Farming

By Alec Ross

Calves at Carlisle yesterday peaked at £640 for a British Blue bull from Meinfoot, while Hereford bulls sold to £510 for Messrs Byers, and Simmentals topped at £455 for Whitehills.

Weaned cattle met with demand, and bulls sold to £1,550 for a Limousin from Steven Wilson with Simmentals topping at £1,450 for Old Irvine Farm. Bullocks peaked at £1,570 for a Charolais cross from Wickness and heifers sold to £1,400 for a Limousin cross from The Grove and for the same price for a Simmental from Auchengray. 1,271 store cattle sold to an average of £1,408/head with plainer cattle more predominant. The sale peaked at £2,040 twice, for a Limousin cross from Greenwrae and then for Blackrigg. Dairy bullocks sold to £1,560 for Flevkviehs from Town Foot, with heifers peaking at £1,750 for British Blue crosses from Killiecrankie.

A larger than usual consignment of store lambs at Longtown on Tuesday sold to £156/head for an impressive pen of Suffolk crosses from Philiphaugh Estate against an average of £110/head, which represented a £29 rise on the year. Texels peaked at £150 for both Kilnford Croft and The Laws.

A whole sale average of £110.31 (up £29 on the year) also included 460 Blackface lambs from Argyllshire to average £58.89. The Texel section topped twice at £150 per head from CJ Roots, Kilnford Croft and M Cousin, The Laws. Individual breed averages included £119 for SuffolkCrosses, £107 for Texel crosses, £102 for Cheviots and £59 for Blackies.

Dairy cattle at Ayr on Tuesday sold to £2,500 for a freshly-calved Holstein from Mossbog, while in-calf heifers peaked at £1,180 for North Biggart. Calves and stirks topped at £820 for a four-month old Limousin cross heifer calf from Auchenairney while bulls peaked at £700 for a British Blue cross from East Brockloch and stirks sold to £1,220 for a Simmental Cross from Knockshinnoch. Bullocks sold to £1,050 for nine-month old Limousin crosses from Fleminghill.

Monday saw Dumfries Mart hold its monthly pig show and strong demand meant a full clearance was effected, with the highlight being two pens of Landrace light cutters from S Ewing of Sanquhar that sold to an average of £90/head. British Saddleback growers peaked at £65/head while Oxford Sandy Black weaners sold to £48/head.