Annual flush of vendor bred Hereford weaners brings out the buyers

Store sales around the nation in January were marked by a flush of autumn drop weaner steers and heifers with backgrounders and grass-fed finishers competing for quality vendor bred Hereford cattle.

Heavy grown Hereford steers over 350kg liveweight returned $1430-$2714 or 325-590c/kg, yearling steers averaged $1700 or 432c/kg, feeder steers made $1580-$1700 or 402-420c/kg and backgrounders sold for $1950-$2080 or 464-479c/kg.

In the weaner steer pens, those weighing over 350kg returned $1491-$1950 or 390-490c/kg and steers weighing 280-350kg finished at $1219-$1830 or 424-584c/kg.

In the females, grown unjoined heifers returned $1517-$3025 or 327-597c/kg, weaners over 300kg returned $1220-$1610 or 357-473c/kg and those under 300kg $1071-$1320 or 380-495c/kg.

Pregnancy tested in calf heifers made $2000-$4000, heifers and calves sold for $3300-$3700, joined cows for $2500-$2850 and cows and calves $2740.

At the Mortlake weaner sale, Ettrick sold purebred steers, 10-11 months, PCAS, Ardno blood, and weighing 395kg for 442c/kg or $1745. The seconds weighing 359kg made 460c/kg or $1651. I White sold Jaclinton blood steers, eight to nine months, and 318kg for 476c/kg or $1513. The seconds weighing 265kg made 460c/kg or $1219.

Nevflo Pty Ltd sold Banemore and Moora blood steers, 351kg, and weaned, for 462c/kg or $1622. Their seconds weighing 314kg returned 500c/kg or $1570. Down and Vickery sold Moora blood steers, 10 months and 321kg, for 462c/kg or $1483. Also at Mortlake, D and N Higgins sold 11-month-old steers, 377kg, for 462c/kg or $1741.

In the heifer pens at Mortlake, Down and Vickery sold 10-month-olds, 282kg, for 380c/kg or $1071 and Romahon Pty Ltd sold heifers, nine to 10 months, 275kg, for 414c/kg or $1138. Ettrick sold Adrno blood heifers, 302kg, for 452c/kg or $1365.

At Mortlake on January 19, Den Hills Partnership sold steers, 18 to 20 months, Melville Park and Taronga blood, and 575kg, for 350c/kg or $2012. N Fitzgerald sold grown steers, 557kg, 18 to 20 months, Taronga and Allendale blood, for 355c/kg or $1977, Hutton Partnership sold steers, 558kg, Yarram Park blood, for 362c/kg or $2020 and a pen of 40 weighing 516kg for 374c/kg or $1930. In the weaner pens, M and V Nash sold 10 to 11-month-olds, 395kg, for 390c/kg or $1540 and R and P McCosh sold steers, 330kg, 10 to 11 months, for 424c/kg or $1399. D Phillips sold Mt Difficult blood heifers, 471kg, 17 to 18 months, for 322c/kg or $1517. Grown heifers offered by Graham McCready aged 16 to 17 months, Ardmore and Ennerdale blood, and 475kg, made 354c/kg or $1681.

At the Nutrien Yea Upper Goulburn Classic sale, Inverness Pastoral, sold purebred steers, 10 to 11 months, and 390kg, for $1730 or 443c/kg, D Chisolm & Sons sold steer weaners, 382kg, for $1720 or 450c/kg and their seconds weighing 339kg for $1690 or 498c/kg. I and J Marshmann sold 376kg steers, 10 to 11 months, EU accredited, for $1720 or 457c/kg. Their seconds weighing 325kg sold to $1810 or 556c/kg and thirds weighing 348kg returned $1830 or 525c/kg. The Marshmann’s lightest pen at 291kg made 577c/kg or $1680.

In the heifer draft, Inverness Pastoral sold heifers weighing 405kg, aged eight to 10 months, and returning $1610 while B J Dignam Pty Ltd sold heifers, eight to 10 months, 319kg and weaned for $1490 or 467c/kg.

At the Creek Livestock Blue Ribbon Weaner Sale on January 12, Neville and David McClure, Mooree Partnership, Chetwynd, offered 450 Yarram Park and Glendan Park blood steers and 150 heifers. The purebred steers topped at $1560 or 448c/kg for a pen of 106 weighing 348kg. The heifers topped at $1275 for a pen of 73 weighing 294kg. W Richardson sold Hereford steer weaners weighing 349kg for $1570 or 449c/kg while I Ross, Sandford, sold weaned steers, 363kg, nine to 10 months, for $1640 or 451c/kg.

K and L Dean, Euroa, sold weaned heifers, 266kg and nine to 10 months, for $1320 or 495c/kg whilst W and A Daunt, Meadow Creek, sold unjoined heifers, 20 to 22 months and 479kg, for $1800 or 375c/kg. These Girls Can Farm, Merton, sold heifers, 460kg, 22 to 24 months, and joined to a Hereford bull for $2000.

