MICHAEL and Julie Osborne reached new heights at their 11th on-property ram sale on Monday, with their Ryeview stud receiving its highest price for a White Suffolk ram at $1700, as well as achieving a complete clearance of the breed.
Overall, the Osbornes offered 106 White Suffolks, Suffolks and Border Leicesters, with the gallery including 22 registered local buyers from Naracoorte, Millicent, Tantanoola, Bray, Hatherleigh, Mount Gambier and Kingston SE areas. Eighty-five rams sold to $1700 twice.
In the 64-ram White Suffolk offering, bidding consistently hit the $1100 to $1500 mark in the first half of the catalogue, and resulted in the stud recording its highest ever average of $1183 for the breed.
The first ram sold as ‘pick of the pair’ was the 2018 annual donation by the Osbornes to the Millicent Cancer Support Group. MP&JP Ridge, Kongorong, won the bid and selected lot 1 at $1600. The Ridge family went on to buy another nine White Suffolk rams, paying between $1100 and $1600, averaging $1350.
Lot 3, sired by Ashmore 140108, was the top price White Suffolk ram at $1700, selling to DJ&M Loxton, Greenways.
Mr Loxton, a Ryeview buyer for the past 5-6 years, said with the present lamb prices, he expected to have to pay a bit of money to get his choice of ram. While he made his selection visually, the top price sire was backed up by figures of 16.6 post-weaning weight, -0.5 PW fat, 0.8 PW eye muscle depth and a Carcase Plus index of 193.20.
Famazos Pastoral, Murrabinna, Kingston, was the volume buyer on the day, taking 11 White Suffolks from $800-$1000, averaging $882, while C&D Agnew, Kalangadoo, bought eight White Suffolks from $900-$1400, averaging $1212.
Twenty-one of 39 Border Leicester rams were sold for an average of $965, selling to the equal sale high of $1700 for a ram bought by Greg Fisher, Clover Ridge Pastoral, Padthaway.
Elders southern livestock sales manager Laryn Gogel said the Border offering showed Ryeview’s investment in Coolawang genetics across the past couple of years. He said the rams were an attractive package with solid bone and a good, meaty shape.
JL Sutherland, Bray, bought five Border Leicesters from $800-$1300, averaging $940.
In addition to the top price White Suffolk, DJ&M Loxton also secured five Border Leicesters from $800-$1300, averaging $1120.
Three Suffolk rams were offered but did not find homes.
The sale was conducted by Elders, with auctioneer Tom Penna saying the sale was Ryeview’s best on the White Suffolks, with the rams showing more depth, consistency of type and good wool than ever.
Mr Osborne was pleased to see both return and new clients at the sale. He thought prices were on the mark,and said there were exciting times ahead with the injection of more Coolawang and Waratah genetics into the flock.
