Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their weekly sale of prime stock on Thursday 8th August 2024. Forward were 188 cattle and 1800 sheep.
64 Prime Bulls sold to 336ppk or £2632
40 Prime Steers sold to 357ppk or £2369
84 Prime Heifers sold to 366ppk or £2233
1225 Prime Lambs sold to 384ppk or £185
575 Cast Sheep sold to £264
Prime Bulls (64) – A gold medal winning bull trade for the ongoing Olympics leaving what’s appeared a solid trade elsewhere lagging behind as this week’s sale averaged a superb all in 294ppk and £2023 per head. Some thirty-nine bulls sold over £2000 with thirty-one reaching at least 300ppk as the top ten vendors pen averages started with a three in the pence per kilo column. Top per kilo at 336 pence was a beautiful homebred 726kg Limousin from the Renton’s of High Highlaws, Morpeth; following closely at 335ppk were L R Welsh & Co, Spennymoor with T W Clark & Son, Durham and also the Hird’s of Whashton each in the 330’s on the day. Top gross value went to Thirsk based J A Matten & Sons, Avenue Grange with an excellent 820kg Limousin reaching £2632; the three others over £2500 included a Charolais from the Matten’s again plus a Limousin from T W Clark & Son and a British Blonde from J J Horn, Marske, Richmond. The natives were far from restless as they too enjoyed an upturn in trade as Aberdeen Angus led them over the line reaching 304ppk from R Hall & Son, Brotton and an incredible £2204 from L R Welsh & Co, Green Lane Farm, Spennymoor. Last but by no means least comes news of a terrific Friesian trade with the Hall’s of Kilton Hall, Brotton top per head at £1607 and a handy weight from G S Dowson, East Barmby reaching an impressive 289ppk. See below a few of the day’s top pen averages.
J B Luck & Son, Bowes sold 2 to average 321ppk and £2264
GK, KN & GJ Hird, Richmond sold 3 to average 317ppk and £2153
J A Matten & Sons, Thirsk sold 3 to average 316ppk and £2544
Renton Highlaws Ltd, Morpeth sold 10 to average 314ppk and £2160
G H Farms Ltd, Bishop Auckland sold 2 to average 310ppk and £2024
Continental Bulls – Top prices ppk 336 327 322×2 321 320 317 305 299 Renton Highlaws Ltd. 335 320 306 LR Welsh & Co. 333 294 TW Clark & Son. 332 312 310 GK KN & GJ Hird. 325 318 JB Luck & Son. 321 314 313 JA Matten & Sons. 314 306 GH Farms Ltd. 307 299 JJ Horn. 307 297 DW Humphrey. 306×2 GW Dobson & Son. 305 297 FW Hodgson & Son. 304 DH Lawson. 300 299 C Binks & Son. 300 294 LW Martin.
Lead Grossing Continental Bulls £2632 £2508 £2491 JA Matten & Sons. £2557 £2310 £2001 TW Clark & Son. £2508 £2231 JJ Horn. £2490 £2439 £2415 £2355 £2341 £2215 Renton Highlaws Ltd. £2452 £2284 £2121 LR Welsh & Co. £2318 £2210 JB Luck & Son. £2238 £2227 C Binks & Son. £2236 £2160 £2109 GW Dobson & Son. £2196 £2150 FW Hodgson & Son. £2191 £2148 £2121 GK KN & GJ Hird. £2143 DH Lawson. £2085 JF Gibson & Son.
Friesian Bulls – Top prices ppk 289 GS Dowson. 264 R Hall & Son. 211 D Walker.
Lead Grossing Friesian Bulls £1607 R Hall & Son. £1450 GS Dowson. £1198 D Walker.
Native Bulls – Top prices ppk 304 R Hall & Son. 260 GS Dowson. 220 LR Welsh & Co.
Lead Grossing Native Bulls £2204 LR Welsh & Co. £2003 R Hall & Son. £1495 GS Dowson.
