Limousins take Thrapston champion and reserve

 At Thrapston's Farmers Guardian supported Christmas show and sale in was a clean sweep in the prime cattle section for Will and Natasha Burden, W.R.B. Farming,  Ringstead, who claimed the overall prime cattle championship with a home-bred April 2022-born Limousin steer. It went on to sell for £2,159.40 (370p/kg) to W.H. Thomas Farm Shop, Ecton.

They also took the reserve championship with a home-bred Limousin sired heifer out of a British Blue cross cow which sold for £2,159.40 (366p/kg) to P. Fraser, Leighton Buzzard.

Mr and Mrs Burden run about 60 suckler cows with the majority of progeny sold as stores but some are retained for showing. Both champion and reserve were by a stock bull, Mereside Ontario.

The native sired winner from G.R. Fountaine and Son, Milton Keynes, was an Angus sired heifer which sold for £1,494.40 (282p/kg) and the unhaltered class winner from E. Sansom and Son, Deenethorope, made £2,077 (322p/kg).

Taking the champion and reserve titles in the sheep section was Ann Wilson, Harpole, with pure Rouge lambs. The champion pen of three weighed 61.5kg/head and sold for £250/head (405p/kg) to A.J. Neal and Son, Kings Lynn, with the 57kg reserve champions selling for £190/head (333p/kg) to the same buyer.

Mrs Wilson lambs 40 pure Rouge ewes which are run alongside a 100 head commercial flock.

The sale of show and commercial lambs had an SQQ of 291p/kg.

The champion pig was a five-month-old Duroc cross from Paul Winderspin, Pidley, which had been bought as a weaner from the market. It sold for £200 to Joseph Morris Butchers, Rugby.

The charity chosen by the Thrapston and District Fat Stock Show Society was Marie Curie and more than £1,100 was raised at the Christmas show with fundraising to continue at the society dinner.

 Auctioneers: Bletsoes.