Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their ‘Mid-March Extravaganza’ show and sale of store cattle in conjunction with the weekly sale of cast cattle, store and breeding stock and fortnightly sale of fodder on Monday 16th March 2026. Forward were 540 cattle and 222 sheep.
62 Cast Cattle sold to 420ppk or £4170
4 Cows & Calves sold to £4600
77 Young Bulls sold to £2460
169 Store Steers sold to £2840
224 Store Heifers sold to £3350
74 In Lamb Ewes sold to £252
123 Store Hoggs sold to £181
25 Feeding Ewes/Rams/Goats sold to £208
710 Fodder sold to £86
Mid-March Extravaganza Show & Sale
Many thanks go to our judge Mr Nathan Grainger who made his way across the Pennines from Glasson to make a thorough and excellent job of placing some terrific cattle which were presented before him. Chosen as champion was an outstanding 22-month-old Limousin heifer from Five Houses, Hutton Rudby which understandably went on to top the trade when she was sold for £3350. Reserve champion went to a sweet 10-month-old British Blue heifer from T Ducker, Coppice House Farm, Sheffield which would later sell for £2390. A full sale report appears further down the page.
Cast Cattle – Some stunners at the top end and a very sharp cow trade helped the sale average rise remarkably beyond £2000. The sixty-two over the scale included eighteen Friesians and a dozen natives which all levelled at an excellent 294ppk and £2054. To the top spot, a cow to make you say wow from BJ Haigh, Hightown; a pedigree British Blue weighing 993kg sold for a delightful 420ppk and £4170. The British Blue success stories kept on coming when an OTM heifer from Five Houses sold for 406ppk and £3252 and a couple of cracking cows from KO Stones, Nun Cote Nook topped at £3167 and 390ppk. Limousins were well represented when J Mawer, Broomfield Farm sold an OTM heifer at 402ppk and £3043 whereas native breeds peaked at 312ppk and £2165 from the on-song BJ Haigh. Fabulous were the Friesians today, a super six black and white cows sold over £2000, largely thanks to some seriously fleshy sorts from SH Watson & Son, Low Fields Farm who had a best on the day of £2603 and 288ppk.
Cast Cows- Top Prices PPK 420 312 BJ Haigh. 406 370 A Kitson. 402 374 J Mawer. 390 370 340 KO Stones. 360 324 JT&M Atkinson. 336 332 G Corner. 334 292 J Fletcher. 328 J Curry. 314 306 290 W&R Kemp & Son. 312 296 292 288 286 Skelton Farming Ltd. 306 T Ducker. 296 Y Kettle. 292 JC Thwaite & Son. 290 Lakeland Farm Visitor Centre. 288 x2 286 SH Watson & Son. 284 JR&G Walton & Sons. 284 DW Humphrey.
Lead Grossing Cast Cows- £4170 £2165 BJ Haigh. £3252 A Kitson & Son. £3167 £2878 £2859 KO Stones. £3043 £2520 J Mawer. £2798 £2630 G Corner. £2653 £2206 JT&M Atkinson. £2603 £2500 £2488 £2465 £2408 £2315 £2227 £2194 £1964 SH Watson & Son. £2231 £2149 £2044 Skelton Farming Ltd. £2135 £2059 W&R Kemp & Son. £2051 Y Kettle. £2050 JR&G Walton & Sons. £2028 G Thompson & Sons. £2017 J Fletcher. £2005 £2000 JC Thwaite & Son. £1926 Copeland Farms.
Stock Bulls- Top Prices PPK 236 P Foster.
Lead Grossing Stock Bulls- £2138 P Foster.
Store & Breeding Cattle – Numbers healthy for the March show and sale and trade very, very sharp for all shapes and sizes, superb runs from as far north as Jedburgh, south as Lincolnshire and from Cumbria all the way across to the East Coast and everywhere in between all impressed to see averages climb across the board as young bulls levelled at £1818, heifers £1851 and steers £1864.
