A GOOD crowd of buyers produced another fast-selling trade at Skipton Auction Mart’s latest fortnightly Wednesday store and breeding cattle sale, with 446 head forward and most classes easily achieving recent rates.

The 37 young feeding bulls were sharp to sell, though short on numbers, producing an overall Continental-cross average of £964 per head, topping at £1,400 and £1,370 for two Limousin-cross entries from TH and K Wood, of High Birstwith.

The mart is asking vendors to take note that, from October, new maximum carcass weights will be introduced by some processors, which will further underpin demand for weaned, creep-fed 8 to10-month old beef-bred store bulls.

In the store cattle section, additional entries on the day pushed the turnout to almost 400 head, all easily sold. Strong cattle were again keenly contested and more could have been sold.

The best heifers were especially good to sell, with plenty of four-figure prices in evidence, peaking at £1,320 for a British Blue-cross from Andrew Fawcett, of Bishop Thornton, who was also responsible for the top price pen of three Charolais-cross heifers, which each made £1,150. The Continental-cross average was £892 per head, bettered by a native average of £991.

Store bullocks sold to a high of £1,280 for a Blonde from the Fox family in Withgill, Clitheroe, while the top price pen of three Limousin-cross bullocks from H Procter & Son in Longridge each made £1,150. The Continental-cross average of £1,010 per head was again bettered by the native average at £1,050.

The turnout included 148 head of native-sired cattle and black and white bullocks, with the 71 natives on offer seeing Aberdeen Angus bullocks average £1,057 each, while the 77 black and white bullocks topped at £1,065 for an entry from Bingley’s Keith Downs. Yearling continental cattle sold away to a similar trade.

The pick of the 22 breeding cattle offered for sale was a British Blue-cross cow with her Limousin bull calf from Ashifield Farms in Lothersdale, sold for £1,650.