Clean Cattle (124) – An unbelievable scene at the clean, trade faster than Keeley Hodgkinson running downhill with a tail wind as the Darlington ring set a pace unseen anywhere else in Britain this week. The supersonic steers averaged 318ppk whilst the blazing hot heifers levelled at 324ppk. Bidding reached at least 340ppk on an unbelievable thirty-six occasions, a dozen of these made it past 350ppk and the top two flew all the way in to the 360’s. Pick of the pack on his maiden trip as a vendor to Darlington was Mr W Miller, High Aketon Farm, Wigton, Cumbria with a superb 543kg Limousin heifer selling to Taylor’s Butchers, Darlington for 366 pence per kilo; following closely at 365ppk was a brilliant 578kg Limousin from R Hirst, Neasham Grange with a whole host in the chasing peloton worthy of winning on any other given day. Top steer per kilo was a pleasing product of the Darlington store ring back in March of this year, the super Limousin was bred just down the road by Barry Storey and purchased then by todays successful sellers P J & M P Gilhespy, Low House, Milbourne; the 582kg superstar made 357ppk today and in doing so fought off a strong challenge from Barker Farming Partnership, Scorton who thrice sold beyond 350ppk. A marvellous forty-three cattle sold over £2000 today; the top three steers all sold over £2300, tied for second place at £2328 were A Crowder, Butsfiled with an 817kg Limousin and T W & P T Moss, Ompton with a 689kg Aberdeen Angus however out in front was a superb 745kg Limousin from local producer J R Spink, Hope House Farm at £2369. Top gross valued heifer was a thumping 747kg Simmental from J Richmond, Dunsa Bank Farm, Richmond at £2233, keeping close tabs on the top spot and in the £2100’s was the brilliant Barker Farming, another from Dunsa Bank, Cumbrian raiders H W & J Birkbeck, Castle Hill, Soulby and the consistent pairing of the Hirst’s, Neasham Grange and the Hodgson’s, The Grange. A memorable day is more than apparent by the pen averages listed below.
Steers
P J & M P Gilhespy sold 2 to average 342ppk and £2037
Taylor Bros Ltd, Richmond sold 4 to average 338ppk and £1921
Barker Farming Partnership, Scorton sold 8 to average 334ppk and £1976
P R & V Barlow & Son, Notts sold 3 to average 323ppk and £1682
I Marshall & Sons, Bishop Middleham sold 4 to average 322ppk and £2178
T W & P T Moss, Notts sold 8 to average 317ppk and £2018
Heifers
Askwiths, Crook sold 2 to average 349ppk and £1921
W Miller, Wigton sold 6 to average 347ppk and £1922
H W & J Birkbeck, Kirkby Stephen sold 2 to average 345ppk and £2026
R Hirst, Neasham sold 9 to average 345ppk and £1998
J V & J A Hodgson, Summerhouse sold 10 to average 344ppk and £1961
P J & M P Gilhespy, Ponteland sold 4 to average 341ppk and £1968
Barker Farming Partnership, Scorton sold 4 to average 340ppk and £2068
Steers – Top prices ppk 357 329 PJ&MP Gilhespy. 354 351×2 346 345 337 323 Barker Farming Partnership. 348 341 339 326 Taylor Bros. 338 333 330 328 310 TW&PT Moss Ltd. 331 321 320×2 I Marshall & Sons. 330 326 315 PR&V Barlow. 318 JR Spink. 316 JK&CE Farming. 310 Askwiths. 308 TN Callender.
Lead Grossing Steers £2369 JR Spink. £2328 £2161 £1989 £1988 £1961 £1933 £1903 TW&PT Moss Ltd. £2328 £2275 A Crowder. £2256 £2176 £2158 £2125 I Marshall & Sons. £2201 Askwiths. £2127 £2111 £2096 £2084 £2074 £2057 Barker Farming Partnership. £2077 £1997 PJ&MP Gilhespy. £1984 M Ord & Sons. £1983 TN Callender.
Heifers – Top prices ppk 366 359 346 339×3 W Miller. 365 359×2 358 357 347 329 R Hirst. 358 352 349 346 345 344×2 341 339 JV&JA Hodgson. 351 348 Askwiths. 349 318 316 SH Watson & Son. 348 343 HW&J Birkbeck. 346 345 339 337 PJ&MP Gilhespy. 345 341 340 334 Barker Farming Partnership. 341 330 324 316 WF Hustwit. 336 325 A Crowder. 335 332 330 FW Hodgson. 334 329 326 WA Wardman Ltd. 329 316×2 RW&R Henry. 326 322 321 Newbiggin Farms.
Lead Grossing Heifers £2233 £2116 J Richmond. £2121 £2111 £2024 £2016 Barker Farming Partnership. £2115 £1937 HW&J Birkbeck. £2104 £2078 £2054 £2032 £2027 JV&JA Hodgson. £2097 £1976 £1961 PJ&MP Gilhespy. £2088 £2054 £2050 £1993 WF Hustwit. £2077 £2033 £2006 R Hirst. £2031 £2024 £2006 Newbiggin Farms. £2013 £1971 £1968 SH Watson & Son. £2003 £1911 RW&R Henry. £1987 £1972 £1931 £1916 W Miller. £1976 Askwiths. £1929 FW Hodgson & Son.
