Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their weekly sale of prime stock on Thursday 15th May 2025. Forward were 173 cattle and 1293 sheep.
70 Prime Bulls sold to 434ppk or £3350
8 Prime Steers sold to 453ppk or £3148
95 Prime Heifers sold to 478ppk or £3004
137 New Season Lambs sold to 340ppk or £186
880 Prime Hoggs sold to 397ppk or £180
276 Cast Ewes/Rams sold to £300
Prime Bulls (70) – A few more forward on the week with less weight on offer than is often the case, trade a touch steadier to leave sale averages of 366ppk and £2486 per head. Limousins led the way in the prime ring ahead of our imminent pedigree sale as the top eight prices per kilo all went to the popular breed. The top two at 434ppk and 423ppk hailed from W I Suddes & Son, South Farm, Cornsay, the Cornsay crackers produced another at 419ppk and were chased hard by a quality quintet from S & J Dent & Son, Great Burdon Farm all selling between 419ppk and 421ppk. Top gross value went to another excellent Limousin from W I Suddes & Son; this one at 859kg sold for 390 pence which added him up to an impressive £3350 in the lump. Native breed bull trade was led convincingly this week by an Aberdeen Angus from J K & C E Farming, Blue House when he sold at 390ppk and £2839 whilst the fastest of the Friesian’s for the umpteenth time belonged to R Hall & Son, Kilton Hall when reaching 355ppk and £2225. See below some of the top pen averages.
W I Suddes & Son, Cornsay sold 4 average £3094 (415ppk)
F & J S Gargett, Barnard Castle sold 3 average £3048 (371ppk)
S & J Dent & Son, Darlington sold 7 average £2957 (418ppk)
T W Clark & Son, Durham sold 3 average £2957 (387ppk)
A G Watson & Sons, Rushyford sold 3 average £2913 (371ppk)
J A & M Boyes Ltd, Cleatlam sold 3 average £2858 (385ppk)
Continental Bulls- Top Prices PPK 434 423 419 390 WI Suddes & Son. 421 420 419 x3 415 414 S&J Dent & Son. 415 352 350 F&JS Gargett. 412 388 360 JA&M Boyes LTD. 411 388 GH Farms LTD. 410 392 C Binks & Son. 410 GW Dobson & Son. 401 384 379 TW Clark & Son. 390 RB Farming LTD. 389 365 360 AG Watson & Sons. 388 378 366 JA&A Herbert. 374 AJ&E Walshaw. 368 358 342 TF Bothroyd & Son. 368 364 JC&P Tallentire. 367 350 Williamson. 366 361 J Richmond. 359 340 JR Knox & Son. 352 350 340 WE&CA Anderson. 348 D Williamson. 331 JM&S Walton.
Native Bulls- Top Prices PPK 390 348 JK&CE Farming. 380 R Hall & Son. 322 319 310 308 D Williamson.
Friesian Bulls- Top Prices PPK 355 337 R Hall & Son. 319 JC&P Tallentire. 312 300 RB Farming LTD. 310 D Walker.
Lead Grossing Continental Bulls- £3350 £3129 £2962 £2935 WI Suddes & Son. £3270 £2977 £2898 F&JS Gargett. £3230 £3087 £3004 £2993 £2940 £2856 £2593 S&J Dent & Son. £3092 £2983 £2794 TW Clark & Son. £3088 £2847 £2804 AG Watson & Sons. £2929 £2847 £2797 JA&M Boyes LTD. £2847 £2745 GH Farms LTD. £2841 GW Dobson & Son. £2807 £2760 JR Knox & Son. £2781 £2590 £2523 £2254 WE&CA Anderson. £2779 £2689 C Binks & Son. £2627 £2617 JC&P Tallentire. £2573 £2514 J Richmond. £2541 £2495 £2470 TF Bothroyd & Son. £2511 RB Farming LTD. £2347 £2256 £2192 JA&A Herbert.
Lead Grossing Native Bulls- £2839 £2491 JK&CE Farming. £2694 R Hall & Son. £1729 £1626 D Williamson.
Lead Grossing Friesian Bulls- £2225 £2136 R Hall & Son. £2083 JC&P Tallentire. £1953 D Walker. £1809 1806 RB Farming LTD.
