ALLENDALE and Days Whiteface combined Poll Hereford bull sale at Bordertown on Monday produced a new $24,000 on-property record, but the real strength was how spectacularly solid the sale was.
Half of the bulls, offered by Alastair and Jayne Day with Lachy and Lou Day, made $10,000 or more.
A large crowd, including 57 registered bidders, competed strongly throughout for the high quality line-up of 74 bulls, producing an outstanding average of $9514 – a jump of $1296 on the 2016 sale.
The 20-month-old, 834kg sale-topper Zanzibar L131 was sired by Allendale Anzac H187 – a bull sold at the Dubbo National Show & Sale in NSW in 2014 for $30,000,
Zanzibar was bought by Nick Laucke, Laucke-Merrina, Bordertown, who had followed the progress of the bull, visiting the stud several times leading up to the sale.
“It is such a beautifully balanced bull, good headed, great length and with good figures, especially for carcase traits,” he said.
The bull was in the top 1 per cent for intra-muscular fat, top 5pc for rib and rump fat and top 10pc for scrotal size.
The sale high eclipsed the previous record of $22,000 paid in 2009 by Glenrobin Grazing, Mansfield, Vic.
While Allendale stud took the top price honours, Days Whiteface stud achieved the highest average.
Both vendors sold 36 of 37 bulls through the ring, with the Days Whiteface bulls averaging $9819 and the Allendale bulls averaging $9208.
Days Whiteface stud sold 21 of its 36 bulls in the $10,000 to $16,000 price range.
Phoebe Farrell, Ashmore Farm, Warrnambool, Vic, paid the $16,000 for Days Emerald L163, sired by Days Wizard J207.
Ms Farrell was a losing bidder on a $22,000 bull offered at Wodonga, Vic, last year and was not going to miss her pick bull at this sale.
Ashmore Farm runs about 300 Poll Hereford breeders, targeting the heavy steer markets.
Allendale also received $16,000 for Allendale Gallipoli L32 – an AI-bred son of Days Robin Hood H38 – bought by Gary Bowyer, Robe.
This impressive 22-month-old, 860kg bull is a descendent of two top grand dams, which have produced more than $300,000 worth of bull progeny.
The sale opened strongly with a successful $13,000 bid on Allendale Chisel L7 by repeat buyers Henty-Anderson Partnership, Henty, Vic, buying through LMB Linke Livestock.
The first 10 bulls of the sale averaged $11,375, but the sale remained strong throughout. After 50 bulls sold, the average was $10,420.
Michael and Nerida Hanlon, Sacul Investments, Howes Creek Station, Mansfield, Vic, who paid last year’s top of $17,000, this year bought two bulls at $15,000 each from the Days Whiteface draft.
They bought Days Bruiser L70 – an AI-bred son of $90,000 Days Calibre G74 – and Days Globetrotter L107, sired by Days Elaborate J59.
The latter youngster was the junior and grand champion at the 2016 Adelaide Royal Show.
Shiloh Park, buying through Ray White Keatley Mount Gambier’s Brian Spring, paid $15,000 for both Allendale Chisel L6 – an ET son of Remintal-West Game Day 74Y (Imp CAN) – and full brother to lot 3 (which made $11,000) and Allendale’s lead bull for Wodonga, Vic, in May.
But principals Steve and Thea Witherow and their manager John Richardson didn’t stop there.
They bought five bulls in total – two from Allendale and three from Days Whiteface – averaging $13,100.
Shiloh Park turns off weaner cattle in the late spring Mount Gambier markets and averaged just under $1300 for 130 late last year.
Volume buyers are also key to a successful sale with bigger numbers on offer like this one, putting a strong floor in the market.
Locky and Paddy Weir, Todd River Pastoral, Alice Springs, NT, have been big volume buyers for the past two years, with 15 bulls in both those sales, and averaging $5767 last year.
Buying through Elders Alice Springs, they repeated those buying numbers this year, but went substantially higher, paying $10,000 three times and averaging $7733.
“We try to consistently turn off heavy 300-kilogram carcaseweight cattle, so sustained growth traits are important,” Locky said.
“It has been a really good past 12 months which is allowing our cattle to bloom but we are only halfway through summer yet.”
Cam Anderson and Sarah Harvey, Eringoarrah Station, Winderadeen Corporation, Wantabadgery, NSW, were back again after buying eight bulls at last year’s sale, investing in another seven bulls to $10,500 twice and averaging $8714 in very good buying.