Prime Lambs (1225) – The numbers of sheep nationally are finally forthcoming after a slow start due to the miserable and never-ending Spring they endured. The hopper fed and heavy weights remain easy to sell however a fair bit of resistance was apparent for the lighter lambs and leaner grass-fed sorts. The sale average fell to a weighed straight 294ppk this week which remains ahead of last year’s levels and a far plainer show than that of seven days ago certainly did nothing to aid the price with plenty of lambs probably worth more in the store ring as things are just now. On to the good news and trade remains sharp for the butcher’s choices, top per kilo at 384 pence were a cracking pair of 45kg Beltex from W K M M Lamb, Doe Park; following the lambs from the Lamb’s were Whitby’s FP & IM Jefferson (49kg 365p), Anna Herbert, Barnard Castle (49kg 363ppk) and B R & R I Routledge, Walworth (43kg 360ppk). Top of the gross values at £185 were a tremendous pair of 56kg Suffolk cross Texel lambs from C Moralee & Sons, Blackburn Farm, Langley Park; an excellent 52kg Beltex from local producers G & E Walton, The Meadow followed at £181 with the best of the rest coming from the aforementioned Jefferson’s and Anna Herbert.
Lambs- Top Prices PPK 384 324 323 323 WKMM Lamb. 365 FP&IM Jefferson. 363 343 327 Anna Herbert. 360 336 316 315 BR&RI Routledge. 354 347 314 F Shield. 354 348 342 G&E Walton. 353 319 318 314 JA&A Herbert. 338 325 316 K&PM Lough. 336 J Milbank & Sons. 335 P&CM Graham. 334 322 318 317 WR Thompson. 334 333 330 317 Cole Hill Farm LTD. 334 322 319 PJ Tindale. 332 318 D&P Heppell. 330 326 320 C Moralee & Sons. 330 319 313 W Wearmouth & Son. 329 313 I Burn & Sons. 323 J Pallister & Sons. 322 F Myers & Son. 319 Hunley Bank LTD. 317 G Thompson & Sons. 315 JG Walton & Son. 314 DG&PD Ayre. 314 G&E Walton. 313 JK&CE Farming. 313 D&PH Brown. 312 FP&IM Jefferson.
Lead Grossing Lambs- £185 £173 x2 £172 C Moralee & Sons. £181 £170 £168 £157 G&E Walton. £179 £153 FP&IM Jefferson. £178 £175 £160.50 £154 Anna Herbert. £174 £158.50 £150 Cole Hill Farm Ltd. £173 D&P Heppell. £173 £152 £149W.K M.M Lamb. £166 W Wearmouth & Son. £163 £160 F Shield. £161 F Myers & Son. £160 £159 I Burn & Sons. £158 PJ Tindale. £156 £155 £154 £150 WR Thompson. £155 BR&RI Routledge. £153 £149 JR Raine & Sons. £152 D&PH Brown. £152 £150 I Spedding. £152 JA&A Herbert. £150 JK Gill & Son. £150 £148 J Milbank & Sons. £150 K&PM Lough. £149 J Pallister & Sons.
Cast Sheep (575) – With weaning in progress and the ewe trade absolutely rocketing there is little wonder that the numbers are appearing now. The sale average of £105 tells only some of the story with fifty Shetland’s and over one hundred Swaledale’s included in those numbers as nine buyers bid freely for all shapes and sizes. The continental and Suffolk ewes stole the show and regularly sold between £150 and £250, top of them all at £264 were a fabulous trio of pure Texel’s from J P Floyd, Ugthorpe, Whitby (sold 7 to average £231) with Guisborough’s A J & K M Foster & Son, Coquet Nook next in line at £256. North of England Mule ewes topped at £156 from D & P H Brown, Cordilleras Farm as the breed averaged £115 for 115 sold. Hill ewes topped at £98 for Swaledales from W Wearmouth & Son, Rose Hill Farm, Eastgate whilst Cheviot’s peaked at £92.
Lead Grossing Cast Sheep £264 £250 £192×2 JP Floyd. £256 £175 £147 £140×2 AJ&KM Foster & Son. £226 £194 £162 F Ward. £210 £200 £150 £144 PR&V Barlow & Son. £200 £150 S Teasdale & Sons. £200 TN Callender. £198 J&D Gibson. £192 A Swinbank & Son. £190 £176 PM Hill. £188 LD Laws. £188 G Thompson & Sons. £182 I Spedding. £180 W Hanson. £176 £171 RA Patterson & Son. £173 £162 D&PH Brown. £172 N&LL Brown & Son. £170 Barker Farming Partnership. £166 £154 W Wearmouth & Son. £162×2 Tallentire. £159×2 S Thompson & Son.
