Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their weekly sale of prime stock on Thursday 14th May 2026. Forward were 246 cattle and 1098 sheep.
45 Prime Bulls sold to 398ppk or £3302
42 Prime Steers sold to 417ppk or £2988
159 Prime Heifers sold to 445ppk or £3214
151 New Season Lambs sold to 584ppk or £266
789 Prime Hoggs sold to 450ppk or £234
158 Cast Ewes/Rams sold to £246
Prime Bulls (45) – The beef trade continues to drag its heels somewhat; all buyers present and bidding but trade easier in line with the current trend; a plainer show on the week averaged 334ppk and £2402. For the first time in a long time no bulls reached 400ppk, two vendors came very close with Limousin’s as JR Knox & Son, Bracks Farm reached 398ppk and TW Clark & Son, Frankland Farm 397ppk. Four bulls passed £3000, good Limousin’s from P Langstaff, Dunn House (£3113) and the aforementioned topper from Bracks Farm (£3004) both fell short of two terrific bulls from JJ Horn, Bushy Park. The brilliant British Blonde’s ensured that John from Bushy Park could shout the loudest of our bull vendors this week when they sold for £3160 and £3302 apiece. Friesian bulls probably more in favour than most and top spots remain very close to last weeks, best per kilo at 330 pence was the dependable R Hall & Son, Kilton Hall whilst the top in the lump went to J Armstrong, Southern Law at £2196.
Lead Grossing Bull Averages
JJ Horn sold 2 (873kg) Average £3231
P Langstaff sold 2 (872kg) Average £2915
JR Knox & Son sold 2 (758kg) Average £2885
Continental Bulls – Top prices ppk 398 363 JR Knox & Son. 397 393 379 TW Clark & Son. 380 360 JJ Horn. 371 350 J Armstrong. 351 340 332 GH Farms Ltd. 348 346 336 325 JA&A Herbert. 342×2 331 R Neill & Partners. 337 331 P Langstaff. 337 328 JM&S Walton. 336 335 325 WE&CA Anderson.
Lead Grossing Continental Bulls £3302 £3160 JJ Horn. £3113 £2717 P Langstaff. £3004 £2766 JR Knox & Son. £2923 £2579 DP Wood. £2793 £2597 £2580 TW Clark & Son. £2688 £2677 £2654 R Neill & Partners. £2614 £2520 £2379 JM&S Walton. £2594 £2525 £2405 WE&CA Anderson. £2593 32425 J Armstrong. £2513 £2431 £2420 GH Farms Ltd.
Native Bulls – Top prices ppk 330 J Armstrong. 330 JV Hodgson & Son. 327 314 GS Dowson.
Lead Grossing Native Bulls £2247 J Armstrong. £2154 JV Hodgson & Son. £1874 £1834 GS Dowson.
Friesian Bulls – Top prices ppk 330 319 307 R Hall & Son. 314 JM&S Walton. 309 J Armstrong. 302 HM&JS Hutchinson.
Lead Grossing Friesian Bulls £2196 J Armstrong. £2087 £2049 £1961 R Hall & Son. £2081 JM&S Walton. £1736 HM&JS Hutchinson. £1628 D Walker.
Clean Cattle (201) – Plenty of numbers offered again as the live ring continues, even on a falling trade, to out perform many of the deadweight options available. Despite twenty-seven clean selling over £2700 and eighty-seven cattle selling over 400ppk the trade was easier again to see the heifer’s level at 389ppk and £2368 and the steers average 367ppk and £2579. The top four heifers sold in the 440’s per kilo and included three separate Cumbrian’s and a Northumbrian; pick of the pack at 445ppk was an excellent 580kg Limousin from Messrs R Miller Ltd, Arkleby Hall. The same surname followed when W Miller, High Aketon checked in at 442ppk ahead of WO Grix & Partners at 441ppk and JJ Crichton at 440ppk. The top three steers per kilo traded within tuppence of one another, third place at 415ppk went to Rochester & Murray, Glebe Farm whilst J Dixon & Sons Ltd, Lesson Hall reached 416ppk however both failed to catch a brilliant 667kg Limousin from WJ Scott Ltd, Low Leam Farm at 417ppk. One magic sort broke, nay smashed, the £3000 barrier; an exceptional 846kg Charolais heifer from JJ Crichton, Loughrigg Farm, Egremont reached 380ppk bringing her to an excellent gross value of £3214. Four fine sorts sold over £2900, two terrific Limousin steers (709kg & 729kg) from the aforementioned J Dixon & Sons Ltd sold for £2949 and £2988 whilst tremendous heifers from WJ Scott Ltd £2993 and also JB Luck & Son, Milestone House £2989 are all well worthy of a mention.
