Mart prices - July 3

Other cow prices: Luing x to £1,142.27, £1,102.93 and £1,009.25 Blackcarts. Limousin x to £1,053.58. Simmental x £1,033.29 and £1,008.73 Blackcarts. More cows required to meet purchaser’s demands.

Prime sheep sale. Hexham and Northern Marts at their weekly sale of prime lambs had an increased entry of 545. Trade was in line with the easing prices of other markets over the past few trading days. Good handy-weight export type lambs were in demand and more could have been sold.

Top price per kilo 195p for Beltex x lambs from Nilston Rigg Farms, purchased by Jamie Curle. A good pen of Texel x from Brian and Barry Rayson, Salmonswell sold at 190p also purchased by Jamie Curle. Top price per head £80 for Texel x from M/s Burn, Grange House and M/s Robson, High Baulk.

Prime lamb prices: Texel x per head to £80, £74.50(2) and £71.50 High Baulk, £80 Grange House, £76, £74 and £73 Salmonswell, £76 Aydonshields, £74 Kirkley House and Broomy Hill, £73 Fell Lane, £72.50 Grindon Hill and £72 Beaumont House and Ashcroft (VF). Per kilo to 190p and 176.2p Salmonswell, 185p and 172.5p Broomy Hill, 184.6p Beaumont House, 180.5p Kirkley House, 180p Ashcroft, 178.1p and 175p Fell Lane, 175p Nilston Rigg, 170.7p Grange House and 170p Sherburn Tower. Suffolk x per head to £74, £69.50 and £68 Steel Hall, £73 Nilston Rigg, £72.50 and £72.20 Flotterton, £70 Burnhope Flatts, £69 Crescent Farm and £67 Board Inn. Per kilo to 185p, 158.1p and 158p Steel Hall, 148.9p Board Inn, 147.8p Lowes Fell, 147.3p Nilston Rigg and 147p Lunns House. Beltex x per head to £78 and £70 Nilston Rigg. Per kilo to 195p and 170.7p Nilston Rigg. Charollais x per head to £74 Beaumont House and £70 Board Inn. Per kilo to 189.7p Beaumont House. Crossbred to £69.50 Lodge House. Bleu D’Maine to £68 and 170p Low Staples. Mule to £55 and £53 Lowes Fell.

Cast ewes and rams: Texel x to £130, £90 and £87 Middle Farm Cottage, £125 and £94 Lough Green, £88, £79 and £75 Ravenside Bungalow, £88 Great Bavington, £80 New Dotland, £79 Kirkley House and £70 Westburnhope. Suffolk x to £88 and £67 Steel Hall, £80 Middle Farm Cottage and £72 Grange House. Cheviot to £88 Steel Hall. Mule to £77 and £70 Lowes Fell, £73 New Dotland, £71 Great Bavington, £70 The Bullions and £66 Woodhall. Blackface to £74 New Dotland.

FOR their weekly sale on Friday, Hexham and Northern Marts had an entry of 165 store cattle and suckled calves. Less numbers forward but were still sold to a full ring of local and distant buyers from Lincoln, Wigan, Yorkshire and Scotland. Stronger cattle maintained the high rates of last week to a top of £1,495 for a tremendous Limousin x steer from M/s Graham and Son, Miller Hill, Gilsland, purchased by D.N.O. Scott, Newton Villa. Nine from this farm averaged £1,203. Regular consignors Derek and Vince Milburn, Holling Hill, had a Limousin steer at £1,470, with six averaging £1,434. Top price heifer was a Montbeliarde x from G.A. Willey, Broomfield, at £1,330.

Cattle 23 – 30 months. Limousin x: Steers to £1,430 and £1,410 Miller Hill. Heifers to £1,185 East Newham. British Blue x steers to £1,380 West Wharmley. Montbeliarde x heifers to £1,330 Broomfield. Cattle 17 – 22 months. Limousin x: Steers to £1,495 and £1,300 Miller Hill and £1,470, £1,445, £1,440, £1,430 and £1,410(2) Holling Hill. Heifers to £1,165 and £950 East Newham, £1,080 West Wharmley, £1,070 Broomfield and £1,020 Holly Hill West. Beef Shorthorn steers to £1,465 Miller Hill. British Blue x heifers to £1,235 and £1,200 East Newham. Simmental x heifers to £1,220 and £1,130 Broomfield. Younger sorts were in strong demand and were slightly dearer again on the good rates of last week. Cattle 11 – 16 months. Charolais x: Steers to £1,340, £1,250 and £1,140 Miller Hill, £1,220, £1,150, £1,110 and £1,105 Castle Nook, and £1,050 Harewalls. Heifers to £1,035, £1,030 and £970 Harewalls, £930 and £905 Townfoot Woodburn and £920 Castle Nook. Limousin x: Steers to £1,165 Grange House, £1,160 Castle Nook, £1,155 The Steel, £1,130 and £1,105 Reaygarth, £1,100 and £990 Harewalls, £1,035 and £995 China Hall and £1,000 Eastbarns. Heifers to £1,105 Castle Nook, £1,080, £1,040 and £1,015 Grange House, £1,070, £945 and £920 Kingswood, £1,010 The Steel, £975, £950 and £905 Reaygarth, £970 Eastbarns, £950 East Matfen and £910(2) Woodhead. Angus x heifers to £1,050, £1,020 and £970 Kingswood.

