Champion lambs sell to £500/head at Bentham
The Christmas show and sale of short wooled lambs at Bentham was judged by John Naylor, Halton, who was retiring after 26 years of service to the market. He chose as champions a pen of five 46kg Belte from Ian, Mary and Richard Lancaster, Clitheroe, which went on to sell for the top price of £500/head (1,036p/kg) to Saj Shan on behalf of Shans Group, Ossett.
Second prize and reserve champion went to R.A. Cowperthwaite, Malham Moor, whose pen sold for £220/head. The third prize pen from A.L. Thompson, Foulridge, sold for £270/head.
Away from the show, lambs were in demand with the best bred lambs either side of 400p/kg with a run from T. Hill and R. Wright, Wadsworth to 444.4p/kg.
Commercial lambs were 320-340p/kg. The best heavy lambs were £180-£205 with a single from Messrs Thompson to £222. The better pens of heavy Mules were £136-£142 with handy weights 295-305p.
Auctioneers: R. Turner and Son.
Thirsk champion lambs sell for £445/head
JoJo Andrews, Boscar Flatts, claimed both champion and reserve at Thirsk's Christmas show and sale of prime lambs, judged by Kevin Kelly, Leeds.
The champions were 45kg Beltex which went on to sell for £445/head (989p/kg) to Philip Marley Butchers, Ripon. In reserve was a single 55kg Beltex cross lamb which made £280/head (509p/kg) to Charles Ashbridge, of Taste Tradition, Hutton Conyers.
Prime cattle were judged by Andrew Radford, of Radford's Butchers, Sleights, who chose as champion a 672kg Limousin cross heifer from Andrew and Jen Dyson, Masham, which went on to sell for 540p/kg (£3,629) to Mr Ashbridge.
Reserve champion went to Matthew Keel, Bagby, with his halter-led Limousin cross bullock which made 445p/kg (£2,750) to the Franks family, Thirsk.
Prime bulls and cull cows were judged by Mr Kelly who awarded the championship to John Hall, Aldborough, with a 692kg British Blue cross, which made 368p/kg (£2,547) to Robert Pearson, of Ralph Pearson and Son, Bradford. In reserve was a 790kg Limousin cross bull from Ian Woodhead, Felixkirk, which sold for 340p/kg (£2,686), also to Messrs Pearson.
The Tinsel Trotters show and sale of store pigs, the first of its kind in the country, was judged by Matthew Keel, who awarded the championship to Daniel Thackery, Fewston, with his first prize pen of store pigs weighing over 50kg which went onto sell for a record-breaking £200/head.
Reserve champions from the same home were the second prize store pigs weighing over 50kg which sold for £180/head, with both pens bought by the judge.
Top price of the day outside of the show was £142/head for a pair of gilts from Mr Thackery. Young breeding sows sold to £100 and £92 for E. Staveley, North Stainley.
Auctioneers: Thirsk Farmers Auction Mart.
Store cattle at Barnard Castle
The 257 store cattle and suckled calves at Barnard Castle topped at £2,150 for a Limousin steer from W.K., M.M. and S.J. Lamb, Cotherstone. Top priced heifer at £2,030 was a British Blue from N.R. and C.S. Hodgson, Ravenstonedale.
Feeding bulls sold to £1,805 for two British Blondes consigned by T. and D.I. Allen and Son, Wolsingham.
The suckled calf champion was an 11-month-old Limousin steer from B. and S. Teasdale and Son, Copley, which sold for £1,740 to Messrs Robshaw, Tadcaster.
Reserve champion was a 10-month-old British Blue steer from F. and M.P. Allinson, West Briscoe, which made £1,960.
Averages – Steers, £1,564.54; heifers, £1,459; feeding bulls, £1,482.33.
Auctioneers: Barnard Castle and Teesdale Farmers Auction Mart Co.
Champion lambs top Kirkby Stephen at £400/head
Topping the Christmas show and sale of prime lambs at Kirkby Stephen at £400/head (784.3p/kg) were the overall champions and winning heavyweight Beltex, 51kg lambs from Messrs Askwith, Crook, which sold to Mr Alam of Lancashire Direct Halal Meat, Blackburn.
The reserve champion pair of lambs were the winning light weight Beltex crosses, 41kg lambs from Messrs Dinsdale, Morland, which sold for £230/head (561p/kg).
Outwith the show, Messrs Fell, Keswick, sold five pens of Rouge and Dutch Texel lambs over £5kg. Firstly, for 39kg lambs which made £211 (541p/kg), 42kg lambs at £205 (488.1p/kg), 38kg lambs at £200 (526.3p/kg), a pen of five 38kg lambs at £196 (515p/kg) and a pen of five 38kg lambs at £193 (507.9p/kg). The consignment of 20 averaged £193.25 (504.6p/kg).
Mule lambs topped at £158/head for the first prize pen of 10, 55kg lambs from Messrs Wharton, Murton.
The SQQ was 349.4p/kg with an overall average of 331p/kg (£148.67/head) which included more than 500 Mule and horned lambs.
Topping the ewes at £228/head was the first prize pen of five lowland sheep, Blue Texels from Ellen Elliot, Penrith.
The first prize pen of hill ewes was a pen of five Swaledales from Messrs Lawson, Wigton, which made £124/head.
Auctioneers: Harrison and Hetherington.
Christmas champions set Lancaster market record.
At Christmas prize show and sale of store cattle at Lancaster the championship rosette was won by D.E. and S.M. Moorhouse, Kendal, with a pair of 20-month-old Limousin cross steers, which later sold for a new market record of £2,500/head to R.T. Owen, Bold. The reserve champions from the same vendor sold for £2,380/head.
A special prize award for the best pen of home-bred cattle went to R. Capstick and Son, Ingleton, with a pen of 22-month-old Limousin cross steers, which sold for £2,140/head to R.F. Towers, Wray.
Limousin cross steers from Pilling Hall, Pilling, sold for £2,080/head, as did British Blue steers from J. Lamb, Lancaster.
The sale of over-30-month and cull cows saw a top price of 304p/kg for Aberdeen-Angus cross steers from O. Butler, Kirkham, with cows to £2,154 for a Limousin from R.H. and C. Ayrton, Abbeystead.
Rearing calves sold to £630 for a Charolais cross bull from Drinkall Bros, Over Wyredale, with a British Blue cross to £575 for A.D. and R. Milner, Claughton on Brock. The champion, a British Blue cross bull from Wallbank Farms, Over Wyresdale made £550 to J. Townson, Blackburn.
Averages - steers, £1,641; heifers, £1,381.
Auctioneers: North West Auctions.
