ROBIN Jennings, Stainbank herd, South Stainley, Ripon, bagged his third Craven Dairy Auction championship of the year at CCM Skipton’s Easter Monday show and sale with the first prize cow in milk, a fresh second calver giving 41kg.

Tapped out after much consideration by show judge Will Oldfield, Gisburn, she just pipped the reserve champion, the first prize heifer in milk, a seven-day calved Sandy-Valley Pharo daughter, already giving over 28kg/day and continuing to rise, from TD Goldie and Son, Wiskemanor herd, Danby Wiske, Northallerton, who narrowly failed in their bid to land a third consecutive dairy championship.

Both principals achieved joint top price of £2,050, falling to a returning buyer from Cheshire, the day’s volume purchaser when acquiring another three milkers, plus two in-calf heifers. Two other fresh heifers forming the Goldie’s consignment were also stylish types with plenty of potential and both reached £1,900.

The bank holiday fixture drew a good crowd ringside and while trade perhaps lacked exciting peaks there was consistency in the solid prices throughout for the nine milking heifers forward and two cows in milk, the former averaging £1,802, the latter £1,725.

Mark Smith, Winterburn, sold his robot-trained Applejax heifer giving 28.5kg daily at £2,000, followed at £1,920 by the Bolland family, Airton, who continued their ongoing dispersal with four heifers and a fourth calver forward.

Also on the same day’s agenda was the Spring youngstock fixture, when RG Johnson, Felliscliffe, was the volume purchaser, picking up 12 of the 22 heifers on sale. Four in-calf heifers averaged a very respectable £1,358, the leader in this age group at £1,650, a big correct white heifer with udder promise and carrying a Limousin calf due July, coming from R&E Pollard, Colne.

Chris Drake, Thornton, Bradford, brought a second batch of youngstock comprising three in-calf heifers topping at £1,450, plus eight heifers that had been running with Aireburn Himac for the previous six weeks, which peaked at £880 and averaged £778, all but one secured by the Johnsons..

The Baildon-based Coates family had six bulling age heifers forward, all of an even stamp, well-grown and from some great families. Topping their trade was Bailmoor Ferraro G Impala, a heifer backed by eight generations of VG/EX cows and selling at £1,020 to join the North Craven Ingleview herd of R&E Butterfield, the Coates consignment averaging £912.

Massey Feeds, NMR and Skipton NFU co-sponsored. The next Craven Dairy Auction on Monday, April, 15, will also feature a quality line up of Jerseys in the annual Spring coloured breeds sale.