SIMMENTALS CONTINUING TO TOP COMMERCIAL MARKETS AROUND THE UK AND INCLUDING SALES AT SKIPTON; AYR; HOLMFIRTH; RUGBY; FROME; MARKET DRAYTON; SEDGEMOOR; ABERDEEN; SHREWSBURY; DINGWALL; DUNGANNON; TRURO; LANARK; & DARLINGTON

On 19th January at Skipton’s sale of feeding and breeding cattle, Messrs Mallinson of Mount Tabor consigned a large number of outfits for sale (part dispersal) which were a good hill cross mixing Simmental, Charolais, and Limousin bloodlines. Nine outfits sold to £2000 or more, and to a top of £2300 for a Simmental x heifer with a heifer calf at foot. Two other Simmental crosses at £2250 per outfit. Six cow & calf outfits from £2000 to £2100 for a Simmental x cow with Lim bull calf. In-calf heifers from this home generally £1400 to £1600. On the same day in the feeding bulls, RD Elliott, Tadcaster made to £1480 for 10/11 month old Simmentals.

At Craig Wilson Ltd’s Ayr Market on 18th January the beef cow trade was topped by a Simmental at £1300 from Killochhead.
At Holmfirth Market on 18th January cows and calves were topped by an eleven year old Simmental cow with Hereford calf at foot to £1400 from G & H Mills sold to JB Eastwood & Sons.

Prime heifers sold to a top of 266p/kg for Simmentals from D, NJ & HJ Parrott, Cherington at Rugby Farmers Market on 17th January.

On 17th January Frome’s sale of store cattle, orange restricted, saw a ‘glorious show of cattle coming through the store ring’ for the market’s first sale of 2022. A number of marvellous well-bred stores were on offer, first were a superb run of 27 mainly Continental x Simmental & Blue x 21mo well fed steers & heifers from Charlie & Fred Butcher. A Simmental steer topped at £1540, and these excellent types saw an overall average of £1462 with steers averaging £1484 and heifers average £1383. The prime cattle flew on the day and saw Charlie Butcher’s Fleckvieh steers to £1700 or 218.50p/kg with Simmental steers to 229.50p/kg and 225.50p/kg 3 times or £1677, £1603 and £1588.

In the sale of barren cows, cull bulls, and overage clean cattle at Market Drayton on 17th January, the trade for sucklers climbed to 219p (£1,178.22) for a Simmental from The Litchfield Family, Newborough.

At Sedgemoor’s sale of barren cows and cull stock bulls dairy bred cows peaked at 136.5ppk for a smart Fleckvieh from RF & BA Larcombe, Chardstock. Further Fleckvieh at 135.5ppk from New Farm Bowdens Ltd, Langport.

At Thainstone on 14th January, Aberdeen and Northern Marts sold 1,407 Store Cattle, Young Bulls and Young and Weaned Calves. Heifers (507) averaged 233.9p and sold to 296.9p per kg for a pair of 512kg Simmental’s and £1,660 gross for a 654kg Simmental both from Castlewigg Farm, Whithorn.

Shrewsbury Auction Centre’s store cattle sale on 13th January saw J Hanmer & Co of Forton Heath sell 24 outstanding forward Cattle on the day, including a trio of Simmentals at £1380 (640kg). 15 pens of steers were sold for over £1200, including 4 x 19mo Simmental Steers from WS Turner & Sons weight 525kg achieving a wonderful £1265. Pure Simmental Heifers from WS Turner a treat at £1155 (490kgs).

Dingwall & Highland Marts Ltd on 12th January sold 566 store cattle, 8 adult head of breeding cattle and 113 OTM cattle at Dingwall Mart. Heifers (239) averaged 228.7p and sold to £1,380 gross twice for a 635kg Simmental cross and for a pen of 503kg Simmental crosses all from Borlum, Scaniport. Young Bulls (22) sold to £1,180 gross for a pair of 552kg Simmental crosses also from Borlum, Scaniport.

At Dungannon Farmers Mart on 12th January, Suckled Cows and Calves topped at £1490 for a Sim Cow with a Lim Bull Calf at foot. In-Calf Heifers sold to £1100 for a Sim.
At a breeding cattle sale at Thainstone, Aberdeen on 12th January, cows with heifer calves sold to £2,050 for a Simmental with Limousin cross calf from Glencoe, Corse. In calf heifers sold to £1,900 for Simmental crosses from Caskieben, Kinellar. In calf cows sold to £1,700 for a Simmental cross from Dallasbroughty, Glenphail.

At Truro’s store cattle sale on 12th January, the firm trade continued to draw out quality runs of cattle. Leading the heifers at £1125, and the joint top price overall on the day, was a 26 month old Simmental x heifer from Messrs M G & T A Tuckett of Tywardreath, Par, bought by D Ellis.

At Lawrie & Symington’s sale of prime cattle on 10th January at Lanark, all classes of cows were dearer on the week and selling selling to £1700, and £1616 for Simm cast cows from Messrs McCulloch, Over Hillhouse, Armadale.

Darlington Farmers Auction Mart held their weekly sale of Cast Cattle, Store and Breeding Stock on Monday 10th January 2022. The store cattle buyers were in top gear as 2022’s beef boom continues in quite some style. Strong in calf Simmental heifers from Dromonby Bridge Farm kicked of proceedings with a peak of £1850.

On the 7th January and a sale of store cattle held on behalf of Orkney consignors at Thainstone, Aberdeen, heifers sold to 282.8p per kg for a pen of three 502kg Simmental’s from M Scholes, Strathgarry, St Ola.

On 5th January the sale of store cattle at Market Drayton saw a lot of small younger cattle in the mix. Steers sold to £1,300 for a Simmental weighing 642 kilos from I.C. Huxley & Co, Horsemans Green.

At Darlington’s sale of cast cattle and store stock on 3rd January, Simmentals were to the fore in the top price. A ‘smart Simmental’ sold at 200 pence all the way down from Chopwell, Newcastle and the good home of A Willey, Broomfield Farm. A good day for the Simmental’s in the cow ring concluded as the leading gross valued cow was also this way bred selling for £1439 from Thirn Farms.