Renowned Northumberland sheep farmers to sell their flock

Alan and Lorna Jackson, of Rugley Farm, near Alnwick, are selling their 130 Suffolk sheep at auction later this month.

Their daughter, Lucy Story, who has just got married and will keep 10 older ewes, is taking over the farm tenancy.

However, the majority will go under the hammer at Harrison & Hetherington’s sale at Borderway Mart in Carlisle on Saturday, November 30.

Another acclaimed Suffolk flock, from JS & JB Mauchlen at Spotsmains Farm, Kelso, will also be auctioned.

Scott Donaldson, joint managing director at Harrison & Hetherington, said: “The Jackson and Mauchlen families are noted consigners and renowned for producing well grown, tight-skinned Suffolk shearlings for the Kelso Ram Sale market and both have sold a remarkable number of shearlings that fall in the top 1% for performance over the years.

“Top performance figures have been bred into the Rugley flock which will prove to be vital for lamb production in the future. Their emphasis is on commercial production and Alan, Lorna and the family have focused on producing Suffolk sheep that meet the requirements of the market, both present and future.”

Over the years the Jacksons have used many successful Sires, most recently Strathisla Cappi, who has produced many sought after progeny, the best of these being Rugley Terrific who continues to produce excellent lambs.

On the quality of the herd, Alan Jackson commented: “We have made good use of the CT Scanning facility for several years and at one stage more than half of the top 1% of sheep scanned for CT Muscularity belonged to the Rugley flock.

“We are extremely proud of this history and ready to pass down this pedigree to the future owners to ensure the sheep are for tomorrow’s market. To conclude Lorna and I would of course like to thank everyone for their support over the years.”

Further information on the two sales can be obtained by contacting Harrison & Hetherington’s team on 01228 406230.