Archive Article: 1997/12/19
Recent weeks have seen dozens of Christmas primestock shows
taking place. Not just the big ones like the Welsh and Scottish
Winter Fairs either – around the country markets have been
hosting their own events. FW stopped off at Grantham, Lincs, last
Thursday to get a taste of the action…
Call in at a mart at this time of year and theres a fair chance youll find farmers washing and brushing stock, keen to ensure they look their very best. Theres not only prizes at stake, theres the prestige, too…
Champion beast at this event was this Belgian Blue steer, Badger. Proudly presenting him are Jonathan Thompson and son, Charles. Also pictures are Grantham and District Christmas Primestock Show chairman Richard Harris (left) and the man who had the final say, judge Stephen Hibberd.
Good reason to smile…John Ingamells consigned the best pen of sheep – these 45kg animals which made £100 apiece. He also sold a 685kg bullock for £1315. Buying this beast was market-regular Colin Skinner, who snapped up 15 cattle on the day.
This is a difficult time for farmers. Incomes in just about every sector are falling. And with Christmas shows typically attracting a big following, theyre a good time to collect signatures for the NFUs recently-launched Keep Britain Farming campaign.
Tipping the scales at 560kg, Badger went on to make £935.20.
Auctioneer Bob Brownlow of Escritt and Barrell sells the sheep.
This was a day when, overall, lambs averaged 100.69p/kg. And cattle averaged 129.25p/kg – not quite as good as last year, however, when the cattle figure was 155p/kg.