Heading to the May Bull Sales

Richard Priestley of Cracrop Farm, Brampton, home to the Brontemoor herd has several Limousin bulls heading to Carlisle, this weekend.

 

The Brontemoor Limousin Herd was established in 1987 by Micheal Priestley, Richard’s grandfather, and his father Steven. Today farming almost 500 acres, the herd consists of 100 pedigree Limousin cows and 25 Limousin-cross British Blue cows, along with a flock of 120 pedigree Texel ewes and 380 Texel-cross ewes.

 

The Priestley’s aim to sell 25 bulls a year in spring and autumn, most of which are sold at Carlisle through Harrison & Hetherington. However it is the spring sales which are the key sales for them, selling the majority of their bulls between February and June, as more buyers now seem to be spring calvers with a decline in the number of suckler herds and those calving in autumn.         

 

Richard gives us details of his breeding policy: “We aim to breed big, powerful, commercial-type bulls for the commercial farmer, if we happen to breed one suitable for pedigree breeders, that’s a bonus,” Richard says. “We go for easy calving, we don’t go for extreme shape – we’d rather have a bigger frame with a good top for today’s market, bulls with strong legs and mobility.”

 

Although you never always know what your trade is going to be like, at the February bull sale, an overall average of £9,500 was achieved for the Brontemoor pedigree bulls this year, Richard hopes to maintain or improve on that figure this weekend.

The Priestley’s have a lot of repeat buyers and as a result of their ongoing improvements in stock quality they are always attracting new customers. In the main customers are commercial farmers, though in recent years Brontemoor bulls have been sought after by AI companies. Of course they are always pleased when a pedigree breeder purchases their genetics.

 

“In terms of prices for the pedigree breeding bulls, we hope to sell at between 8,000–10,000 guineas ” says Richard. “Our top bull ever sold was for 18,000  guineas – a Limousin called Brontemoor SonofGod – in February 2023.”  They also won the Overall Champion at the October 2024 bull sale with Brontemoor Urea, which sold to a pedigree breeder.

 

The best heifers are kept as replacements, and surplus females are sold to breeders or through the store markets along with the bullocks and heifers from the commercial herd at 14-16 months, typically weighing between 600 and 650 kilos. Bulls that don’t make the grade are sold as fat, and with the recent cattle trade having become dearer week by week, last week Richard secured the Borderway Centre record, selling a prime young bull for £4760.

In looking to the future, “The biggest challenge at the moment is uncertainty,” says Richard, “if stock prices continue to stay at current levels, we shouldn’t have to rely on Government subsidies. Farmers should be able to manage without this support, but we need fair prices for our product whether that be beef, lamb, fruit, vegetables, or arable crops.”

 

H&H  is not only the preferred destination for Richard’s pedigree stock he also uses  the market weekly for selling store, prime and cast cattle and sheep as he explains: “Harrison & Hetherington is the leading livestock market in the country, they have excellent facilities and  penning, and they definitely secure the premium prices for whatever we are selling, whether that be the pedigree bulls, store cattle, prime bulls, or sheep.”