Pigs

A total of 46 Prime Pigs were forward at the first sale of April with 8 buyer’s present keen to secure pigs to fill orders. Well-finished Pietrain x gilts from JR Corlett, Cockermouth sold to a top price of £130 with others at £122. Saddleback x gilts from AJ Bancroft sold to £115 and £110. Prime boars were in abundance today with all being Large Blacks which sold to £55.

JR Corlett sold Porkers to 144p/kg, Cutters to 137p/kg and Baconers to 120p/kg. Well finished white hogs and gilts sold to a premium above coloured pigs and boars.

87 Store pigs sold to £71 for Pietrain x Large White gilts from AJ & EJ Platts who sold hogs to £70. Large Black gilts peaked at £44 from Ardyne Organic Farms.

Weaners sold to £23 for Saddleback x from D Baldwin.

Sheep with Lambs at Foot

There was an increase entry of 122 families forward this week. Leading the way was Texel ewes with twin lambs at foot selling to £230 from J & M Wilson, Selside. Continental Shearlings with twin lambs sold to £195 from EI, EA & TW Wilson, Grange-over-Sands, with Mules with twins from the same home selling to £182. Aged Mule ewes with Texel twins sold to £170 from J & M Wilson with broken mouthed Mules with twins achieving £160 from D & K Swarbrick, Out Rawcliffe. Sheep with singles sold to a top of £175 for Pure Texels with Texel lambs at foot from Messrs Young, Lindale. Mule Shearlings with Texel singles sold to £145 from J & M Wilson.

Next week sees the show and sale of pens of five Ewes and Shearlings with twin lambs at foot. Show at 10am.

Prime Hoggs

There was an increased entry of just short of 700 hoggs forward today selling to an increased trade. There was an overall market average of 193p/kg with 39-45kg hoggs averaging 203p/kg. Topping the market this week was Beltex hoggs from JG Harryman, Hawkshead selling to £108, £104, £103 and £100 three times or 256p/kg, 245p/kg, 232p/kg twice and 231p/kg. This was closely followed by Beltexs from JA & DE Batty & Sons, Burneside selling to £104.50 or 243p/kg and 227p/kg. Heavy weight hoggs sold to £99 from DC, D & J Taylor, Skelsmergh with others to £97.50 from JB Airey, Kendal. Mules sold to a top of £95.50 for heavy weights from WI & A Atkinson & Son, Bleasdale with other Mules selling to £91 from R & EA Gardner, Brigsteer. Cheviot Hoggs topped at £94 from HR & KA Hodgson, Barbon. Horned hoggs sold to a top of £85 for Swaledales from DI Holliday, Clapham with others to £84 from JS & S Atkinson, Scorton.

Cast Sheep

There was an increased entry of Cast Ewes forward this week of 500. The trade remains for all types of cast ewes. Topping the trade this week was R & E Ladds, Kendal selling Texel ewes to £122 this was closely followed by J Woodburn & Partners, Ulverston who sold Texel ewes to £117 and £112 and Suffolk ewes to £109. Beltex ewes sold to a top of £113 with Charollais ewes topping at £108 from J Stott Jnr, Crosscrake. E Needham of Stainton sold her consignment of Suffolk ewes to £108 with JE Wightman’s, Lupton Suffolk ewes topping at £102. Plenty more Continental ewes into nineties and one hundred pound mark. Mule ewes sold to a top of £90 from J Woodburn & Partners, with others to £89 from KE Richards & Son, Howgill with others to £88 from A & B Fell, Millom. Numerous pens of good Mule ewes selling in the eighties. Hill bred ewes saw Cheviots top at £85 from LA & M Lambert, Lupton with Rough Fell ewes selling to £77 from JA & KJ Allen, Ings. Swaledale ewes topped at £61 from DC Miller, Claughton on Brock. Leaner types of ewes were, once again, a very sharp trade.

Cast tups were keenly sought after selling to a top of £110 for Texels from JR Corlett, Cockermouth with other Texel tups selling to £104 from R & E Ladds, Kendal.