Ellis Bros land first-ever Skipton prime lamb title
Ellis Bros, of Addingham Moorside, secured a first-ever prime lamb championship at Skipton Auction Mart’s July show with a pen of five home-bred lambs by both Beltex and Dutch Texel stock rams. (Mon, July 6)
They were shown by Richard Ellis and his daughter Becky, with Simon, Robert and Dan Ellis also an integral part of the family farming business. The 42kg victors sold for the day’s top call of £101 per head to Andrew Atkinson, of Felliscliffe, Harrogate, who secured the champions in behalf of Hartshead Meats in Ashton-under-Lyne.
Mr Atkinson also snapped up the reserve champion pen of first prize-winning 43kg Suffolks shown by Michael and James Spensley, of Elslack, for £79 per head. These were also for Hartshead Meats.
The second prize 38kg Continental-cross Beltex pen of from Jonathan Townley, of Clapham, made £93.50 each when joining Vivers Scotlamb in Annan, who also paid £80 each for the third prize pen from Whalley’s Richard and Mark Ireland.
Back with the Suffolks, the 47kg runners-up from RA&M Earnshaw, of Flasby, made the same price as the class victors at £79 per head when falling to Swaledale Foods in Skipton, while the third prize 44kg pen from John and Alison Spensley in Thorlby sold for £72 each to Riley Bros Butchers in Dunnockshaw, Rossendale.
The red rosette in a standalone show class for Mule lambs was awarded to a 47kg pen from Joe and Nancy Throup in Draughton, selling away at a class-topping £70.50 per head to MacIntyre Meats in Bainbridge.
The second prize 42kg pen from Calton’s Robert Crisp made £65.50 each, bettered at £68 per head by the third prize 44kg pen from Middlesmoor’s David Verity. Both fell to show judge Paul Watson, of Hellifield.
An increased show of sheep met with a much sharper trade on the week, with the overall selling average up 10p/kg at 165.52p, or £69.11 per head, for what was the largest show of lambs this season at 2,470 in number.
Better lambs took the best lift, with smart sorts especially well sought after, while a nicely finished prime lamb was also £4 to £6 dearer on the week. The straight-forward commercial types and plainer sorts were around £2 to £3 dearer on the week, while a few Mule wethers sold for around 150p/kg.
Almost 500 cast sheep were on parade. Cull ewes averaged £60.51 per head, peaking at £126.50 each for a Texel pen from John Airey, of Elslack. Cast rams averaged £94.61 each, peaking at £140.50 for a Charollais from South Yorkshire vendor Richard Lea.