Cattle 10 months and under. British Blue x steers to £1,140 Castle Nook. Angus x steers – £930 Low Bishopton. Charolais x: Steers to £930 Low Bishopton. Heifers to £890 Castle Nook. Limousin x steers to £900 Low Bishopton. Cattle needed each week to satisfy the strong demand around the Hexham ringside.

LAST Wednesday, Hexham and Northern Marts at their Scots Gap centre sold a small but quality entry of 220 prime lambs and cast sheep. Prices were largely In line with the easing trade seen earlier in the week and as such topped at £81 for heavy Texel lambs from Peter Gordon, Old Deanham, and 179p per kilo for a handy weighted pen from David Ashbridge, Wingates Moor. Cast sheep peaked at £134 for a Texel Ram from Messrs Salt, Rattenraw, and £94 for a Texel ewe from Messrs Dodds, High House. More of these could easily have been sold to advantage. Leading prices. Prime lambs: Texel x per head to £81, £73(2) and £70 Old Deanham, £77, £73.50 and £69.50 South Farm, £73.50 Barrasford Green, £72 Angerton Steads, £70.50 High House, £70 Broom House and £69 Wingates Moor. Per kilo to 197.0p Wingates Moor, 159.1p, 158.1p, 155.3p and 152.1p Old Deanham, 158.1p Barrasford Green, 155.8p and 153.3p High House, 153.9p Needless Hall, 152.4p Craig Hall and 151.2p Broom House. Prime hoggs: Swaledale to £49 and £41 Rattenraw. Cast sheep. Rams: Texel to £134 Rattenraw. Swaledale to £78 Rattenraw. Ewes: Texel to £94 and £90.50 High House. Leicester to £82 Rattenraw. Mule £69 and £68 Rattenraw.

FOR their weekly Longtown primestock sale last Thursday, the Cumberland and Dumfriesshire Farmers’ Mart had forward 10 prime cattle, nine over 30 month cattle, along with 1,223 prime lambs, 270 prime hoggs and 2,789 cast ewes and rams. Prime cattle met a strong trade, more required. Over 30 month cattle dearer on the week, following national trend. The 1,223 prime lambs were much sharper than expected, although a smaller entry forward. Overall average was 167.2p (SQQ 168.6p), which would be 10p up on the two previous days. Top price of £88.50 per head for Texels from Dormansteads and to 217.2p per kilo for Texels from High Airyolland.

A much smaller show of 270 hoggs, good meat easy to sell. Overall sale average of 138.5p per kilo (SQQ 141.2p). The sale was topped at £69 for Texels from Cottage Farm and to 185p per kilo for Hill Cheviots from Golden Lane. Please note from next week the prime hoggs will be sold amongst the ewes.

A smaller show of 2,789 cast ewes and rams met a fast selling trade from the large company of buyers with prices up £6 to £8 per head on the week to average £83.40 overall.

Cattle averages. Steers: Medium, 192.5p (192.5p). Heifers: Light, 212.5p (212.5p); medium, 218.5p (189.3p); heavy, 195.5p (195.5p).

Sheep averages. Hoggs: Light, 185.0p (151.0p); standard, 160.0p (142.3p); medium, 115.0p (139.4p); heavy, 141.0p (132.8p). Shearlings, 157.0p (129.8p). Lambs: Light, to 217.2p (193.5p); standard, to 189.0p (168.9p); medium, to 191.0p (160.9p); heavy, to 177.0p (157.4p); o/weight, 162.0p (150.8p). Ewes: Light, £86.00 (£58.27); heavy, £154.00 (£86.84). Cast rams, £166.00 (£102.35).