Auctioneers Comment - October 2009.
AUCTIONEERS COMMENT 19.10.09
The driest September and October for some years, but pleasant working conditions for all, not least auctioneers, with two sales in Wiltshire in warm autumn sunshine, encapsulating the diverse nature of our business.
At the beginning of the month, we sold Tim Floyd’s Hardinge herd of Jerseys at Upper Seagry, near Chippenham. Tim is a solicitor in London by profession, and sadly a victim of the recent DFB debacle. He decided, with a certain amount of reluctance, to give up his dairy herd, but with few Jersey cattle on the market, their auction brought buyers from far and wide. The herd was established just after the war and was one of the highest yielding in the breed, averaging well over 7,000kg at 5% butterfat, and were dispersed as far afield as Cumbria, Mid and West Wales, Devon, Derbyshire and Staffordshire. With lot 1, a rising 15 year old cow, making 600 guineas, buyers knew they were going to have be bold to secure what they wanted and so it proved. Most found it hard to outbid Thomas Evans, who purchased nearly a quarter of the animals in the sale, giving the day’s top price of 2,900gs for a third calf daughter of Rock Brook Maple Mannix that had given over 8,000kg in her second lactation. Among those buying were the Royal Farms, who bought several animals for the noted Windsor herd, now milked through rotary units.
The Hardinge Jerseys numbered under 100 cattle, but it was a very different story last week when we dispersed the near 700 strong Wansdyke herd of Holsteins at Ham Spray, just south of Hungerford. The sale took place over 2 days at the superb recently constructed dairy unit, where most farmers were green with envy at the magnificent facilities. The unit had been built by Steve Fisher, a well known international bookmaker, but he had recently sold the whole estate to P.A.C Farms Ltd. Dairying did not fit into the new owner’s future plans, so the entire herd went under the hammer, once again bringing buyers from throughout the U.K including Northern Ireland, although many will be travelling westward to Dorset, Somerset, Devon and Cornwall. Many of the foundation stock came from the dispersal of Peter Padfield’s famous Hayleys herd and two of those purchases made the top prices of 5,100 and 5,000 gs. More than 60 animals made over 2,000gs and trade remained strong throughout the first day, even until the last lot went through as darkness fell. A smaller crowd appeared for the second day’s sale at the equally impressive young stock unit, but the trade was still strong, particularly for the maiden heifers which averaged over £1000. At the end of the two day’s trading the average for every animal through the ring was an impressive £1219 and when added to the sale of surplus machinery conducted by our colleagues BCM of Sutton Scotney, the event grossed over a million pounds.
We have only a handful of sales left this autumn, but have recently received instructions for two exciting sales next April – the first sale from the Wills Brothers prizewinning Willsbro herd in Cornwall, and a two day dispersal of the celebrated Weeton herd for John and Doreen Loftus in Lancashire. These will be two unmissable sales for pedigree aficionados.
The driest September and October for some years, but pleasant working conditions for all, not least auctioneers, with two sales in Wiltshire in warm autumn sunshine, encapsulating the diverse nature of our business.
At the beginning of the month, we sold Tim Floyd’s Hardinge herd of Jerseys at Upper Seagry, near Chippenham. Tim is a solicitor in London by profession, and sadly a victim of the recent DFB debacle. He decided, with a certain amount of reluctance, to give up his dairy herd, but with few Jersey cattle on the market, their auction brought buyers from far and wide. The herd was established just after the war and was one of the highest yielding in the breed, averaging well over 7,000kg at 5% butterfat, and were dispersed as far afield as Cumbria, Mid and West Wales, Devon, Derbyshire and Staffordshire. With lot 1, a rising 15 year old cow, making 600 guineas, buyers knew they were going to have be bold to secure what they wanted and so it proved. Most found it hard to outbid Thomas Evans, who purchased nearly a quarter of the animals in the sale, giving the day’s top price of 2,900gs for a third calf daughter of Rock Brook Maple Mannix that had given over 8,000kg in her second lactation. Among those buying were the Royal Farms, who bought several animals for the noted Windsor herd, now milked through rotary units.
The Hardinge Jerseys numbered under 100 cattle, but it was a very different story last week when we dispersed the near 700 strong Wansdyke herd of Holsteins at Ham Spray, just south of Hungerford. The sale took place over 2 days at the superb recently constructed dairy unit, where most farmers were green with envy at the magnificent facilities. The unit had been built by Steve Fisher, a well known international bookmaker, but he had recently sold the whole estate to P.A.C Farms Ltd. Dairying did not fit into the new owner’s future plans, so the entire herd went under the hammer, once again bringing buyers from throughout the U.K including Northern Ireland, although many will be travelling westward to Dorset, Somerset, Devon and Cornwall. Many of the foundation stock came from the dispersal of Peter Padfield’s famous Hayleys herd and two of those purchases made the top prices of 5,100 and 5,000 gs. More than 60 animals made over 2,000gs and trade remained strong throughout the first day, even until the last lot went through as darkness fell. A smaller crowd appeared for the second day’s sale at the equally impressive young stock unit, but the trade was still strong, particularly for the maiden heifers which averaged over £1000. At the end of the two day’s trading the average for every animal through the ring was an impressive £1219 and when added to the sale of surplus machinery conducted by our colleagues BCM of Sutton Scotney, the event grossed over a million pounds.
We have only a handful of sales left this autumn, but have recently received instructions for two exciting sales next April – the first sale from the Wills Brothers prizewinning Willsbro herd in Cornwall, and a two day dispersal of the celebrated Weeton herd for John and Doreen Loftus in Lancashire. These will be two unmissable sales for pedigree aficionados.