Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their weekly sale of prime stock on Thursday 2nd January 2025. Forward were 210 cattle and 1753 sheep.
105 Prime Bulls sold to 410ppk or £3429
11 Prime Steers sold to 408ppk or £2780
92 Prime Heifers sold to 425ppk or £2637
2 OTM sold to 385ppk or £2279
1582 Prime Hoggs sold to 416ppk or £211
171 Cast Ewes & Rams sold to £188
Prime Bulls (105) – A very, very Happy New Year, we are in for one hell of a ride if this is any kind of insight in to the trade for 2025. Stunning scenes as the brilliant bull’s kick started the calendar in extraordinary fashion, all records were smashed to find a whole sale average of a massive 351ppk and a magical £2565 per head. Two vendors reached 410 pence per kilo as Limousin’s from J A Matten & Sons, Avenue Grange and A C Simpson & Son, McNeil Farm set an astonishing pace; following at 407ppk was J Layfield, Nackshivan Farm with A G Watson & Sons, Nunstainton Grange next at 405ppk with others from the Simpson’s, Layfield’s and Matten’s duly joined by B J Haigh, Breckon Hill and W A Richardson Ltd, Hutton Fields in the four hundred club. An insane twenty-two bulls sold over £3000, top of the mountain was a brilliant 884kg Limousin from A S & S M Kemp & Son, Heugh Hall when he sold for £3429. A C Simpson & Son produced two stunners at £3408 and £3393 whilst W A Richardson Ltd sold three of the top six checking in between £3288 and £3399. Native breed bulls were led today by A G Watson & Sons with a wonderful Aberdeen Angus at £2747 and 379ppk whilst a superb Friesian trade was headed by T F Bothroyd, Upton Farm at a marvellous 327ppk and £2158. Some start to the year, a few of the incredible pen averages are listed below.
A C Simpson & Son, Witton-le-Wear sold 5 to average 403ppk and £3220
J A Matten & Sons, Thirsk sold 3 to average 394ppk and £3048
W A Richardson Ltd, Hutton Magna sold 4 to average 390ppk and £3273
J Layfield, Willington sold 6 to average 390ppk and £2935
A S & S M Kemp, Bowburn sold 6 to average 389ppk and £2945
W J & A S Bowes & Sons, Great Stainton sold 2 to average 388ppk and £3180
A G Watson & Sons, Rushyford sold 4 to average 380ppk and £2827
J & P Armstrong, Rowlands Gill sold 2 to average 375ppk and £2975
Continental Bulls – Top prices ppk 410 406 370 JA Matten & Sons. 410 404×2 400 398 AC Simpson & Son. 407 405 395 384 379 376 J Layfield. 406 393 AG Watson & Sons. 405 BJ Haigh. 400 399 386 379 WA Richardson Ltd. 399 379 WJ&AS Bowes & Sons. 399 393 390×2 388 370 AS&SM Kemp & Son Ltd. 399 364 TW Clark & Son. 394 362 N White. 385 383 CH&SE Armstrong. 380 370 J&P Armstrong. 374 370 LR Welsh & Co. 372 Foxton Livestock. 366 JH&M&NW Brown.
Lead Grossing Continental Bulls £3429 £3092 £3060 £3053 AS&SM Kemp & Son. £3408 £3393 £3218 £3180 £2900 AC Simpson & Son. £3399 £3288 £3251 £3152 WA Richardson Ltd. £3251 £3108 WJ&AS Bowes & Sons. £3159 JJ Horn. £3124 £3036 £2985 JA Matten & Sons. £3122 BJ Haigh. £3096 £2955 AG Watson & Sons. £3086 £2980 TW Clark & Son. £3024 £2926 J&P Armstrong. £3013 £2999 £2991 £2988 £2944 J Layfield. £2956 GW Dobson & Son. £2878 £2849 £2790 £2757 D Richardson & Co Ltd.
Friesian Bulls – Top prices ppk 327 TF Bothroyd. 299 275 R Hall & Son. 266 264 JM&S Walton. 258 242 D Walker.
Lead Grossing Friesian Bulls £2158 TF Bothroyd & Son. £1834 £1758 JM&S Walton. £1823 £1735 R Hall & Son. £1522 £1486 D Walker.
