Spirited bidding from steer finishers and back grounders for grass fed programs against lot feeders pushed prices to $1520 for autumn drop Hereford calves at Wangaratta on Friday.
Selling agents Elders and Corcoran Parker yarded 5589 Hereford, black baldy and Euro grown and weaner steers and heifers on January 10 for the Wangaratta Premier All Breeds Grown and Weaner sale.
It was the culmination of an extraordinary week of selling with 23,570 cattle going under the hammer, including 17,985 head at the Northern Victorian Livestock Exchange, Wodonga.
At Wangaratta, cattle were booked to Grant Daniel Long St George and Toowoomba, Corcoran Parker, Australian Wool Network, Elders Myrtleford, Allied Beef, Toowoomba, Halcroft & Bennett, Coonamble, Rodwells Benalla, EB Livestock, Elders Albury, commission buyer Graham Ward, and steer finisher John Muraca.
Vendors pocketed an extra $300 a head or 90c/kg for their autumn drop steers and $100 a head or 100c/kg for their heifers on last year’s Wangaratta sale.
Bo Helwig, Corcoran Parker, said there was strong local support on the feeder weight Hereford cattle and grown steers were consistent with the Wodonga sale that morning at 380-390c/kg.
“We had some good runs of black baldy steers out of Mansfield weighing 320-380kg and they consistently made over 400c/kg to 440c/kg. The Hereford calves were 300-400kg and made 380c-420c/kg throughout,” Mr Helwig said.
“The Hereford job was quite strong on the feeder weight cattle. The weaner heifers were very solid with the 270-300kg black baldy calves from the Vance and Marshall families from Mansfield making $900-$1000 and black baldy heifers consistently made 350-363c/kg,” Mr Helwig said.
Vendor Gerard Kelly, Moranding, topped the autumn drop Hereford steers on $1520 with his pen of 12 Tarcombe blood steers weighing 407kg and selling to Allied Beef for 373c/kg. He offered 29 steers and 14 heifers and likes the breed’s ease of management and growth rates.
“Late November rain helped finish the calves. We like the Tarcombe bloodline – they are good on the figures and produce fairly tough cattle that do well,” Mr Kelly said.
G Coleman, Yea, topped the Hereford weaners on a cents per kilogram basis at 409c/kg for a pen weighing 264kg and returning $1080.
Albury commission buyer Graham Ward judged the Herefords Australia champion pen and awarded the sash to Tony Manchese, Mansfield, for his pen of 27 Tarcombe and Wirruna blood steers, aged 10 to 11 months and weighing 355kg.
They were snapped up by steer finisher John Muraca, Markwood, for $1400 or 394c/kg.
A livestock cartage contractor and second-generation Hereford breeder, Tony Marchese offered 40 steer and 25 heifer weaners from his 120-cow herd.
John Muraca rated the sale as good value buying and plans to finish the steers by late spring for the JBS Pasture Assured program. His family has been breeding and finishing commercial Herefords for 60 years.
“I’m running at about 70 per cent capacity as I’m waiting for the break and then in the winter I will go to 100 per cent or 380 steers,” he said.
“All I have to do with these cattle is put weight on them. I like to buy at around 350kg with shape and length and finish them within 12 months.”
Graham Ward was impressed with the temperament, bone and carcase shape of the Manchese steers.
He was buying across the week for the Ogilvie Group’s feedlot at Apsley, in south west Victoria, with a heavy focus on heifers.
“It was an amazing effort to yard the sheer numbers of cattle for the week at Wodonga and Wangaratta, with the quality being exceptional. Prices lifted compared to pre-Christmas – the heavier cattle are just starting to move with increased demand for beef in the US and Brazil resulting in confidence in Australia,” Mr Ward said.
“I was after heifers weighing 330kg at 325c/kg.”
The Walsh family, Granite Flat Pastoral, Mitta Mitta, offered a well-presented pen of black blady heifers, Mawarra blood, weighing 360kg, to top the heifers at $1290 or 398c/kg, while Gerard Kelly, Moranding, topped the Hereford heifers with a pen of Tarcombe blood females weighing 361kg at $1175 or 325c/kg.
