Georgina Fort champion at Craven Dairy Auction
Georgina Fort, who runs her own small dairy herd at her father Edward’s High Bracken Hill Farm on Silsden Moor, clinched championship honours with her first prize newly calven heifer at the opening October Craven Dairy Auction at Skipton Auction Mart. (Mon, Oct 2)
Bought at Skipton last year out of Andrew Ayrton’s Hawbank dairy herd in Embsay, the 17 days calved title winner, giving 26 litres, sold for £1,700 joint top price to the show judge, Bishop Thornton’s Shaun Sowray.
Reserve champion was the first prize newly calven cow from the Newbirks pedigree herd of the Lawson family at Mill Farm, Arthington. The second calver, Newbirks Heliotrope 365, by the well-known Genus sire, Bassingthorpe Bossman, came to market a fortnight calved and giving 38 litres. She, too, joined Mr Sowray who farms with his brothers, Peter and Paul, at Bowes Green Farm, for joint top of £1,700.
The second prize newly calven heifer from Mark Smith, of Winterburn, sold for £1,580 to John Marshall in Dacre, while Edward Fort was himself among the prizes with the third prize nine days calved 26 litre heifer, knocked down at £1,500 to SM Liddle & Sons, of Huby.
Glusburn’s David Fort had the second prize newly calven cow which became a £1,550 purchase when again falling to Mr Marshall.
The 13 head forward for sale saw newly calven heifers average £1,514 and newly calven cows £1,385.
Potential vendors and buyers of dairy cattle are asked to note that a change to the schedule will now see the next sale take place on Monday, October 23, and every following fortnight.
Calves sell to £420
The same day’s weekly rearing calf sale attracted another robust turnout of 106 head, with British Blue-cross bull calves having the pick of the trade when selling to a high of £420 for an entry from the Houseman family, of Church Farm Enterprises in Burton Leonard.
Limousin consignments from Pickersgill Bros in Hawksworth and Simmentals from Bolton Abbey’s Hayton and Stocks both peaked at £410, while natives, again good to sell, topped at £340 for an Aberdeen Angus bull calf from Chadwick and Leaver in Burnley. Improved trade for black and whites saw a day’s high of £120 for a bull calf from Dacre’s John and Rob Marshall.
Continental bull calves averaged £365.41 and natives £279.37, with respective averages of £309.75 and £184.80 for heifers.