Farming

Round-up

By Alec Ross

Lambs at Newton Stewart yesterday averaged 298p/kg or £126/head and sold to £150/head for Dutch Spotted lambs from Chapelton or 318p/kg for Kirranrae.

Well fleshed cast ewes sold well with leaner types meeting some resistance. Trade peaked at £167/head for Texel ewes from Viewfield while tups sold to £159 for a Blue Texel from Ardachie, and mules sold to £133/head for Scotch Mules from Viewhills and for Cheviots from Roan.

A much-improved show of prime lambs at Dumfries yesterday resulted in a stronger trade. Light lambs averaged 312p/kg and sold to £124/head for Suffolks from Maryholm and to the same return for a Texel from Kilpatrick. Heavier sorts averaged 309p/kg and sold to £159 for a Texel from Mansefield Mains, while cast ewes met with demand and peaked at £194 for a Texel from Newmains. And a tup of the same breed sold to £222 for Midtown.

Store lambs at Longtown on Tuesday achieved an outstanding sale average of £93/head, up £19/head on the year with a lot of well bred long-term lambs forward. The sale peaked at £150 for a fantastic pen of Texel cross lambs consigned by regular vendor M Cousin, The Laws Farm, Whitfield. This run of 95 lambs was the highlight of the sale and went on to average £120/head, representing a jump of £22 on the year. And store cattle sold to £1,510 for a Limousin bullock from Hethermill.

Dairy heifers at Ayr on Tuesday peaked at £2,350 for a fresh calved Holstein Friesian from Ditton while heifer calves sold to £550/head for North Biggart. Bull calves sold to £580 from a British Blue from Dinduff and stirks topped at £1,000 for Limousin cross bullocks from Glenlea with heifers from the same vendor selling to £900/head. Prime heifers averaged 305p/kg or £1738/head and sold to 236p/kg and sold to 336p/kg for a Limousin from North Boig.