Quotes
Grown steers
D & P Vance, Bridge Creek: 8, black baldy, 489kg, 12-15 months, $2010 or 411c/kg
S & H Mahoney, Mansfield: 14, black baldy, 508kg, 18-20 months, $2010 or 395c/kg; 19 Hereford, 542kg, $1920 or 354c/kg; 14, Hereford, 18-20 months, Sugarloaf and Kirraweena blood, 470kg, $1800 or 382c/kg
A & M Livestock: 6, Hereford, 470kg, 16 -18 months, $1850 or 393c/kg
Hereford steer weaners
G & C Kelly, Moranding: 12, Tarcombe blood, 10-11 months, 407kg, $1520 or 373c/kg
B J Kelly, Kilmore: 15, Tarcombe blood, 357kg, $1410 or 394c/kg
Tony Marchese, Maindample: 27, 10-11 months, Tarcombe and Wirruna blood, 355kg, $1400 or 394c/kg
E & P Harris, Mansfield: 10, 9-10 months, Ingomar blood, 357kg, $1395 or 391c/kg
M & M Goonan: 5, Mawarra and Yarram Park blood, 343kg, $1300 or 379c/kg
G Coleman, Yea: 15, 320kg, Greenhams Never Ever accred, 320kg, $1185 or 370c/kg
EST P Condon, Eskdale: 19, 8-9 months, 274kg, $1080 or 394c/kg
Black baldy steer weaners
Granite Flat Pastoral, Mitta Mitta: 21, EU accred, 391kg, $1550 or 396c/kg
Raheen Partnership, Merrijig: 14, 10-11 months, 382kg, Mawarra blood, $1490 or 390c/kg
D & P Vance, Mansfield: 11, 9-10 months, 365kg, $1450 or 397c/kg
Valley View Partnership, Mudgegonga: 14, Mawarra blood, 339kg, $1375 or 405c/kg
Kinelmeaking, Merrijig: 16, 10-11 months, 329kg, $1370 or 416c/kg
Yacca Pastoral, Tatong: 22, 374kg, $1350 or 360c/kg
EST P Condon, Eskdale: 11, 336kg, $1340 or 398c/kg
Tim Tanner, Bonnie Doon: 11, 315kg, $1200 or 380c/kg
McGuffie, Glenburn, Buffalo River: 13, Mawarra blood, 303kg $1145 or 397c/kg
Heifers
Granite Flat Pastoral: 28, black baldy, 360kg, $1290 or 398c/kg
C & T Healy, Osborne Flat: 20, black baldy, Mawrra and Yarram Park blood, 349kg, $1215 or 348c/kg
G & C Kelly, Moranding: 8, Hereford, 361kg, Tarcombe blood, $1175 or 325c/kg
Valley View Partnership, Mudgegonga: 14, black baldy, 309kg, $1060 or 343c/kg
Tony Marchese, Mansfield: 21, Hereford, 10-11 months, Wirruna and Tarcombe blood, $960 or 325c/kg
Glenrowe Pastoral, Yarck: 7, Hereford, Glendan Park and Tarcombe blood, 286kg, $900 or 314c/kg
Est P Condon, Eskdale: 12, Hereford, 8-9 months, 271kg, $640 or 302c/kg
Vincenza Di Filippo, Elena and Tony Manchese, Mansfield, with judge Graham Ward, Albury, and the Herefords Australia champion pen.
John Muraca, Markwood, bought Tarcombe and Wirruna blood steers, 10 to 11 months and 355kg from Tony Manchese, Mansfield, for $1400 or 394c/kg.
Peter Wallis, Elders Albury, Brian Kelly, Kilmore, and his son Gerard Kelly, Moranding. Brian sold Tarcombe blood steers, 357kg, for $1410.
Gerard Kelly, Moranding, topped the Hereford run with his pen of Tarcombe blood steers, autumn drop and 407kg for $1520 or 373c/kg.
Mudgegonga Hereford breeder Maurice Goonan 34 April-May drop steers, Mawarra and Yarram Park blood, and said a challenging dry season had resulted in average liveweights being down at this year’s sale by 20kg. He had been anticipating a realistic price of 350c/kg and sold his tops for $379c/kg or $1300. Mr Goonan has been breeding commercial Herefords for over 30 years and selects bulls on calving ease and 600-day weight.
Jed Parker makes a bid on autumn drop Hereford steers. Jed bought Hereford and black baldy cattle for Allied Beef, Toowoomba.
Vincenza Di Filippo, Elena and Tony Manchese, Mansfield, were excited to win the Herefords Australia champion pen for their autumn drop steers.
The Corcoran Parker team takes bids on the autumn drop Hereford steers.
The Hereford steers over 350kg sold for $1175-$1520 or 325-394c/kg.
The Herefords Australia champion pen of Tarcombe and Wurruna blood steers, 355kg, made $1400 for a grass-fed program.
Buyers from southern Queensland down to western Victoria competed on the autumn drop Hereford steers at Wangaratta.
