THE gavel fell this week at Skipton Auction Mart on the first live auction of cattle for more than 12 months.

And although there was worry surrounding the latest foot and mouth scare near Thirsk, the fat stock ring was full of farmers and dealers eager to find out what prices the 172 feeding bulls and 153 store cattle would make.

After a half hour delay due to a technical fault, trade got off to a brisk start with a young Belgian Blue bull from J Lowcock of Barley, in Pendle making £385. It was bought by Stephen Eastwood, of Huddersfield.

The sale wasn't limited to local sellers either with stock being brought from as far away as Rochdale, Rossendale and Goosnargh.

"It's grand to be back," said Gargrave farmer Richard Wellock who has hardly missed an auction for most of his 90 years.

Farmer Ken Browes, of Clough Head Farm, Sutton-in-Craven, had three Limousin heifers in Wednesday's auction. "It will be interesting to see what prices cattle make today. I sold six a fortnight ago on the screen and was happy with what I got for them. But you can't really compare a screen sale with a live auction."

Retired John Naylor, who farmed Low House, at Barden, said that although he felt the time was right to start auctions again, it would take them several months to get going again.

"I think there will be fewer sellers because I know several people who aren't going back into farming. A lot will depend as well on when the restrictions get thinned out a bit. This 20-day standstill is a farce," he said.

He explained that restrictions imposed on cattle movements meant they could not be sold on for almost three weeks. "I wouldn't be surprised if it didn't carry on like this for another 12 months."

Breathing a sigh of relief that things were returning to some semblance of normality were the proprietors of the trading units at the mart.

Keith Clay, manager of The Coverall Co which sells farm and outdoor clothing, was doing a fair trade. "We've struggled on throughout the crisis so it's good to see people coming back and good to hear the cattle again," he said.

Chris Tennant, who manages the mart branch of Laycock's Agricultural Chemists, said things had started to pick up a bit since the New Year. "It's going to take a while, but things are starting to get back to normal a bit now. The auction has always been the focal point of farming," he said.

The man who got the first live sales started off was auctioneer John Hanson. He reported a good day and was pleased to see so many familiar faces at the auction.

"Trade wise it was as much as we could have hoped for. Prices were satisfactory and certainly on a par to where we left off last year," said Mr Hanson. "Things will get back to normal."

He said that as the live auctions got going, the screen sales would eventually die out. "They served a purpose and allowed auction sales to go on while the restrictions were in place," he explained.

Trade was brisk too at Hawes Auction Mart.

Nine calves were forward on Tuesday, averaging £44.50. Best price went to a Limousin bull at £155.

And livestock sales will resume at Bentham Auction Mart on Tuesday when around 300 animals will go under the hammer.

Expectations are high for a successful day as Bentham and District Farmers' Auction Mart Company resumes normal business. The annual spring show and sale of breeding and store cattle will start at 11am.

"We have entries of 300 breeding and store cattle. There is quite a bit of excitement and I think people are ready to be back," said auctioneer Stephen Dennis, of Bentham-based Richard Turner and Son.

"We would normally get about 350 cattle at this sale, we have entries of 300 and bearing in mind the amount of stock culled in the Settle area, I do anticipate a big turnout of buyers, sellers and spectators. There should be a good atmosphere," said Mr Dennis.

Bentham's regular Wednesday daytime and evening sales also resume next week, with bidding starting at 11am and 5pm.

Meanwhile DEFRA has announced that it is packing its bags and leaving the Gisburn Auction Mart site after more than eight months.

The site was set up as a base for vets and DEFRA officials who controlled operations around Craven and the Ribble Valley.