SMALLER, lighter cattle were hot property at Mount Gambier's monthly store cattle sale last Friday, with plenty of restockers bidding with confidence after recent good soaking rains, prices rocketing up to $8.56 a kilogram.
In the smallest yarding for some time, feedlotters went in hard on the few heavy cattle available, J&F paid the day's highest dollars a head price of $3220 or $5.49/kg for 13, 587kg, 22-month-old Angus steers from G Ellison & Co, Kalangadoo.
Heavy Angus steers 450kg+ made from $5.38 to $6.22/kg - on par with last month. Heavy coloured steers 450+kg sold slightly cheaper on last month's rates, making $4.57-$5.73/kg. Angus steers 360-450/kg sold firm to stronger, making $6.25-$6.59/kg while prices of coloured steers 360-450kg were firm, selling at $6.23/kg.
Medium weight classes of Angus steers from 320-360kg sold $6.30-$7.14/kg; coloured steers in the same class made $6.37-$7.95/kg. Angus steers 280-320kg sold significantly dearer, making $6.01- $7.53/kg; coloured steers 280-320kg also dearer, selling $5.66-$7.03/kg. Rates on the large yarding of Angus steers under 280kg were also much stronger, making $6.94-$8.56/kg; prices on a limited selection of coloured steers in the same weight range also jumped up in price, selling $6.60-$6.73/kg
Green Triangle Livestock's Garth Manser considered Friday's solid sale prices a reflection of producer confidence after recent soaking rains.
"Feed lotters were pushing the heavier steers today, so restockers were coming back into the smaller cattle along with some of the buyers from away," he said.
"This was a very very good sale on the little cattle - at a guess, the smaller heifers would have to have made $200-$300 a head dearer than last month."
Wannon Pastoral, Coleraine, Vic, sold 17, 229kg Pasturefed Cattle Assurance System-eligible September/October-drop Ebony Beef-blood Angus steers at $1910 or 8.34/kg to Miller Whan & John a/c Kent, who also bought a lighter draft av 202kg at Friday's top cents a kilo price of $8.56/kg or $1730.
Shannon Glen, Mumbannar, Vic, sold 105, 14-15mo PCAS Angus steers and 18-20mo Angus-cross steers weighing from 321-567kg for an average of $2625. Their heaviest draft of 20, 567kg, 14-15mo Angus steers sold at $3200 or $5.64/kg to Thomas Foods International and a lighter draft, av 522kg, were bought by Teys Australia at $3180 or $6.09/kg.
MW&JF Osborne, Millicent, sold 50 Angus and Angus-cross steers, weighing from 320-542kg, for an average of $2587. Their heaviest draft, av 542kg, sold at $3140 or $5.79/kg to J&F, and Hopkins River bought a lighter draft, av 347kg, at $2360 or $6.80.kg.
Sandy Ridge, Kalangadoo, sold 32, 8-12mo Angus and Angus-cross steers with weights from 169-271kg for an average of $1759. Their heaviest draft, av 271kg, sold to Nutrien Mount Gambier at $2010 or $7.42/kg. Nutrien also lined up for 17, 247kg, 8-10mo Pathfinder-bld Angus steers, paying $1900 or $7.69/kg, offered by D Laslett, Allendale.
Kumara Pty Ltd, Mount Gambier, sold 105 European Union-accredited and PCAS-eligible Pathfinder-bld Angus steers weighing from 212-369kg for an average of $2119. Elders Dartmoor paid $2090 or $7.83/kg for a draft of 22 of the Angus steers, which weighed an average of 267kg.
Creek Livestock bought five, 598kg, 18-20mo Hereford steers at $2900 or $4.85/kg, sold a/c BJ&BJ McCusker, Mount Gambier.
MW&JF Osborne sold 26 Charolais steers weighing from 496-623kg for an average of $2837. Their heaviest draft, av 623kg, sold at $2850 or $4.57/kg to J&F.
Elgin, Claywells, sold 15, 352kg Yarram Park-bld Hereford steers to Elders Mildura, Vic, at $2800 or $7.95/kg, with a lighter draft at 318kg selling at $1800 or $5.66/kg to Miller Whan & John.
Dismal Swamp, Kalangadoo, sold 91 PCAS eligible Banquet-bld July/August-drop Angus and Angus-cross steers, weighing from 225-327kg, for an average of $2136. Kaicowrie, Wattle Range, bought 27 of the steers, av 327kg, at $2310 or $7.06 and a lighter draft av 322kg at $2300 or $7.14/kg.
Dismal Swamp also sold a draft of 13, 310kg PCAS eligible July/August-drop Melville Park-bld Hereford steers at $2800 or $7.95/kg to Elders Mildura.
Eight cows and calf units were sold on Friday, the top price of $3420 paid by Elders Millicent for seven mixed-age Angus cows with seven Angus calves at-foot, sold account KN Thomas.
Only a single pen of heavy heifers 450+kg were yarded and sold at $4.13/kg; heifers weighing from 360-450kg sold at dearer rates $5.09-$6.64/kg; with 320-360kg heifers selling dearer at the lighter end to firm, $5.86-$6.49/kg. Heifers in the lighter weight 280-320kg sold dearer $5.70-$6.80/kg, prices for lighter heifers under 280kg showed the most significant gain selling $6.14-$8.27/kg.
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FJ&HR Gysbers, Millicent, sold 28 PCAS-eligible March/April 2021-drop Angus-cross heifers, weighing between 311-593kg, for an average of $2264. Miller Whan & John paid $2450 or $4.13/kg for four heifers av 593kg; $2390 or $6.64 for 11 heifers av 360kg and $2100 or $6.75 for 13 heifers av 311kg.
Australian Agriculture, Mingbool, Vic, sold 15, 410kg, 12-14mo PCAS Angus heifers at $2430 or $5.93/kg to Thomas DeGaris & Clarkson, Penola. TDC also bought 14, 359kg 12mo PCAS eligible Nampara-bld Angus heifers at $2330 or $6.49/kg, sold a/c Morella Enterprises, Wallacedale, Vic.
BR&C Swan Hill, Vic, bought 14, 230kg, 8-10mo PCAS Angus heifers at $1530 or $6.65/kg and a lighter draft, av 179kg, at $1480, making the top cents a kilo heifer price of $8.27/kg, sold a/c Sandy Ridge, Kalangadoo.
Wannon Pastoral sold 33, 184kg PCAS Ebony Beef bld Angus heifers at $1510 or $8.21/kg to BR&C, a lighter draft, av 221kg, selling to Nutrien Mount Gambier at $1570 or $7.10/kg
D Laslett, Allendale, sold 18, 266kg, 8-10mo PCAS Pathfinder-bld Angus heifers at $1770 or $6.65/kg and a lighter draft av 225kg at $1610 or $7.16/kg to Elders Mildura.
Volume vendor of the day, Dismal Swamp sold 93 Banquet-bld July/August- drop Angus heifers, with weights from 260-310kg for an average of $1903, along with 16 Melville Park-bld Hereford heifers, weighing from 256-309kg for an average of $1705.