Native Bulls – Top prices ppk 379 AG Watson & Sons. 348 340 326 JA&M Boyes Ltd. 340 314 294 GS Dowson. 330 304 CH&SE Armstrong. 290 R Hall & Son.
Lead Grossing Native Bulls £2747 AG Watson & Sons. £2468 £2449 £2399 JA&M Boyes Ltd. £2260 £1982 CH&SE Armstrong. £2247 £1918 £1764 GS Dowson. £2195 R Hall & Son.
OTM Cattle – Top prices ppk 385 JV&JA Hodgson. 300 CH&SE Armstrong.
Lead Grossing OTM Cattle £2279 JV&JA Hodgson. £2139 CH&SE Armstrong.
Clean Cattle (103) – With the dust hardly settled from the brilliant bulls there was further January jubilation in the clean as the opening sale of the year saw the whole kit and caboodle average over £2200 with the heifers levelling at a superb 375ppk and the stunning steers 368ppk. With no less than twenty-two clean cattle selling over 400ppk and an outstanding 84% of the sale reaching over £2000 the competition at the top was fierce. Leading the heifers per kilo at 425 pence was a brilliant 528kg homebred British Blue cross from W J Scott, Low Leam Farm; the terrific team from Low Leam also checked in at 417ppk and 415ppk twice, joining the party also at 415ppk was a super Limousin from Roxburghshire raiders W M Fleming, Moss Tower followed by M F Hall, Woodhill Farm and J V & J A Hodgson, The Grange both at 414ppk. Top steer per kilo went to the aforementioned M F Hall, Woodhill Farm with an outstanding 671kg Limousin which sold for a whopping 408 pence, in his slipstream followed the impressive W J Scott with three thumping British Blue crosses between 386 and 395ppk. The leading four heifers all sold over £2500, the Scott’s of Low Leam, Hodgson’s of The Grange and Fleming’s of Moss Tower all narrowly failed to catch the in-form M F Hall who topped the females at £2637 with an excellent 637kg Limousin. Familiar names this week once again found themselves atop the gross values in the steers, this time the Scott’s of Low Leam at £2780 with a 711kg British Blue pushed M F Hall in to second place with the showstopping 671kg Limousin mentioned earlier.
Heifers
W J Scott Ltd, West Woodburn sold 7 to average 413ppk and £2398
M Robinson & Sons, Staindrop sold 2 to average 403ppk and £2145
M F Hall, Ponteland sold 6 to average 398ppk and £2296
B Walker, Dalton-on-Tees sold 3 to average 393ppk and £2192
N White, Marrick sold 4 to average 393ppk and £1888
W Swinbank & Sons, Caldwell sold 3 to average 389ppk and £2258
W M Fleming, Kelso sold 8 to average 387ppk and £2299
J V & J A Hodgson, Summerhouse sold 12 to average 386ppk and £2296
R Hirst, Neasham sold 7 to average 385ppk and £2012
Steers
W J Scott Ltd, West Woodburn sold 3 to average 390ppk and £2598
Steers – Top prices ppk 408 MF Hall. 395 391 386 WJ Scott Ltd. 381 340 Taylor Bros. 369 JM Smith. 364 348 300 RO Gilson.
Lead Grossing Steers £2780 £2535 £2478 WJ Scott Ltd. £2737 MF Hall. £2453 JM Smith. £2398 £2192 £1866 RO Gilson. £2084 £1846 Taylor Bros.
Heifers – Top prices ppk 425 417 415×2 410 409 405 WJ Scott Ltd. 415 410 403 389 383 WM Fleming. 414 409 404 399 396 MF Hall. 414 401 395 394 389 388 384 JV&JA Hodgson. 411 393 376 B Walker. 408 390 N White. 404 388 378 W Swinbank & Sons. 403×2 M Robinson & Sons. 400 397 389 Renton Highlaws Ltd. 396 393 389 388×2 R Hirst. 394 374 Taylor Bros. 391 RO Gilson. 386 379 JE Suddes & Son. 386 JM Smith. 381 380 F&JS Gargett. 378 WR Thompson.
