Weekly Sales News – 17th July 2018

Top price per head – £101 – C & J Georgetti & Sons; Top price per kilo – 210p – S J & J L Vine Ptnrs

Report on trade: A smaller entry came forward this week in comparison to recent weeks trading as a result of the downturn in price in the last two weeks and the advent of harvest occurring earlier than many have anticipated due to the hot dry conditions in the last two months. There was a wide range in the quality of lambs on offer this week from the grass fed that are starting to show signs of the drought through to the intensively fed offerings who are still well sold on the trade. Many of the best sold at around 200p per kg and over £90 due to the shortage of the heavier and best meated lambs across the country to fulfil catering orders.

Continental sorts that fit the export spec were topped by a super pen of Beltex crosses from S J & J L Vine Ptnrs which sold to 210p (44kg at £84). Heavier sorts were topped in most weight categories by C & J Georgetti & Sons with prices from £91 to £101 which were closely followed by T Masters with some 47kg lambs at £97.50.

Producers please note – For top results please present well fleshed lambs which are preferably dry and clean. Lairage facilities and dagging are available every Monday evening.

Sheep sales here in Ashford are supported by buyers representing a large cross section of abattoirs throughout the country. Please ensure your FABBL status is up to date and if you are not FABBL assured seriously consider becoming so – certain buyers are restricted to the purchase of only farm assured stock.

Report on trade: Just under 500 ewes penned this week and it was noticeable that several of these ewes were recently weaned and feeling the effects of the dry conditions just like we saw with the lambs. As the weeks go by more and more buyers are showing the faces for the grazing sorts and this has caused a little lift in the trade with the best ewes selling to a similar level and to a top price of £102 for some strong Charollais ewes from D J Morphett.

Top prices included continental ewes to £102 from D J Morphett, crossbred ewes to £84 from R Mair & Son and Romney ewes to £74 from W T Kemp.

Report on trade: We saw a strong trade for an increased entry with smart butcher type cattle making in excess of 215p per kg and grossing up to £1158 (219p) for a Limousin cross heifer and £1340 (215p) for a Limousin cross steer both from W Alexander (Shoreham). A handy weight Limousin cross steer looked well sold at £1154 (212p) from D W Ferguson Ltd.

More commercial sorts made 185p to 200p notably a run of continental x Friesian steers, all making 195p plus and up to £1094 (198p) from A J Down and a British Blue cross steer at £1228 (188p) from K & P M Sinden & Sons.

A small selection of native bred cattle were on offer with a run of Aberdeen Angus crosses topping at £1265 (188p) for a steer from Llewellyn Farms and a Beef Shorthorn steer sold well at £1228 (175p) from North School Farm YFC.

More cattle will be wanted over the coming weeks

Report on trade: A small midsummer offering of culls and flesh is getting shorter by the week as keep remains non existent throughout the South East. Trade is just easing a shade (as is always the case as we get to beyond Bastille Day) but still at very high historical rates. Meat is wanted but values of plain dairy cows is suffering most with costs high against low yields. Feeding men remain positive but for yarding cows rather than grazing sorts.

In the beef lines Lincoln Red crosses 155p per kg from A W Vincent; Limousin cross 147p, £1067 Alastair Boyd & Co; British Blue cross 140p, £1141 M A & F W Owen; Aberdeen Angus cross 138p, £1141 and Charolais cross 128p P N & C Burden.

Dairy highlights were Friesians 136p, 134p, 132p, 131p, 129p and £942 £938 from Debden Court Ltd; Holstein 138p, £1052 J E Scutt & Sons; 123p,137p, £1017, £1106 W S Furnival Ltd; 122p, £959 J Warnock & Son and Dairy Shorthorns 128p,124p, £861 D J Miles.

A Limousin stock bull 124p and  £1216.

Report on trade: A very decent trade for a mixed selection of store cattle with a good attendance of potential customers around the ring. Smart 4 mths Simmental cross steers and heifers sold at £535 and £490 respectively from Sutton & Hamilton and 8 mths Limousin cross steers were well sold at £825 from A Pickford.

