Prime Cattle (under 30 mos)

A strong entry of butcher’s cattle headed by David Bailey of Long Lee with a good pen of cattle heading up the gross prices with a 585kg Limousin cross heifer which sold to Keelham Farm Shop in Skipton for £1430 or 244.5p/kg. David Bailey also topped the steers with a 575kg British Blue cross at £1400 (243.5p/kg) which sold to William Rathmell. The top prices per kg were headlined by Keelham Farm Shop with both top price steer and heifer from Simon Bennett of Silsden Moor, the heifer a 445kg Limousin at 249.5p/kg (£1110) and the steer a Limousin cross at 247.5p/kg (£1337). In the heavy heifers (485kg+) Paul Ellison of Cullingworth bought the highest priced per kg at 246.5p (£1380), a 560kg Limousin cross from Mesrs RT&J Critchley&Sons of Hutton, near Preston. Worth noting the top 5 heavy continental steers and heifers 585kg-625kg at 244.5, 233.5p, 228.5p, 227.5p,221.5p. A number of bidders at a 585kg Limousin bull sold by Mesrs JG&PM Varley of Bradford before purchase by Mesrs J&E Medcalf of Halifax for 193.5p or £1132.

Steers

465-560kg                             to 247.5p/kg                        av.238.48p/kg

560kg+                                   to 243.5p/kg                        av. 227.91p/kg

Heifers

400-480kg                             to 249.5p/kg                        av. 197.8p/kg

Bulls

560kg+                                   to 193.5p/kg       

Top Prices £ per head and p/kg

Steers

£ per head: DJ Bailey (BBx) 1400, CD&RF Kitching (BBx) 1378, JA Gardner (Blondex) 1356, SD Bennett (Limx) 1337

p/kg: SD Bennett (Limx) 247.5, DJ Bailey (BBx) 243.5, (Blondex) 237.5, CD&RF Kitching (BBx) 233.5

Heifers

£ per head: DJ Bailey (Limx) 1430, CD&RF Kitching (Limx) 1389, JA Gardner (Blondex) 1388,1384, RT&J Critchley&Sons (Limx) 1380

p/kg: SD Bennett (Limx) 249.5, RT&J Critchley&Sons (Limx) 246.5, DJ Bailey (Limx) 244.5, CD&RF Kitching (Limx) 235.5,235.5

Bulls

£ per head: JG&PM Varley (Lim) 1132          

p/kg: JG&PM Varley (Lim) 193.5

Overall Average                                   95.19p/kg             £565.41

A high proportion of lean lightweight cows and a sale average of £565 which doesn’t convey the firm demand for cattle with finish. Finished dairies are comfortably 110p and the best of the beef cows 145.5p for JG&PM Varley. A mature Limousin bull under 30 months weighing 815kg made 166.5p/kg or £1357 for John and Neil Cowperthwaite of Eldroth selling to R Pearson of Bradford.

Black & White                      to 108.5p/kg                        av.86.43p/kg

AAx                                         to 98.5p/kg

Limx                                       to 145.5p/kg                        av.139.61p/kg

Top Prices (£ per head or p/kg)

B&W:

£ per head: J Gooch 680,656, G&PS Fleetwood 669, J Rushton 656, E&KM Marshall 600

p/kg: JT Rushton 108.5, G&PS Fleetwood 104.5, J Gooch 101.5,99.5

Native

£ per head: DA&SA Fort (AAx) 483

p/kg: DA&SA Fort (AAx) 98.5

Lim:

£ per head: JG&PM Varley 1011, R&KA Burley&Son 881

p/kg: JG&PM Varley 145.5, R&KA Burley&Son 133.5

MATURE BULL

Overall Average                                   166.5p/kg             £1356.98

Lim

£ per head: JE Cowperthwaite 1357

p/kg: JE Cowperthwaite 166.5

2,732 Prime Sheep comprising 2,458 Spring Lamb, 274 Cast Ewes & Rams

Less sheep about this week as ethnic customers quieter due to the commencement of Eid Al Adha (Qurbani) and this affecting trade as expected with a reduction in price to 182p/kg. Heavier lambs were the grade to take the biggest knock on the week, whilst the handier weight export lambs were contested keener by buyers, most likely helped by the lower Pound-Euro exchange rate helping export trade.
TR Thwaite & Son Hortoon in Craven topped the sale at £110 for Texels selling to J&E Medcalf & Son, Wholesale Butchers. JA Stoney & Son Pateley Bridge made £107 of Texels selling to Brayton Farm Shop. N&AD Boynton from Ripon made £104.50 and £100 each to Vivers Scotlamb and Kendall Farm Butchers repectively. Messrs Boynton pen at £104.50 were also the top price per kilo at 248.8p/kg.

A handier show of cast sheep were a tidy trade on the week, with nicely fleshed lowland ewes selling to a decent trade, and good hill ewes holding their value well.

