KENDAL:

NWA J36 Crooklands Calves An entry of just shy of 50 calves forward for the last sale before Christmas, with a large quantity of black and white calves, with the majority of beef calves just being young. Not as many buyers in attendance as sometimes, with many farmer buyers not wanting to create work over the festive period. British Blue bulls sold to £255 at a month old, and heifers to £220 from J Hoggarth & Son of Manor Farm. Black and whites sold to £132 from Gibson and Berry of Low Audlands.

On behalf of NWA I, Ian Atkinson, would like to take this opportunity to wish all calf and stirk vendors and purchasers, a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. It has been a very successful year for Calves and Stirks at J36 and we look forward to the success continuing in 2016.

Store Lambs The weekly sale of store lambs had an entry of over 1,100 forward. Good quality store lambs were far and few between, but very good to sell and eagerly bid for, especially any lambs with flesh. Well fleshed short keep lambs in the sixties topping at £67.50 from TW & J Beaty of Long Green Head, with a pen of Texels from David Galbraith of Sunny Bank selling to £64. A large proportion of small lambs forward, with many vendors bringing forward their last draw of lambs of the season. These sold to a very strong trade and were eagerly bid for, with plenty of buying around the long-keep lambs. Mule and Masham lambs sold to their value for the size and quality of lambs forward, topping at £63.50 for Mashams from JE Read of Mealrigg, Mules topped at £63 from TW & J Beaty of Long Green Head.

TOP PRICES

STORE LAMBS – Suff: £67.50 Long Green Head; £57.50 High House; £51 Gowan Bank; £49 Quarry Top. Texel: £64 Sunny Bank; £63 Long Green Head; £62.50 Street; £58 Bannerigg; £57 Low Woodedge. Masham: £63.50 Mealrigg. Mule: £63 Long Green Head; £56.50 Low Dubs; £51.50 Orphan Crag; £49.50 Main Street; £48 Fold Farm. Rough Fell: £54.50 Mealrigg. Leicester: £55 Scar Sykes. Herdwick: £44 Long Green Head, Main Street; £37 Borwick Fold. Horned: £37.50 Low Haygarth. Char: £49 Fold Farm; £45.50 Barker Knott; £40 Marsh Grange. Swale: £33.50 Scar Sykes; £31 Low Dubs. Teeswater: £31.50 Gowan Bank. Jacob: £30 Gowan Bank.

BULL CALVES – BRB: £255 Manor House Farm; £210 School House. AA: £120 Elm Tree. Fr: £132 Low Audlands; £70 Elm Tree; £65 Birds Park, Endmoor Farm, High Foulshaw Farm. HEIFER CALVES – BRB: £220 Manor House Farm. Lim: £115 Wraysholme Tower. AA: £110 Warton Grange Farm. Hfd: £50 Kitchlow Farm.