At Pakenham female sale, Vearing and Davies sold a draft of unjoined grown Hereford heifers, with the top price pen weighing 506kg and aged two years, for $3025. M Armstrong sold heifers, 28 to 30 months, with calves for $3300 at the same sale.

At the Pakenham annual weaner and grown store sale, Glen Brothers, Guildford, sold Guilford, Glenview Dell and Tarcombe blood steers, 398kg, for $1950 or 489c/kg, and C Jeffries, Driffield, sold Newcomen blood heifers, 300kg, for $1420 or 473c/kg.

Armstrong Evergreen, Yea, sold Yavenvale and Tarcombe blood heifers, 532kg and 20-22 months, and joined to a Yavenvale bull for $2720. G and D Comerford, Mansfield, sold PTIC cows, 752kg, Ravensdale and Morganvale blood, and six to seven years, for $2500.

At the Elders Year 36th annual blue ribbon weaner sale, Armstrong Evergreen Pty Ltd sold steers, 10 months, Yavenvale and Tarcombe blood, 390kg, for $1900 or 487c/kg. J Hiscock and Sons sold Coolana and Glendaloch blood steers, 385kg, for $1890 or 490c/kg while I and P Ralston sold Tarcombe blood steers, nine to 10 months, 360kg, for $1690 or 469c/kg. G and M Aldridge sold Injemira and Wirruna blood steers, 310kg, EU and Greenhams Never Ever accredited, for $1640 or 529c/kg.

Topping the Hereford heifers at Yea was J Hiscock and Sons with a pen of 43 weighing 310kg and returning $1310 or 422c/kg whilst Kobyboyn Partnership, Seymour, sold steers, 10 to 11 months and 330kg, for $1600 or 483c/kg.

At the Kyneton weaner sale, Sutton Grange Stud sold steers, nine to 10 months, and 355kg, for $1730 or 487c/kg and their seconds weighing 320kg for $1400 or 437c/kg. The heifer portion weighing 307kg returned $1220 or 397c/kg. Glen Brothers Pty Ltd topped the Hereford heifer weaners with a pen weighing 322kg and making $1400 or 434c/kg.

Phil and Kerry Geehman, Ensay, topped the Bairnsdale store sale on $2310 or 590c/kg for Hereford and Hereford/Shorthorn steers, 354kg, bought by Nutrien Delaney Livestock and Property director Anthony Delaney. Their seconds weighing 354kg made $1940 or 548c/kg and bought by Colin Jones, Bill Wyndham & Co, Bairnsdale.

The Marshall family, Orbost, sold a run of 70 steers, 10 to 11 months, including 345kg for $1760 or 510c/kg and a lighter pen at 291kg for $1700 or 584c/kg at Bairnsdale.

Rostella Pastoral, Yea, sold its complete herd of 129 Hereford and Hereford/Simmental steers, 16 to 24 months, at Leongatha sale to a top of $2500 or 400c/kg for a pen weighing 624kg.

Over the border into NSW and Okeview Pastoral, Scone, continued to turn off feeder steers, 15 to 17 months and 404kg, for $1700 or 420c/kg. Paspaley Pastoral Company, Aberdeen, offered a run of 273 feeder steers aged 18 to 20 months and weighing 419kg, returning $1690 or 402c/kg. The second run of 98 weighing 382kg made $1580 or 413c/kg. They had been finished on millet, forage brassica and supplementary grain.

Langdown Park Pastoral, Paddys River, sold steers, eight to 10 months and 282kg, for $1390 or 492c/kg.

P and L Galloway, Wagga Wagga, sold Yavenvale blood station mated heifers, 31 to 33 months and 538kg, with calves for $3700 whilst Woodstock Partnership, Tooma, sold a draft of 43 yearling steers, 393kg, and 16 to 18 months, for $1700 or 432c/kg.

Fresh from paying the top price for heifers at the Wangaratta weaner sale, John Payne, Mulwala, sold PTIC Hereford heifers, 560kg and 23 to 24 months, for $4000 on AuctionsPlus. The Mawarra blood heifers had been bought out of the Mountain Calf Sales from Peter Faithfull, Omeo, and joined to low birthweight Angus bulls for a March calving.

Jim Hindmarsh & Son sold on behalf of C and J Dooley, Roslyn, steers averaging 835kg at South Eastern Livestock Exchange to return $2714 or 325c/kg. Michael Hall Livestock sold on behalf of M Mooney steers averaging 593kg and returning $2029 or 342c/kg.

H and J Fraser, Wollomombi, sold PTIC cows, 535kg and five to eight years, with calves, for $2850. S and A Mitchell, Ellerston, sold a line of Strathleigh and Glenwarrah blood PTIC cows, 707kg and four years, for $2750. M and J Pendergast, Cooma, sold future breeders, Allendale blood, 389kg, and 16 to 17 months, for $1660 or 426c/kg.

