THE shortage of spring lambs countrywide produced a stronger trade on the week for the 65 head entered at Skipton Auction Mart’s weekly Monday sale, which sold to an overall average of £3.34 per kilo, or a shade over £141 per head.

Charles Marwood, of Whenby, York, took top call of £160 with a single Charollais lamb claimed by regular retail buyer Kendall’s Farm Butchers. First draw Charollais lambs from Jack and Rebecca Wallbank in Keasden also sold well at second top call of £156 each, while Robert Towers, of Farleton, again chipped in with a £155 per head Charollais pen, with the same price claimed by a Texel pen from Nidderdale father and son Joe and Trevor Stoney, of Bewerley. The Stoneys also achieved the top price per kilo of 380p/kg, or £152 per head, for 40kg Texels sold to Hamlets Butchers in Garstang. As expected, old season lambs were forward in less numbers, with the 1,645 head also performing better on the week as a direct result. Meated, well fleshed entries were up by around 10p/kg, while heavy hoggs, which were in very strong demand, showed an increase of around 15p/kg. The overall selling average was £106.35 per head, or 240.86p/kg.

Top call of £162 per head fell to Texels from Ian Pratt, of Erringdon, Hebden Bridge, these joining wholesalers Hartshead Meats in Mossley. A solid consignment of lambs from A Gill and Son, of Knaresborough, traded to a high of £155 each, or 296p/kg, for a pen of 15 52kgTexels, which also joined Hartshead Meats. Another regular Calderdale vendor, Brian Lund, of Walshaw, had the top price per kilo pen, his Texel-crosses claimed at 313p/kg, or £144, by Andrew Atkinson, of Felliscliffe. The best hill-bred lambs were also dearer on the week, selling to 261p/kg and £137 per head.