Records broken at mart sales

A new mart record price of £3,950 for a dairy animal was set at the Christmas Craven Dairy Auction at Skipton Auction Mart by the Newbirks pedigree Holstein herd of David and Claire Lawson, of Mill Farm, Arthington, the most consistent dairy champions at Skipton this year.

It was also the highest price the family had ever picked up at a recognised dairy auction, for their first prize newly calven heifer.

From the Newbirks Jazz family, with five generations of VG or EX behind it, the superbly bred daughter of the legendary Genus sire Picston Shottle was shown by the couple’s daughter, 19-year-old Suzy Lawson, who has been milking the family dairy herd since March this year.

Three weeks-calved and giving 34 litres, the victor was the subject of lively bidding, before eventually it chalked up a new Skipton record 
high price to Stephen Jeanes, of the Birks Farm pedigree dairy herd on Glusburn 
Moor.

Elsewhere, it was a cattle breeder from Malton near York, Jean Atkinson, who stole the show at the British Charolais Cattle Society’s annual show and sale in Carlisle, taking the supreme championship with her 20-month-old Bassett Hallmark which sold for 6,000gns to PR Sawyer and Son of York.

Pateley Bridge Auction Mart’s annual Christmas show and sale was well attended.

Judge Tim Garside placed Bewerley-based JA Stoney and Son’s heifer, a Limousin, as supreme champion, a homebred animal shown for the first time. Out of one of their homebred cows and by a Limousin bull purchased in France, it sold for a Pateley record price of £5 per kg and weighing 500kg to local butchers H. Weatherhead & Sons.

Second placed heifer was shown by Bernard Simpson of Heathfield, a Homebred Limousin X British Blue weighing 595kg which sold to H. Weatherhead & Sons at £3.20 per kg.

The first prize steer was also presented by the Stoney family.

Also homebred, it achieved a First at the Great Yorkshire Show and Champion at Kilnsey and Nidderdale 
shows this summer.

It sold to Kendalls Farm Butchers of Pateley Bridge 
and Harrogate, weighing 595kg and making 
£4 per kg.