Top Lead Grossing Clean Cattle Averages
JB Luck & Son sold 2 (681kg) Average £2896
J Dixon & Sons Ltd sold 3 (689kg) Average £2868
JJ Crichton sold 4 (692kg) Average £2857
Top PPK Clean Cattle Averages
JB Luck & Son sold 2 (681kg) Average 424ppk
W Miller sold 12 (550kg) Average 423ppk
J Dixon & Sons Ltd sold (689kg) Average 416ppk
Steers – Top prices ppk 417 397 381 352 WJ Scott Ltd. 416 410 J Dixon & Sons Ltd. 415 Rochester & Murray. 405 389 388 WO Grix & Partners. 396 382 375 JD Forsyth & Son. 396 368 354 MF Hall. 390 388 387 MJ&EA Sedgewick. 389 368 362 RE Miller. 387 W Swinbank & Sons. 380 379 JB&N Harrison & Sons. 370 Askwiths. 361 WF Hustwit.
Lead Grossing Steers £2988 £2949 J Dixon & Sons. £2878 £2842 £2838 £2603 £2578 £2574, JD Forsyth & Son. £2798 W Swinbank & Sons. £2781 JB&N Harrison & Sons. £2781 £2647 WJ Scott Ltd. £2778 £2602 RO Grix & Partners. £2761 £2747 £2646 £2625 Messrs R Miller. £2747 £2728 £2655 MJ&EA Sedgewick. £2723 £2637 RE Miller. £2642 TJ Dennis.
Heifers – Top prices ppk 445 Messrs R Miller. 442 436 430 428 427 424×2 422 420 W Miller. 441 437 435 431 429 425 419 418 WO Grix & Partners. 440 429 JJ Crichton. 439 434 424 R Hirst. 438 430 425 423 420 JV&JA Hodgson. 435 I Marshall & Sons. 434 JE Suddes & Son. 434 MF Hall. 430 428 Askwiths. 428 TJ Dennis. 426 424 JB Luck. 425 W Swinbank & Sons. 424 J Dixon. 423×2 420 WJ Scott Ltd.
Lead Grossing Heifers £3214 £2975 £2878 JJ Crichton. £2993 £2736 WJ Scott Ltd. £2989 £2803 JB Luck & Son. £2895 £2679 I Marshall & Sons. £2888 £2679 £2620 WO Grix & Partners. £2724 £2700 £2635 W Swinbank & Sons. £2709 MTP & SD Wills. £2700 £2624 WJ&AS Bowes & Sons. £2686 J Mawer. £2672 £2625 JE Suddes & Son. £2671 RE Miller. £2666 J Dixon & Sons. £2660 R Hirst. £2638 W Miller.
New Season Lambs (151) – Here come the new season lambs and there is quite some spring in the step of the springers today; in particular the very best lambs look a monumental trade as the top sixty passed 500ppk and forty-four sold over £250. Some great sheep on offer puts them all included a miraculous 120ppk and £65 per head up on the same week last year, they sit pretty today averaging a weighed straight 471ppk and £215.91 per head. Top per kilo went to the first draw of the year from JC Simpson, Hill Top East with half a dozen superb 44kg lambs at 584 pence (£257). The scorching Simpson run also sold pens of 43kg at 576ppk and 44kg at 565ppk ahead of six cracking 46kg lambs from W & M Knaggs & Son, East Newbiggin at 556ppk. Six thumping 52kg Texel crossed Suffolks from Cole Hill Farm, Elwick led the pounds per head when they sold for £266, the fine lambs from East Newbiggin followed with five 48kg at £261 ahead of more Simpson sorcery with a quintet at 47kg and £259. Plenty of the best lambs are still without mention in the £230’s, £240’s and £250’s and lest we forget probably forty or fifty lambs present out of Mules which still look well sold with many in the £180’s and £190’s.
