The November prime sale, at Skipton, witnessed a buoyant trade where Jim and Christine Scriven, of Park House Farm, Elslack, clinched the cattle championship with their 575kg British Blue cross steer.

Skipton’s general manager and auctioneer Jeremy Eaton commented: “Indications are that with the new lockdown in place, retail trade is picking up and those companies with more of a catering mix are looking to use up existing stocks and reviewing their requirements after each Thursday.”

The sale leader caught the eyes of buyers around the ring and secured 269.5p per kg or £1550, heading home with Ralph Pearson, Wholesale Meats, Bradford, who won every other prize winner in the pen-judged steer and heifer shows classes.

A 545kg Limousin cross heifer stood reserve champion from the Charles and Richard Kitching, who also consigned the second prize heifer and both the second and third prize steers.

Next in the trade stakes at £1526 or 265.5p was a 575kg Limousin cross heifer from the Kitching family, Grisedale, while Simon Bennett, Silsden Moor, sold his pen leader, a 640kg Limousin cross heifer at 235.5p or £1507.

Some 25 cull cows topped at £1084, or 173.5p for a young British Blue cross from George Fleetwood in Mirfield, to average106.37p.

Just short of 4000 prime sheep were also sold, where 3719 lambs levelled at 213.7p and reached a top price of £145 for five 44kg Beltex crosses from father and son vendors, Richard and Mark Ireland, of Heys Farm, Whalley.

Also heading through the ring was 235 cast ewes which peaked to £127.50 for Texels from David Airey, of Sutton-in-Craven, to average £66.21.

The weekly rearing calf sale attracted just 27 cattle with a British Blue cross bull calf from Sutton-in-Craven’s Richard Spence achieving the top price of £425, while British Friesian’s topped the black and white entries at £180 from the same vendor.