Weekly Sales News – 2nd January 2018

Top price per head – £101.50 – J R Collins: Top price per Kg – 231p – J R Collins

Report on trade: With almost 2000 hoggets penned it made for a good start to 2018 with a plenty of meated sheep and quite a lot of weight on offer in the pens. These heavier sheep were also the best sold with home trade wholesalers competing for the them and several pens making in excess of £90 to a top price of £101.50 from J R Collins. This was closely followed by P Bates at £99 and M L Wilson & Son Ltd at £97. The export grade lambs were in short supply this week despite a number of buyers needing to secure some of these smarter types and what was available sold very well and generally in excess of 200p. As we move into the hogget season it would be much appreciated if vendors would notify us in advance of the sheep you wish to sell.

Producers please note – For top results please present well fleshed lambs which are preferably dry and clean. Lairage facilities 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: An average type of entry for the time of year, just before the scanned empty ewes begin to come into the market place, sold to a slightly improved trade for all on offer. Best meated sorts sold to a top price of £90 with several other sheep making in excess of £80. Not many buyers present for the leaner sorts to farm on but those that were on offer still sold to similar levels as we have seen in the past month.

Top prices this week included crossbred ewes to £90 from P Ashlee, Suffolk crosses to £88.50 from S W Batch, Mules to £66 from Wanstall Farms and Romneys to £77 from A R Dunlop.

Auctioneer: John Rossiter 07557 392903

Report on trade: A small entry of stores on offer with a fantastic trade for all. Top price of £69 from L Wheeler & Sons and all but the most long term sorts selling in excess of £60.

Report on trade: A strong trade to start the year with smart handy weights taking the pick of the prices in excess of 220p per kg. A Blonde cross heifer topped the market at £1145 (232p) and another made (221p) both from D W Ferguson Ltd while a quality Limousin cross steer sold well at £1276 (228p) and a heifer at £1279 (223p) from F S Husk. A run of heavier Limousin crosses from W Alexander (Shoreham) attracted strong bidding in the 212p to 223p range and grossing well up to £1357.

More commercial sorts made 175p to 190p with a Limousin x Friesian steer to £1114 (196p) and a Friesian steer at £983 (179p) from A J Down and Hereford x Friesian heifers looked well sold up to £1045 (181p) from T F Russell.

Report on trade: It was a shame not to have had a few more cows forward to start the New Year as they are always keenly wanted after the Christmas break. Trade was particularly sharp with a good quality entry of fleshed cows from both the beef and dairy herds.

Best fed crossbred beef cows made up and down of 140p per kg with plenty grossing £1000  to £1200. No real feeders in the entry with just a few older beef cows under 100p. Examples of prices included Simmental crosses 145p, 140p (2), 138p, 136p (2) and £1236, £1207, £1150, £1127 from C & J Georgetti & Sons; 139p, 138p, 136p (2) £1032 Boyes & New and 139p, £1018 R A Wade; Limousin crosses 143p, £995 R A Wade and 140p, £1179 Boyes & New; Charolais 137p, 132p Boyes & New; Sussex 138p, £1051 Boyes & New; Blonde cross 135p Boyes & New; Aberdeen Angus cross 133p, £1027 Alastair Boyd & Co and a Hereford cross 129p, R A Wade.

Some good fleshed heavyweight black and whites were on offer and all a very strong trade. Best cows regularly 125p – 135p and plenty £1000 – £1200. Examples included British Friesians 138p, 131p (2), 130p, 129p and to £984 from Debden Court Ltd; Holstein Friesian 137p, 130p, 129p, 128p, £1179, £1078, £1062 Ledger (Appleton) Farms Ltd; 128p, 125p, £1164, £995 J Leggat & Son and 128p, £1065 M A & F W Owen with Jerseys 87p, 75p, £433 S E Lane & Ptnrs.

Auctioneer: Peter Kingwill 07795 200357

Report on trade: A single pen of Aberdeen Angus steers sold very well for age and size.

Over 50 head expected for next weeks sale. See the front page advert for details.

Report on trade: 12 Sellers and 16 Buyers and a very fair competitive trade to kick off the New Year. Not quite the 100 plus entry we hoped for but lets hope we see good numbers again in a fortnight.

Examples of the trade included 21 Holstien bulls consigned by Oncoland at 6 to 14 weeks which made to £98 and averaged £55.19. J W Boyd & Sons sold their usual run of youg calves to £260 for a British Blue bull at 3 weeks old and £175 for an Aberdeen Angus bull at 5 weeks old. H O Champneys Ltd sold their best Simmental crosses to £355 and £345 for bulls at 7 to 8 weeks old and 2 Aberdeen Angus cross heifers at £220 at 8 weeks. Kingcott Dairy sold a 6 week old Aberdeen Angus bull for £300 and PJ Forknall a Friesian bull £80. M W Goddard sold a 10 week odl British Blue bull for £255, a 9wwek old heifers £290 and 12 week limousin bull £275and W S Furnival a Holstein bull, born early September, at £145

Sales will be offered fortnightly again through the whole of 2018.

