Prime lambs sell to £109 a head at Skipton

Over 4,700 head of prime sheep turned out for Monday’s final sale of 2013 at Skipton Auction Mart.

With all regular buyers in attendance and sheep required as usual to fulfil orders, the 3,691 prime lambs were, as expected, nowhere near as dear as the heady prices achieved the previous week, but traded at a higher level than a fortnight earlier when selling to an overall average of £73.21 per head or 177.8p/kg (SQQ price 180.4p/kg)

The sale included many heavy lambs, with 20% of the total entry tipping the scales at 45.5kg or more, while Mule or horned lambs made up 36% of the turnout.

Export weight lambs were good to sell at 180-200p/kg for commercial sorts and 220-250p/kg for the top end, with the day’s leading per head price of £109 falling to a Beltex pen from Bordley’s Kevin Huck and a by-weight high of 262.2p/kg for another Beltex pen from CT and EM Hammond, of Summerbridge.

The Hammonds also stepped forward with the top price £101 a head Texel pen, with a by-weight breed high of 235.4p/kg for a pen from Jeff Burrow, of Hanlith.

Hill bred lambs sold at between £2 and £5 dearer than two weeks previous, with Mules averaging £71.10 each, selling to a per head high of £80.50 for a pen consigned by Kevin Wilson, of Blubberhouses, and a by-weight top of 180p/kg from Stuart Hird, of Yockenthwaite. Mr Wilson also presented the top price per head and by-weight Mashams at £75.45 and 166.9p/kg respectively.

A massive show of over 1,000 cast ewes and rams saw the former sell away nicely, again well in front of prices seen a month ago when averaging a shade over £57 per head, with a breed high of £94.50 for a Texel pen from Andrew Atkinson, of Felliscliffe.

Cast rams averaged £60.29 each, with a Blue-Faced Leicester from Frank Throup, of Silsden Moor, leading the way at £97.50.

(CCM Auctions).