Mount Gambier steers peak at $2300

Only coloured steers 280 kilograms to 320kg and Angus steers under 280kg stayed on par with the prices of the last store sale for 2020, while every other class increased significantly, with supply and demand rules in play.

Green Triangle Livestock auctioneer Garth Manser thought the sale, in which 1726 was yarded, was "pretty strong"

"Good steers made $4.80-$5/kg and the better end of heifers selling $100-$150/head better than December," he said.

Mr Manser said with the majority of weaners sold off late in 2020, he didn't expect many to be left in the paddocks.

"I think weaners may be pretty scarce to find in the coming months," he said.

Heavy Angus steers 450kg-plus sold from $4.02/kg to $4.43/kg; coloured steers 450kg-plus also sold from $3.35-$4.09/kg.

Angus steers 360-450kg sold on par with November prices, making from $4.08-$4.95/kg; while coloured steers 360-450kg made $3.74-$4.67/kg.

Angus steers from 320-360kg sold from $4.43-$5.22/kg, while coloured steers in the same weight range, slightly dearer from $4.34 to $5/kg.

Lighter Angus steers 280-320kg sold cheaper from $4.84-$5.63/kg, coloured steers in this weight range up slightly sold from $4.63-$5/kg; Angus steers under 280kg sold stronger $5.22-$5.50/kg and coloured steers under 280kg also sold stronger av $5.28/kg.

In a smaller yarding than usual for January, just over 1700 cattle were offered, with the tops of the Angus steer draft - 18 av 504kg at 14-16 months-old from the Gillett Family Trust, Eight Mile Creek - sold at $2220 or $4.40/kg to Thomas Foods International.

Major players at Friday's store market, Danny Saunders, Woodward Foods Australia and Matt Heinrich, TFI, slogged it out in a stiff contest for heavier Angus steers, chalking up 19 pens of Angus steers between them, from the first 26 pens offered.

Mr Saunders bought 261 heavier steers from 345-550kg, including 10 Lawson-blood Angus steers 12-14 months av 547kg at $2200 or $4.02/kg and a lighter draft av 397kg at $1780 or $4.48/kg sold by Yallambie Yahl; 12 PCAS eligible Angus steers 14-16 months av 446kg at $2000 or $4.48/kg from RW&T Dihm, Suttontown; five Pasturefed Cattle Assurance Scheme-eligible Limousin-cross steers 16-18 months av 489kg at $2000 or $4.09/kg from KB&DG Sharam, Mil Lel; and eight Angus-cross steers 14-18 months av 451kg at $2000 or $4.43/kg sold by J Patterson, Drumborg, Vic.

Creek Livestock, Mount Gambier, was also right in the mix and paid the top dollars per head price of the sale of $2300 or $3.57/kg for six Hereford steers 18-20 months av 644kg sold by Milroy Pastoral, Mingbool, Vic.

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Borderdowns, Strathdownie, Vic, sold 217 PCAS-eligible and European Union-accredited TeMania- and Ardrossan-bld Angus steers 10 months, weighing from 295-364kg, for an av of $1307.

Nutrien Livestock Mount Gambier paid the top dollars/kg price of $5.63/kg or $1660 for a draft of 31 av 295kg.

The heaviest draft of the Borderdowns steers av 364kg sold at $1800 or $4.95/kg to Creek Livestock Mount Gambier, while David Creek, Elders Mount Gambier, bought 93 av $1682 for BJA Agencies, Inverell, NSW.

O'Connor & Graney, Mount Gambier, paid the dollars/kg high of $5.28/kg or $1300 for coloured steers, buying seven Yarram Park-bld Herefords av 246kg from Benara Pastoral, Mount Gambier.

Dalgleish, Kalangadoo, sold 14 PCAS-eligible Borderdowns- and Maryvale-blood Angus steers 10-11 months av 442kg at $2000 or $4.52/kg and a lighter draft av 398kg at $1780 or $4.47/kg to TFI.

DM Spencer, Dartmoor, sold 55 PCAS-eligible Angus and Angus-cross steers 10-11 months weighing 313-411kg for an av of $1649. Their heaviest draft av 411kg sold to Creek Livestock Mount Gambier at $1880 or $4.57/kg and 19 lighter steers av 328kg sold to Nutrien Livestock at $1660 or $5.06/kg.