Calf sellers and buyers should be aware that welfare regulations state that while an animal can be sold at 7 days old if they are offered at under 10 days old they cannot be transported more than 100km from the market. Buyers are notified from the rostrum when these calves are offered.

From a sellers view it is best  not to present calves at under 10 days old to avoid possibly restricting the number of potential bidders for your stock.

Report on trade: A small entry of stock met a little more demand than pre Christmas as kill days return to near normal following Christmas and New Year holidays.

Finished pigs sold 105p per kg for the best shaped pigs with weight from S Scott & Son and 102, again for a heavy gilt from S J M Evans. The rest of the good pigs made 80 to 98p. There was very limited demand for coloured and 2^nd quality.

The cull pigs offered made to 38p for a sow and 30p for a boar.

Store pigs made £30 for Welsh weaners from D Finch.

We remind all pig farmers of the information below

Identification of pigs – again we draw your attention to the fact that it is essential all pigs have permanent identification when offered for sale in a market i.e. slap mark or ear tag. Please ensure you comply with this regulation.

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Ashford Cattle Show 2017

Prize money cheques and the prize list have been posted this week

Prize giving evening will be Monday 22^nd January at 7pm here in the Amos Hall at the market.

We are sorry to report that the show gavel is missing – last seen at the dinner in 2016. Anyone who might, for whatever reason, know of its whereabouts please contact Julie Coney on 07887 643002

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John Hooker

John this week celebrated 80 years of attending Ashford Market.

His first day at market was at the age of 7yrs in 1938 having walked sheep from Honeychild Farm, Romney Marsh to Ashford Market. He has been a keen and loyal supporter of markets and the auction system throughout his life and we thank him for his many, many years of business.

Congratulations John.

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Sheep tags – farmers are reminded that all sheep require an electronic tag so we can record the number and return these details to you..

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Hay, Straw and fodder

For Sale – Organic Hay, Haylage & Silage, Big Square and rounds. All good quality – Available East Sussex/Kent border. Contact Buckhurst Estate: Sharon 01892 770220 or Warren 07836 378044

This register will now run until early May for further details please ring our auctioneers office on 01233 502222 or Mark Cleverdon 07748 202688

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Vehicle parking on busy market days – Congestion in the bottom / livestock parking area

Please help us to help you. The upper car park on the top side of the market buildings is available for all cars and Land Rovers with trailers

Miscellaneous wanted and Livestock for sale ex farm

For Sale –a very well bred Beef Shorthorn bull, 20 mths old which is fully health checked and on a TB Low farm. Ring Mark Cleverdon for details

Wanted – upto 30 Sussex or Aberdeen Angus x Friesian heifersor young cows in calf to a Limousin bull. Ring Mark Cleverdon for details

Wanted- shepherd to care for a flock of 800 Suffolk x Mules lambing in mid-april. Full time, part time or just lambing season availability considered. Must have a sheep dog and significant shepherding experience. Accommodation and vehicle available, work to start in the New Year. All enquiries to: owenpiper@hotmail.co.uk

Grazing available in Hampshire for 300 Romney or Romney cross ewe lambs until mid September 2018. Ring 07785 793450

RABI, FCN and Kent Herdsmans Club News

RABI

Farmhouse Breakfast season

Thursday 18^th January – Poacher & Partridge, Tudeley. TN11 0PH

Wednesday 24^th January – Medway Yacht Club, Lower Upnor, Rochester. ME2 4XB

Thursday 8^th February – Elham Valley Vineyard

Wednesday 14^th February – The Stockpot, Ashford Market. TN24 0HB

Thursday 15^th February – Dog & Duck, Pluks Gutter, Canterbury

Further fundraising events

Monday 26^th February – Plumpton Race day

Friday 23^rd March – Clay pigeon shoot at West Kent Shooting School, Brenchley. TN12 7DG

Wednesday 27^th June – Champagne, Strawberries & Jazz at the Kent County Showground, Detling

For further information on all RABI events in Kent ring Charles Tassell – 01622 858733, 07973 412179 or email charles@tassell.co.uk

Kent Herdsmans Club

Sunday 14^th January at 12 noon – a visit to Chandler & Dunn Ltd to view their cattle and some of the fruit storage at the farm, Lower Goldstone, Ash, Canterbury CT3 2 DY.

For all details on Herdsman’s Club events contact Chairman Alan Jull 07708283220 or Jo Masters 01580 240568

South East Farmer and Farm Machinery magazines

The January edition of this popular regional farming magazine is now available here in the market. Hobbs Parker are regular contributors to the editorial content.

Romney Sheepbreeders News

The recent edition of the breeders Society newsletter, produced by new breed secretary Julie Lukehurst, is available here in the market. For all society information Julie can be contacted on 07538 938425