In South Australia, Nayook South, Allendale East, sold a draft of 142 284-368kg EU, PCAS, March-April drop Banemore blood Hereford steers from $1510 to $1770 for an average of $1585 at the Mount Gambier sale. Thomas DeGaris & Clarkson paid $1770 or 481c/kg for a draft of 28 of the steers weighing 368kg.

Miller Whan & John bought 19 268kg Bowmont and Tarcombe blood Herefords at $1510 or 563c/kg, and a heavier draft of 27 at 317kg for $1600 or 505c/kg sold by Dunorer, Hotspur. Invaloch Pastoral, Strathdownie, sold 29 342kg PCAS accredited, Days Whiteface and Allendale blood Hereford steers at $1630 or 477c/kg to Miller Whan & John.

At Naracoorte, AG Batchell sold steers nine to 10 months and weighing 339kg for $1500 or 442c/kg. In the Naracoorte combined agent’s sale on January 12, Killarney Family Trust sold PTIC heifers, 599kg, for $2700 and I and S Agnew sold cows, three years and 700kg, PTIC to an Angus bull for $2840. Hillgums Pastoral sold PTIC cows, five to six years, with calves for $2740.

Also at Naracoorte, Shady Grove Partners sold heifers, 320kg, nine months and weaned, for $1300 or 406c/kg, R Hortle and S Hague sold heifers, nine to 10 months, 308kg, for $1290 or 418c/kg and D and A Flint sold heifers, 386kg, for $1380 or 357c/kg and the seconds weighing 325kg for $1310 or 403c/kg. Walteela Park sold heifers, nine to 10 months and 275kg for 434c/kg or $1193.

B and S Skeer sold Bovilis MH + IBR treated weaner steers, nine to 10 months, and 403kg, for $1690 or 419c/kg at the Naracoorte weaner sale whilst D and A Flint sold steers, nine to 10 months, 390kg and also vaccinated with Bovilis for $1670 or 428c/kg. P and V Tischler sold a pen of 28 steers, eight to nine months and 320kg for 454c/kg or $1452. Topping the Hereford steers on a c/kg basis was Walteela Park with a pen aged nine to 10 months and 297kg returning 486c/kg or $1443.

Across to Western Australia and the WALSA Boyanup weaner sale – Nutrien saw Tonebridge Grazing sell Hereford steers, 370kg, nine to 10 months, for 440c/kg or $1628, the seconds at 324kg, nine to 10 months, for 434c/kg or $1406 and the thirds weighing 341kg returned 438c/kg or $1493.

The Elders Boyanup January store cattle sale resulted in E and B Hill selling Hereford weaner steers, nine to 11 months, 404kg for 400c/kg or $1616, 337kg at 414c/kg or $1395. The heifer portion weighing 381kg returned 358c/kg or $1363 and the seconds at 381kg made 358c/kg or $1364. Also at the Boyanup store sale, E and B Hill, Brunswick, sold 404kg Poll Hereford steers for $1616 or 400c/kg to Rob Gibbings, Elders Capel. Bassem Dabbah secured the lighter pens for $1395 or 414c/kg.

N and H Wiese sold Hereford steers, 355kg and nine months, at the Nutrien Boyanup weaner sale for 420c/kg or $1491.

Heading north to Queensland where A M York, Bowenville, sold weaned Kroy Park blood heifers, 270kg, eight to 12 months, for $1150 or 424c/kg.

Remolea Poll Herefords, Warwick, sold a draft of future breeders, 15 to 18 months and weighing 345kg, for $2080, the seconds aged 15 to 20 months and 415kg, for $1900, the thirds weighing 386kg and 18 to 19 months, made $1880 and the fourths weighing 366kg and 13 to 20 months, returned $1780.

In Tasmania, Killara Pastoral, Springfield, sold backgrounder steers, 407kg, for 479c/kg or $1950 along with a draft of 47 weighing 447kg and retuning $2080 or 464c/kg and another pen of 47 weighing 439kg, 16 to 17 months, and returning $2050 or 466c/kg.

The Eastern Young Cattle Indicator (EYCI) as at January 30 fell to 784/9c/kg – down from 901.4c/kg – in December.
Meat and Livestock Australia reports indicator prices at January 30 for vealer steers at 445.3c/kg – down from 470.06c/kg in December, restocker yearling steer at 495.2c/kg, down from 569.04c/kg, feeder steers at 396c/kg, down from 438.9c/kg, and processor yearling steers at 376.6c/kg, down from 457.3c/kg.
Medium steers fell sharply again to 337.1c/kg from 359.8c/kg in December, heavy steers fell to 340 after rebounding to 427.7c/kg in December and medium cows gained ground to 266.2c/kg from 255.2c/kg.