Regular vendors KG Feast & Son, Greenpoint, sold 39 Boonaroo-bld Angus and Angus-cross steers, 273-385kg, for an av of $1693. Their lightest draft av 273kg sold to D Edwards, Mount Gambier, at $1470 or $5.38/kg.

The Feast family also sold 21 Warrensville-bld Hereford steers to $1700 or $4.67/kg, av $1635, to Miller Whan & John account Lindsay.

Millanda Estate, Mount Gambier, sold 60 10-month-old PCAS-eligible Millah Murrah- and Weeran-bld Angus steers, 352-393kg, for an av of $1763. Their heaviest draft av 393kg selling to Woodward Foods Australia at $1840 or $4.68/kg.

Invaloch Pastoral, Strathdownie, Vic, sold 12 PCAS-eligible Hereford steers 9-10 months av 354kg at $1690 or $4.77/kg and a lighter draft av 333kg at $1640 or $4.92/kg to D Edwards.

KK&AW Wilson, Mount Gambier, sold 15 Shorthorn steers av 388kg at $1740 or $4.48/kg to TFI and a draft of Shorthorn-cross steers av 338kg at $1690 or $5/kg to Green Triangle Livestock.

RELATED READING: Strathalbyn steers hit high of $5.83/kg

TOPPING the heifer market was Yallambie, Yahl, selling four Lawson-bld Angus heifers, 12 months av 519kg at $1950 or $3.76/kg to Woodward Foods Australia, while a lighter draft av 339kg sold at $1460 or $4.31/kg to Miller Whan & John account Apsley.

Swanlea, Penola, made the highest dollars/kg price at $5.07/kg or $1450 for 14 Boonaroo-bld Angus heifers av 286kg, again selling to MWJ acc Apsley, while a lighter draft av 258kg went the same way at $1050 or $4.07/kg.

VD&RF Itzerott, Kongorong, sold 54 PCAS-eligible Angus/Simmental heifers, 337-403kg, for an av of $1619. Their heaviest draft av 403kg sold at $1700 or $4.22/kg to Woodward Foods Australia.

Dalgleish, Kalangadoo, sold 14 PCAS-eligible Borderdowns- and Maryvale-bld Angus heifers av 410kg at $1680 or $4.09/kg to Woodward Foods Australia, plus a lighter draft of Angus-cross heifers av 350kg at $1660 or $4.74/kg to Southern Australian Livestock.

Killarnie, Mingbool, sold 24 Boonaroo- and Pathfinder-bld Angus heifers av 345kg at $1650 or $4.78/kg to Dean Hampel, account Kent, Millicent; while a second draft av 310kg made $1560 or $5.03/kg to Creek Livestock.

RELATED READING: Outstanding heifer weaners hit $1823 at Naracoorte

KK&AW Wilson, Mount Gambier, sold seven Shorthorn-cross heifers av 383kg at $1620 or $4.23/kg to TFI, their lighter heifers av 332kg sold to MWJ acc Apsley at $1470 or $4.43/kg.

Verona, Dismal Swamp, sold 17 Angus heifers 10-12 months av 292kg at $1420 or $4.86/kg to MWJ acc Apsley; plus a draft of 23 Angus-cross heifers 10-12 months av 268kg at $1330 or 44.96/kg to Nutrien Livestock, Mount Gambier.

Overall, heifers 450kg-plus sold at $3.76/kg; 360-450kg heifers were the only weight class selling cheaper, from $3.45-$4.32/kg; 320-360kg heifers sold dearer from $4.14-$4.78/kg; 280-320kg heifers also sold dearer from $4.49-$5.07/kg, as did heifers under 280kg selling from $4.07-$4.96/kg.

Lakala, Mumbannar, was the only vendor to offer PTIC females - six pure TeMania-bld Angus second and third-calvers, PTIC to TeMania Angus bulls to commence calving February 15, at $2650 to Nutrien Livestock Mount Gambier, while 20 Angus heifers PTIC to TeMania Angus bulls, commencing calving February 15, sold at $2620 and $2500 respectively.

Only five Angus-cross cows with calves at-foot were offered by KD&HD Hadnam, Suttontown, sold at $2380 to J Richardson.