Lead Grossing Heifers £2637 £2355 £2286 £2261 £2257 MF Hall. £2602 £2458 £2409 £2334 WM Fleming. £2541 £2492 £2409 £2353 £2339 £2319 £2294 £2245 JV&JA Hodgson. £2531 £2476 £2460 £2450 £2425 £2244 WJ Scott Ltd. £2470 £2361 £2341 £2220 CH&SE Armstrong. £2378 £2315 F&JS Gargett. £2365 JE Suddes & Son. £2349 RO Gilson. £2338 B Walker. £2328 £2278 W Swinbank & Sons. £2315 DH Lawson. £2308 JM Smith. £2266 £2228 Renton Highlaws Ltd. £2240 M Robinson & Sons. £2200 D Walker.
Prime Hoggs (1582) – The hogg trade continues in similar fashion to produce a weighed straight level today of 328ppk and £155.51 per head; granted, not the smoke and mirrors averages per kilo reported by some centres, but the money in the bank, the pounds per head, that part stands up with anywhere in the land. Top price per kilo at 416 pence was a marvellous 50kg Beltex from A & P A Jopling, High Dalton Hall which sold for £208, next in line was the pick of a tremendous run from R Atkinson, High Greenbury Farm, again a Beltex and also weighing 50kg this one sold for 400ppk (£200). Barring the two great lambs already mentioned those in the £200 plus club all came from two of our most regular top feeders, despite twenty-seven thumping hoggs from A C Simpson & Son selling between £200 and £209 they failed to beat a trio of marvellous 60kg Texel’s from J & A Layfield, New Row Farm which led the day at £211. Away from the more popular lowland breeds prices also saw Cheviot’s to £165, Mules to £155, Ryland’s to £143 and Swaledale’s to £110. Below are a handful of the day’s top averages.
A C Simpson & Son, Witton-le-Wear sold 60 to average £196.35 (330.56ppk)
J & A Layfield, Hamsterley sold 50 to average £192.28 (348.71ppk)
D & P H Brown, Aldbrough-St-John sold 14 to average £180.43 (339.97ppk)
R Atkinson, Scorton sold 343 to average £175.26 (359.87ppk)
Hoggs – Top prices ppk 416 380 341 340 A&PA Jopling. 400 372×2 369 366 362 360 356×2 354 353 351 350 R Atkinson. 380 371 W Tindale. 368 350 T Duckitt. 363 360 358 353 351×2 350 349 345 341 J&A Layfield. 363 360 WA Wardman Ltd. 362 361 339 F&JS Gargett. 357 J Bowling & Son. 352 JM&S Walton. 352 C Binks & Son. 349 342×2 339 AC Simpson & son. 346 D&PH Brown. 344 W Wearmouth & Son. 342 339 WF Dove & Sons. 341 340 339K&PM Lough.
Lead Grossing Hoggs £211 £206 £200 £198 £191 £190×3 £186 £184 £179×2 J&A Layfield. £209×2 £208 £207 £204 £201 £200×2 £192×4 £190 £182 £180 AC Simpson & Son. £208 £190 £181 A&PA Jopling. £200 £181 £180 £178 £177 R Atkinson. £199 D&PH Brown. £191 G Thompson & Sons. £191 £176 A Layfield Farms Ltd. £184 WA Wardman Ltd. £182 £177 WF Dove & Sons. £181 F&JS Gargett. £180 £179 ££176 JH&D Wise. £178 BJS Farms. £176 D Dawson. £176 J Dawson.
Cast Sheep (171) – The ewe trade stays strong as a plainer show averaged a pleasing £121.59. Top of the day was a Suffolk ewe from J R & J Crowe, Bishops Close when she sold for £188, top of the Texels were a pair from T W Brown & Sons at £178. Mule ewes average £114.89 and sold to a top of £138 whilst amongst the hill breeds Beulah ewes sold to £128 and the Swaledale breed topped at £105.
Lead Grossing Cast Sheep £188 £170×2 £138 JR&J Crowe. £178 3157 TW Brown & Sons. £170 £150 £136 BR Lawson. £160 D&PH Brown. £157 T Duckitt. £144 £134 C&M Burnett. £140 £120 J&B Stanwix & Son. £134 £130 £120 £118 J Lovegreen. £130 BG Dale. £130×2 SM Donaldson. £130 GPA Carter. £129 P Henderson. £128 £120 Rose A Farms Ltd. £128×2 RE&L Frank. £120×2 A&PA Jopling. £120 DW Robinson.