Top Lead Grossing Spring Lamb Averages
W&M Knaggs & Son sold 17 (47kg) Average £255
Cole Hill Farm Ltd sold 23 (49kg) Average £254
JC Simpson sold 22 (44kg) Average £253
Spring Lambs- Top Prices PPK 584 576 565 551 JC Simpson. 556 543 527 502 W&M Knaggs & Son. 534 x2 511 496 Cole Hill Farm Ltd. 512 Camilla Bailes. 506 452 434 W Lewis & Sons. 502 486 436 Anna Herbert. 468 P&CM Graham. 461 452 450 441 438 JW&DW Laing.
Lead Grossing Spring Lambs- £266 £251 x2 £248 Cole Hill Farm Ltd. £261 £256 £251 £248 W&M Knaggs & Son. £259 £257 £249 £248 JC Simpson. £253 £248 £231 Anna Herbert. £250 £216 £210 JW&DW Laing. £241 Camilla Bailes. £240 £238 £200 W Lewis & Sons. £234 Austyn Chapman.
Prime Hoggs (789) – Good meat is still selling a treat as the fed sheep look a very sharp trade indeed, lots of sweepings up somewhat distort the averages as the sale levelled at 395ppk and £188.83. Three bonnie 40kg Beltex ended the 2025 crop on a high for PJ & MP Gilhespy, Low House when they led the prices per kilo at 450 pence, four smart 44kg hoggs from TN Callender, Ox Eye Farm followed at 444ppk as these two vendors took away the top eight spots per kilo between them. The classy Callender hoggs took the top spots per head also as seven hoggs weighing 50kg plus sold for £234, a remarkable statistic today as the top ten lots containing 305 hoggs all sold between £224 and £234, largely thanks to a great run of clipped really well fed hoggs from R Atkinson, High Greenbury Farm.
Top Lead Grossing Hogg Averages
JC Thwaite & Son sold 3 (82kg) Average £226
R Atkinson sold 196 (52kg) Average £225
Allison Devereux Farms sold 8 (57kg) Average £210
J&A Layfield sold 26 (54kg) Average £209
Hoggs – Top prices ppk 450 441 440 427 419 PJ&MP Gilhespy. 444 441 440 434 431 428 425 423 408 TN Callender. 430×3 426×3 418 R Atkinson. 426 410 402 391 CS Robinson. 421 402×3 J Atkinson. 411 396 387 G&S Frankland. 408 404 400 TA Greensit & Sons. 403 J&A Layfield. 400 J Lovegreen. 400 390 386 W.K M.M Lamb. 400 PM Hill. 391 WR Wilson & Partners. 386 B Needham.
Lead Grossing hoggs £234×2 £220×5 £210 £204 £200 TN Callender. £230 £226×3 £224×3 R Atkinson. £230 £220 JC Thwaite & Son. £220 £205 B Needham. £220×2 £210 PM Hill. £216 £214×2 £212 £204 J&A Layfield. £215 WR Wilson & Partners. £210×2 £200 £194 G&S Frankland. £210×2 £200 G&S Frankland. £210 Allison Devereux. £210 B Willis. £205 £200 I Marshall & Sons.
Cast Ewes/Rams (158) – Some heavyweights amongst the ewes this week sold at similarly high rates to leave a sale average of £187.76. Four big girls from JC Simpson, Hill Top East led the way at £246, two vendors followed at £240 as a pair of Texel’s from PM Hill, Old Hall Farm joined two from W & M Knaggs & Son, East Newbiggin. A super run of forty-nine freshly weaned ewes from W & M Knaggs averaged just a smidgeon over £225. Mule ewes topped at £192 from RH Wilson & Son, Cowper House and the breed averaged £165.75.
Lead Grossing Cast Sheep- £255 £240 £235 x3 £230 £229 £228 £226 £221 £217 £211 £210 £185 W&M Knaggs & Son. £246 JC Simpson. £240 £228 £216 £210 £200 £190 £170 PM Hill. £231 £191 Cole Hill Farm Ltd. £211 Petch Farms. £205 JG Hall. £200 £194 £178 TN Callender. £192 RH Wilson & Son. £186 RH Patterson & Son. £183 M&J Dryden. £180 x2 £170 PJ&MP Gilhespy. £176 £170 I Marshall & Sons. £170 JV&JA Hodgson.