Spring Lambs – Overall Average £78.06 per head or 182.19p/kg           

36.0kg to 45.5kg to 248.8p/kg         av 182.09p/kg      or £76.47 per head

45.6kg to 52.0kg to 208.7p/kg         av 183.26p/kg      or £86.29 per head

52.1kg and over   to 200p/kg            av 176.99p/kg      or £88.30 per head

Charollais average £74.16 per head or 177.88p/kg

£ per head: £96 N&AD Boynton; £90, £85.5, £83 CH&OF Hammond; £79 D Nutter; £76 LJ Clay; £75 JJ Beckwith & Sons;

p/kg: 214.3p JJ Beckwith & Sons; 208.7p N&AD Boynton; 186.3p FM Shepherd & Son; 185.9p CH&OF Hammond;

Suffolk average £75.29 per head or 179.58p/kg

£ per head: £92 JP&KE Hartley; £85 R Emmott; £84 JR Crabtree; £82 SR&JC Bradley; £82 RA&M Earnshaw & Sons;

p/kg: 188.9p R Emmott; 187.2p TH&A Pickard & Sons; 185p W Stapleton & Sons; 184p JP&KE Hartley;

Texel average £78.14 per head or 182.39p/kg

£ per head: £110 TR Thwaite & Son; £107 JA Stoney & Son; £100 N&AD Boynton; £99 JA Stoney & Son; £99 AM&E Hartley;

p/kg:225p AM&E Hartley; 209.8p AF Harker; 202.3p MJ&LE Kayley; 200p TR Thwaite & Son; 200p JR Crabtree;

Beltex average £83.34 per head or 200.31p/kg

£ per head: £104.5 N&AD Boynton; £98 JB Hacking & Son; £97.5 Ellis Bros; £96 TA Robinson; £96 DJ Halliday; £95.5 TA Robinson

p/kg: 248.8p N&AD Boynton; 237.8p Ellis Bros; 228.6p TA Robinson; 227.6p James Garth & Sons; 226.8p PR Simpson;

Mule average £61.74 per head or 151.93p/kg

£ per head: £73.5 C Nelson & Sons; £69.5 J&JA Preston & Son; £64 JJ Beckwith & Sons; £64 R&KA Burley & Son;

p/kg:165.5p J&JA Preston; 156.1p JJ Beckwith & Sons; 156.1p R&KA Burley & Son; 150p TE Walker;

Texel to £100, Mule to £58.5, Lleyn to £47.5, Swaledale to £55.5, Lleyn to £47.5, Charollais to £52.5.

Top prices:

Lowland: £100 AJ Calvert; £97.50 A Lambert;

Mule/Masham: £58.50 CJ Udall; £57.50 L Throup; £57.50 AM Binns;

Horned: £55.50 W&J&E Harker & Son, £51.50 C Nelson & Sons;

Hill: £47.50 SR Petty;  

Cast Rams average £69.5

Texel to £70.5 BFL to £73.5, Beltex to £64.5.

Rearing Calves to £410 (68)

B&W av £90.50 Cont av £304.32 Native av £146.67

A very good show of continental calves this morning with 58 of 68 calves presented having British Blue on the passport. The best was presented by Alan Middleton of Hartley’s Bolton Abbey with his belting 8 week old bull calf selling for £410. 35 British blue averaged £324 and 23 British Blue heifers averaging £263 topping with a belting heifer from John and Rob Marshall of Dacre selling for £360.

Black and white calves were in short supply however some very heady prices were seen with an average of £90.5 topping with Richard Spence of Sutton In Craven seeing his fleshy bulls reach £145 and £140.   

Bull Calves

Brit Blue x (Av £324.93) to £410 JP&KE Hartley                                                          

Black & White (Av £90.5) to £145 RM Spence                             

Heifer Calves                       

Ab Angus (Av £146.67) to £180 A Sowray & Son                                                        

British Blue (Av £263.17) to £360 JC Marshall

Craven Dairy Auction (8 head)

 A quiet show of milker’s in today’s shippon however there was plenty of bidders in attendance ringside. Colin Whitelock of Gargrave undertook the judging honours and efficiently went about his duties placing the heifer belonging to Peter Baul of Bishop Thornton as his Champion with the heifer from Brian Moorhouse of Bell Busk a very close Reserve.

The Champion a home bred Pedigree heifer from the Ravensgate herd, sired by Genus sire Ferdinand and giving 33kg went on to sell for £2080 to Brian Blezard of Ribchester. The Reserve Champion, a heifer from the renowned Miss America family of Brian and Judith Moorhouse, giving 30kg she went onto sell for the sale high of £2120 again heading to Mr Blezard.

The 1^st prize cow, a 38kg 2^nd calver from Stephen and Rachel Coates of Baildon found many interested parties eventually selling for £1700 to Aubrey Greenhalgh.   

Judge – Colin Whitelock

Prize Awards:       Newly Calven Heifers: 1^st M Baul & Partners; 2^nd GB Moorhouse 3^rd MD Parkinson            

                                Newly Calven Cows: 1^st GW&M Coates 2^nd M Mosley

Champion – M Baul & Partners                       Reserve – GB Moorhouse

Newly Calven Heifers (av £1705): to £2120 GB Moorhouse

Newly Calven Cows (av £1325): to £1700 GW&M Coates