AN impressive 644 head of cattle ran through the ring at Craven Cattle Mart’s fortnightly cattle sale on Wednesday, January 18. Comprising of 175 young bulls, 65 beef feeding cows and stock bulls and 404 bullocks and heifers, spirits were high both sides of the ring fence and a strong trade carried through all classes.

The excellent show of bulls finished with an overall average of £1,252, selling to a good attendance of buyers. A notable entry of forty-five, April 2022 born Limousin bulls averaged £1,375. Bulls under 10 months of age averaged £1212 - £53 up on the fortnight - with the top end consistently £1,500 plus. Auctioneer, Jeremy Eaton noted some of that rise in overall average is accounted for by a stronger entry, observing, in fact, some of the 300-350kg bulls as harder to place this week. The same is true of the 10 to 12 months bulls, which were a very similar trade to the previous fortnight, averaging £1,343 this week and £1,345 at the last sale, with the better end reaching £1,500 to £1,600. Bidding for short keep bulls proved very competitive this week. Bulls over 12 months averaged £1,547 this week, to a top of £1,880. Strong, native breed bulls continued to receive the attention of a number of buyers, demonstrated by a lovely, February born Angus selling to £1,530.

A good show for numbers led to a fast trade throughout for the feeding cows and stock bulls. Plenty of buyers for cattle of all shapes, weights and age and catching the eye of an increasing band of buyers ringside. Stock Bulls sold to a top of £1,850 for a 7 year old Limousin from T. Jowett & Son. The days only pure bred cow also sold to £1850 from E, BA & SW Mills of Sheffield for their British Blue. Other heavier, cross bred, short keep cows sold at £1,400 and above, with £1,720 achieved for an Angus Cow from D Pawson & Son of Blackburn, £1,610 for a Blue cross from Fairplace Farm of Cowling, and £1,610 again for a Simmental cross from RD Elliott, Tadcaster. Medium feeding cows easily made either side £1,200-£1,250, with lean cows with frame picked up for £1,000 to £1,200. The slightly smaller and medium sizes brought in £850-£1,050, with only three cows out of 65 selling for under £800 – three, light and lean native types – leaving the overall average at £1,180 per head.

Wednesday’s Black and White bullocks sold to a top of £1,310 for a pen of four bullocks from JD Taylor & Son, Broughton. (Pictured). Other strong bullocks sold at £1,060-£1,150, with the lean yard cattle averaging £800-£920. Fair bred, strong British Blue bullocks, with a good covering of flesh, sold to some extreme prices. The three principle prices - £1,660, £1,650, and £1,620 – were all achieved by DT&LA Houseman & Son of Darley, closely followed by £1,610 from KM&L Throup, Silsden. Strong feeding bullocks sold for £1,450 to £1,560, those lean but strong sorts, with plenty of frame averaged £1300-£1,380, whilst other leaner yard cattle brought in £1,180 - £1,280 and the plainer topped at 1100.

Dairy bred Blue Heifers sold to £1,420 from N&J Thwaite, Hellifield. Big, fleshy heifers sold over £1,300, lean yard cattle up to £1,240 and plainer goods £1,000+, with just some shorter framed and younger goods selling less.

Suckler bred cattle met a fiery trade with a ringside full of buyers all returning home with wagons and trailers full of quality. Limousin heifers sold to a top of £1,800 from E BA & SW Mills, Sheffield for a twenty-three month old heifer. J Pickles of Chapel-Le-Dale sold their heifers to £1700 for their sixteen-month-old. At the younger end, a lovely, nine-month-old British Blue heifer from MR Ewbank of Middlesmoor sold at £1,620.

Angus bullocks met a top price of £1,480 for a pair from JA Key, Sheffield. As expected, strong feeding bullocks averaged £1,250 - £1,400 all day, with leaner goods £1,160-£1,260 and the plainer end at £1,020-£1,140. Angus heifers sold to £1,390 from CW & R Sutcliffe of Clitheroe and yearling Native cattle sold well, too; regularly away at £700-£900.

The next sale of store and feeding cattle will take place on Wednesday, February 1.