Clean Cattle (103) – The clean cattle trade lifted again as the butchers and wholesalers were noticeably keener for all classes, just a handful of steers averaged 401ppk and £2827 whilst a hot heifer trade saw them level at an excellent 434ppk and £2550. Two vendors shared the top spot per kilo at 478 pence, both were Limousin heifers as a 605kg cracker from W Barron, Morrow Edge joined a smart 595kg sort from J Layfield, Nackshivan Farm. Seven further heifers selling in the 470’s included four from J V & J A Hodgson plus one apiece for R Hirst, W Miller and W Swinbank & Sons, the next two dozen all sold between 450ppk and 469ppk. A super steer from W Swinbank & Sons, Greystones set the bar the highest per kilo when he sold for 453 pence, the excellent 657kg example ensured a clean sweep of the top spots per kilo for the Limousin breed. Three clean cattle sold over £3000, top of the shop at £3148 was a well fleshed 791kg Limousin steer from A Crowder, Butsfield Burn whilst his closest rivals came from J B & N Harrison & Sons, Colepike Home Farm who produced a steer at £3033 and a heifer at £3004.
A few of today’s top averages:
A Crowder, Butsfield Burn sold 4 (730kg) average 403ppk & £2947
JB&N Harrison & Sons, Colepike Home Farm sold 3 (705kg) average 412ppk & £2909
W Swinbank & Sons, Greystones sold 5 (639kg) average 444ppk & £2839
JE Suddes & Sons, Rowley Farm sold 4 average 435ppk & £2761
W Barron, Morrow Edge sold 2 (580kg) average 472ppk & £2741
Steers – Top prices ppk 453 W Swinbank & Sons. 409 407 406 392 JM Smith. 398 361 A Crowder. 396 JB&N Harrison & Sons.
Lead Grossing Steers- £3148 £2895 A Crowder. £3033 JB&N Harrison & Sons. £2976 W Swinbank & Sons. £2823 £2654 £2638 £2462 JM Smith.
Heifers – Top prices ppk 478 451 450 429 J Layfield. 478 466 W Barron. 475×2 471 455 450 440 432 429 JV&JA Hodgson. 474 462 461 460 456 454 451 442 W Miller. 473 444 438 W Swinbank & Sons. 470 469×2 467 465 458 455 449 442 439 R Hirst. 469 JG Haswell. 468 452 Moor. 467 466 442 Taylor Bros. 467 465 449×2 441 WF Hustwit. 446 A Crowder. 439 A Swinbank & Son. 436 433×2 428 JE Suddes & Son.
Lead Grossing Heifers- £3004 £2689 JB&N Harrison & Sons. £2982 £2836 £2610 £2555 JE Suddes & Son. £2943 £2803 A Crowder. £2929 GN&B Moor. £2923 £2907 £2825 £2792 £2738 £2729 £2675 £2652 £2590 £2560 R Hirst. £2895 £2810 £2776 £2737 W Swinbank & Sons. £2891 £2590 W Barron. £2854 £2759 £2748 £2708 £2650 x2 £2600 JV&JA Hodgson. £2844 £2687 £2574 J Layfield. £2844 £2553 £2545 x2 Taylor Bros LTD. £2690 £2585 £2570 WF Hustwit. £2648 £2585 RA&BA Ridley & Son LTD. £2595 W Miller. £2589 JG Haswell.
New Season Lambs (137) – Life is beginning to appear in the spring lamb market as they nudge their way northwards, the best-bred lambs and also those 44kg plus proved much dearer on the week. Numerous rare breeds and pet lambs included held the sale averaged at 340ppk and £151.84 per head however the top runs were nicely up by some £10 per head on seven days ago. Top per kilo at 402 pence were seven superb 45kg Beltex lambs from W & M Knaggs & Son, East Newbiggin Farm which sold at £181, the same good home twice sold pens of 46kg lambs at 382ppk (£176) as the thirty-seven from this home averaged 45kg and £175.32. It took some real power to finish ahead of the Knaggs’s in the pounds per head, it was achieved just the once, by a thumping 55kg Texel lamb from W Lewis & Sons, Kettleness Farm which sold for £186.