Stronger cattle to feed short term were keenly sought after with quality 16 mths Aberdeen Angus cross steers and heifers to £1000 and £905 from G S W Squier and 18 mths British Blue x Friesian steers at £970 from R Winstone.

Report on trade: A summer offering of late spring calved cows and calves from Alastair Boyd & Co made to £1280 for a 2012 Limousin cross cow and March born heifer calf with the 8 couples averaging £976.

We expect an entry of 4 registered mature Aberdeen Angus bulls for Tuesday 31^st July.

Report on trade: A larger entry than for recent sales produced some competitive bidding, particularly for the dairy bulls. The beef calves offered were all young with only a few over 8 weeks old and top call was a mid May born British Blue bulls from J E Scutt & Sons at £280. In the dairy bulls N J & G M Lambert sold 4 well reared April borns to £120 (av’ £105) and 3 May born to £80.

Other examples of the trade included Appleton (Ledger) Farms may born calves with British blue bulls to £215 and Holstein bulls £88 (6 av’ £81); P J Forknalls July born Aberdeen Angus bulls to £190 and heifers to £175; A L Betts May born Aberdeen Angus bulls to £255: J C & S K Williams June born Brittish Blue bulls to £200 and heifers £205 and Aberdeen Angus heifers to £175; W S Furnival Ltd’s May and early June born British Blue bulls to £265, Blonde cross heifers £180 and Holstein bulls to £100 and Squerryes Dairy Ptnrs (Pickerings) May borns Btitish Blue bulls to £275 (6 av’ £214) and Blonde bulls to £230 (3 av’ £189).

Remember we sell calves once a fortnight all through the year and have regular customers for all breeds and sexes.

Report on trade: Not the quality on offer we have seen in recent sales but still customers for all qualities. One heavy cull sow made an exception price while small stores look well sold.

S J M Evans offered well bred finished pigs making to 126p per kg and £108 and Miss K Dennis lightweights to 121p and £83.90.

The entry of cull sows and boars saw a full of meat heavy sow make 67p and gross over £200 from Westland School YFC.

 Store pigs were again not the best bred and from the smallest to largest made £34 to £40.50

Sheep Tagging

All sheep sent to market require to be correctly tagged.

Sheep under 12 mths – Single electronic batch tag and ewes and over 12 mths – Double tagged

Incorrectly tagged sheep may have to be returned home. Single electronic batch tags are not acceptable for ewes and sheep over 12 mths.

Hobbs Parker and Ashford Livestock Market

We are the South East’s principal livestock market selling around 250,000 head of cattle, sheep and pigs in 2017.

Weekly sales throughout the year of all classes of stock, principally on Tuesdays, run by a fully professional team of auctioneers and support staff, they provide an unmatched level of service and commitment to the livestock farmers in the area. Come and see us on market day soon and bring your livestock for us to sell

Hobbs Parker Auctioneers – the team and their responsibilities.

For all office enquiries on livestock and auction sales please ring 01233 502222.

Elwyn Davies (07710 803901) – Managing director, sheep auctioneer and machinery sales.

Peter Kingwill (07795 200357) – Director, cattle auctioneer and machinery sales.

Lynsey Kendall – Director and accounts.

Mark Cleverdon (07741 845230) – Calf, pig and breeding cattle auctioneer and auction sales entries and administration.

John Rossiter (07557 392903) – Sheep auctioneer

Simon Husk (07885 968077) – Livestock marketing and field services

Martin Crowhurst (07710 803903) – Livestock marketing and field services

Thomas Hamplett – Auction sales assisting

Hayley Andrews and Sue Marshall – Auction sales administration

Hobbs Parker Auctioneers and Car Auctions run over 200 auction sales every year

Our next Auction Sales include……..

First Store Lamb Sale

Friday 27^th July

Further sales on 10^th and 24^th August and then every week from 31^st August for 8 weeks.

Collective Machinery & Equipment Sale

Friday 3^rd August at 9.30am.

Catalogues will be available about a week before the sale.

Lots will include new & nearly new mowers & garden machinery. New tools, farm & agricultural equipment, timber plus a large selection of miscellaneous items.