvious, perhaps try the one about the simple boy who swaps his cow for magic beans. Pig trade by the way is still good.
Pigs – Top prices ppk 140 120 110 J Mitchell & Son. 140 120 110 100 C Weightman.
Lead Grossing Pigs £107 £92 £74 £72 C Weightman. £106 £91 J Mitchell & Son.