Beginning proceedings were a handful of cows and calves, top call of £4600 went back to Lincolnshire with JW Fieldson, Poplar Farm who brought out a smashing 4-year-old Limousin with a British Blue crossed bull calf at foot. Young bulls followed and look very hot property indeed; the top twenty-nine all aged under 12-months all sold over £2000. Pick of the high-flying pack were a great run from DW Humphrey, Capon Hall Farm with eight in the £2400’s to a top of £2460 and a bewildering average of £2388 for sixteen sold. The top of the clean cattle leader board was dominated by the terrific consignment of forward stores from Five Houses, Hutton Rudby. The classy Champion led proceedings at £3350; she was followed at £3100 by another luscious Limousin heifer with a further seven special sorts between £2800 and £3000 as thirty-six from this hot home averaged a marvellous £2600. The fever from Five Houses aside some super returns were available all day long; KO Stones, Nun Cote Nook sold the sweetest 11-month-old British Blue heifer for £2700 whilst L Claughan, Potters Farm also impressed at £2600 with a 12-month-old British Blue heifer. Strong store trade was certainly flying high to help bidding on the day pass £2000 on more than 130 occasions whilst the younger beasts destined for a summer at grass are in unprecedented demand with over sixty active accounts in operation and all seemingly very fit to travel.
Cows & Calves- £4600 £3400 JW Fieldson. £3100 £2380 GM Elstob.
Store Bulls- £2460 £2440 x5 £2420 £2400 £2380 x3 £2360 £2350 £2320 £2300 £2260 DW Humphrey. £2280 £2200 £2080 £2040 £1960 £1780 £1700 R White. £2220 x4 £2140 £1920 £1880 E Scott & Sons. £2200 £1900 £1800 F Watson. £2180 x2 J&P Armstrong. £1800 £1780 Haig Murray. £1720 x5 Wilkinson & Son.
Store Heifers- £3350 £3100 £2930 x2 £2900 £2880 x2 £2820 £2760 £2740 £2640 £2620 £2560 x2 £2540 £2530 £2500 £2480 £2440 £2420 x2 £2380 £2340 £2300 £2290 £2260 £2140 A Kitson & Son. £2700 KO Stones. £2600 £2120 £2080 L Claughan. £2560 £2320 £2220 £2200 x2 RL Dent. £2400 NG Beveridge. £2390 £2180 T Ducker. £2380 J Fletcher. £2360 x2 £2100 x2 FH Hutchinson. £2320 £2300 £2290 A Gregg. £2320 GW Dobson & Son. £2300 RW Ridley. £2260 JN Swinbank. £2120 £2100 K Sayer. £2080 E Scott & Sons. £2070 x3 Wilkinson & Son.
Store Steers- £2840 £2760 £2580 x2 £2540 x2 £2520 A Kitson & Son. £2330 RMS Livestock Ltd. £2320 P Martin. £2250 x4 £2240 x4 W Walker & Sons. £2240 £2230 K Sayer. £2220 x2 Haig Murray. £2180 KO Stones. £2140 £2120 £2100 x2 £2080 £1980 x2 AP&E Procter. £2100 £2070 RL Dent. £2060 £1920 RW Ridley. £2040 HS Hutchinson. £2040 JN Swinbank. £2020 x2 JG Wilkinson & Son. £2020 x2 £1940 x3 W Emerson. £2010 x2 £1910 x2 GT&MA Wearmouth. £2000 Lakeland Farm Visitor Centre. £1990 x7 GM Elstob. £1940 L Claughan. £1940 x2 £1920 BR Lawson.
Store and Breeding Sheep – Seventy-four excellent in lamb ewes from M Wilson, Arngill House were the undoubted highlight in the sheep ring this week. The well-presented run carrying a lamb and a half topped at £252 and returned a most pleasing average of £219.05 apiece. Feeding ewes remained on-song to average £147.36 with a best of £208 from NG Beveridge, Low West House whilst the recent uplift in hogg trade ensured another excellent trade which topped at £181 for a quartet of Beltex from SA Braithwaite, Prys House.
Store Sheep-
In Lamb Ewes- £252 £225 £222 £220 £210 x2 £205 £200 M Wilson.
Feeding Ewes- £208 £168 NG Beveridge. £160 £136 DW Robinson. £160 £148 £140 JV Hodgson & Son. £150 SA Braithwaite. £110 x2 JD Heavisides.
Goats- £168 TT Hall & Son.
Store Hoggs- £181 £164 SA Braithwaite. £179 £168 £140 £139 £128 High Mains Partnership. £162 £136 £93 £82 K Sayer. £161 JV Hodgson & Son. £153 £129 L Fowler. £150 JD Brannen. £148 JD Heavisides. £136 S Dodsworth. £132 £124 £82 R Simpson & Sons. £119 Hall Bros. £115 I Curry.
Fodder – Demand continues for all qualities and quantities as the great fodder shortage of 2025 still knocks on into the spring of 2026.
6 String Square hay sold to £86 per bale
6 String Square straw sold to £60 per bale
Round bale hay sold to £62 per bale
Round Bale Silage sold to £48 per bale
Small Square bales of barley straw sold top £5 per bale