Lambs – Top prices ppk 402 382×2 373 364 W&M Knaggs & Son. 373 326 WA Wardman Ltd. 355 338 329 326 W Lewis & Sons. 355 350 Duell Partners. 350 JW Richardson. 348 346 342 329 318 300 I Burn & Sons. 340 331 325 BR&RI Routledge. 340 334 331 R&BK Wise. 333 325 FP&IM Jefferson.
Lead Grossing Lambs £186 £160 £158 £150 W Lewis & Sons. £181 £176×2 £172 £164 W&M Knaggs & Son. £174 £154 Duell Partners. £172 3158 £154 £150×3 I Burn & Sons. £168 £150 WA Wardman Ltd. £160 £140 FP&IM Jefferson. £154 JW Richardson. £150 £136 BR&RI Routledge. £150 R&BK Wise. £150 A Chapman.
Prime Hoggs (880) – Another week passes in the hogg trade and whilst the best end remains a tidy trade the sweepings up are upon us and the colossal weights continue to appear. This week the weighed straight sale average containing hoggs from 33 to 90kg returned at 268ppk with an SQQ of 293ppk which all resulted in £140.31 per head. The weekly consignment from R Atkinson, High Greenbury Farm once again led the troops over the top with 199 hoggs averaging £170.74. The High Greenbury gang gained top price per kilo at 397 pence with nineteen 45kg Beltex and also top per head at £180 with an incredible 90kg Texel hogg.
Hoggs- Top Prices PPK 397 358 352 269 266 265 261 260 J Atkinson. 360 330 327 290 TN Callender. 333 P Wilson. 332 284 283 277 272 262 AC Simpson & Son. 319 307 300 272 J Hicks. 318 304 300 294 285 280 J&A Layfield. 318 Mark Robson. 317 310 296 288 PJ Tindale. 300 CS Robinson. 295 260 K Tallentire. 295 JLC Welford. 291 287 279 272 MR Madrell. 288 N&LL Brown & Son. 286 J Whitton. 284 x3 JP Coatsworth & Son. 275 JR Knox & Son. 274 J Atkinson. 272 LW Martin.
Lead Grossing Hoggs- £180 £179 £173 x2 £172 £171 £170 £169 £167 x2 £165 R Atkinson. £154 £149 x2 £144 PJ Tindale. £152 £145 £144 x2 TN Callender. £152 £151 x3 £150 £149 £147 x3 £146 x2 £145 x3 AC Simpson & Son. £147 £140 x3 £139 J Hicks. £144 JR Knox & Son. £142 JLC Welford. £140 x4 J&A Layfield. £140 Mark Robson. £140 x2 J Atkinson. £140 x2 FP&IM Jefferson. £140 WA Wardman.
Cast Ewes/Rams (276) – All in this week’s offering averaged £125.78, the desirable (fit not fat) ewes remain very easy to sell however it has to be noted that the lack of life for some of the supersized hoggs is perhaps just squeezing the brake pedal slightly on some lots going through the ewe ring. A second success story in the space of 3 days unfolded for the metropolitan borough of Sunderland as R G Richardson, East Farm (which sits just 5 miles from The Stadium of Light) topped the ewes with a stunning Texel at £300. Other vendors in the £200 plus club were P Cockburn, D & H M Hodgson, W Lewis & Sons, F P & I M Jefferson and W A Wardman Ltd. Mule ewe trade topped at £175 from R D & D Elders & Son whilst we saw Blackface ewes sell to £120 from L W Martin and the same home sold Blackface tups to an impressive £172.
Lead Grossing Cast Sheep £300 £200 £170×2 RG Richardson. £220 £200 £180 £152 P Cockburn. £212 D&HM Hodgson. £202 £168 W Lewis & Sons. £200 P Wilson. £200 £160 FP&IM Jefferson. £200×2 £194 £180 £171×3 £170 £154 WA Wardman Ltd. £184 N&LL Brown & Son. £175×2 R&D Elders. £172 LW Martin. £170 £160×2 BR&RI Routledge. £166 TA&J Swinbank. £155 J Musgrave.
