Queensland big guns swoop on quality weaners in show of breed strength

Home News Queensland big guns swoop on quality weaners in show of breed strength

Queensland big guns swoop on quality weaners in show of breed strength

11 January 2026

A single Queensland grass and grain finisher almost single handedly snapped up the entire Hereford offering at Wodonga, including autumn drop steers, heifers and heavy grown steers, on Friday in a dominant vote of confidence in the breed.

Andrew Turvey, Willinga Pastoral, Wandoan, Queensland, paid premium prices for well credentialled cattle with performance genetics, weight for age and carcase quality for the large Juandah Plains aggregation’s backgrounding and feeding operations based around the Hereford breed.

Selling agents Elders and Paull & Scollard Nutrien Ag Solutions yarded 2468 cattle for the Premier Hereford, Hereford Cross and Euro Grown and Feature Weaner Sale on January 9 at the Northern Victorian Livestock Exchange.

Grossing $3.83 million, the sale resulted in an overall average of $1552 or 483c/kg, with steers averaging $1690 or 501c/kg and $1336 or 449c/kg for heifers. Vendors were left smiling as their averages rose almost $300 a head on last year.

The sale culminated in a week of selling which saw 17,578 British bred and Euro steers and heifers yarded at Barnawartha and sold to all points of the compass to gross $27.8 million. Hereford and Hereford cross cattle valued at $8.45 million changed hands across the two days at NVLX alone.

According to NVLX, Queensland dominated the rail, with trucks rolling north carrying 47 per cent of the stock, while the balance was an equal split between NSW and Victorian buyers. A total of 50 vendors consigned cattle, and the sale drew 50 active buyers.

Backgrounders and steer finishers comprised 76 per cent of the buyers while feedlots purchased 22 per cent and processor activity was limited to 1.3 per cent, mainly on heifers. Across all breeds, weaner steers and heifers reached the same top price of $1750.

There was plenty of competition on the heavy weight steers from steer finishers in the Upper Murray, Goulburn and northeast Victoria paying a solid 463-493c/kg.

The sale opened on the heavy grown Hereford steers over 350kg liveweight, fetching $1720-$2650 or 457-493c/kg.

The bidding action heated up on the heavier end of the autumn drop Hereford steer weaners over 330kg liveweight with prices finishing at $1270-$1875 or 451-519c/kg.

The middle run of autumn drop steers weighing 280-330kg sold for $1270-$1770 or 431-580c/kg while the lighter weight pens under 280kg made $910-$1450 or 436-519c/kg.

Heavy Hereford heifers over 300kg made $1200-$1590 or 354-501c/kg and the lighter weights under 300kg finished the day at $870-$1240 or 363-448c/kg. The few pens of yearling heifers made $1690-$2060 or 424-452c/kg.

Buyers operating included Elders Tamworth, GDL Toowoomba, Corcoran Parker Wangaratta, Costello Rural, Corryong, Elders Goulburn, PRL Rodwells, Wodonga, Elders Tamworth, Juandah Plains, Bindaree Beef, Elders Holbrook, and Nutrien Ivone Agencies, Myrtleford.

In a few nods of the head, Andrew Turvey, Willinga Pastoral, Wandoan, Queensland, had single handedly bought almost the entire Hereford steer weaner offering for the Juandah Plains aggregation. He also operated strongly on the heifers to fill the trucks operated by Moloney Transport.

In the autumn drop steers he bought 477 head destined for Wandoan, paying to a top of $1790, to bring the buying spree to a total of 1900 Hereford cattle.

Mr Turvey is keen to return next year to source calves. “They were good cattle and the prices were fairly solid early on – they were well presented, soft and well weaned and will fit in with our program,” he said.

Mick Moloney, Moloney Livestock Transport, Tamworth, had been tasked with trucking the 3000 head of British bred cattle bought by Willinga Pastoral across the week to Wandoan, resting the cattle at Moree.

Gerard Kelly, Kilmore, normally sells at Wangaratta but a decision to move to NVLX paid off with him winning the Herefords Australia champion pen of autumn drop steers. Judged by Matt Spry, Bindaree Beef, the pen of 17 Tarcombe blood steers weighed 372kg and were snapped up by Peter Wallis, Elders Albury, to ring the bell for the autumn droppers at $1875 or 504c/kg. The dollars per head was the top price achieved for the sales week for Hereford steer weaners.

Mr Wallis bought the pen for Kiewa steer finisher Greg Bourke who had earlier in the sale topped the heavy grown steers with Tarcombe blood steers, 20-22 months and weighing 563kg, for $2650 or 470c/kg. Mr Bourke had bought those heavy steers from vendor Gerard Kelly for $1400 at the 2025 weaner sale.

“It is good to see the Hereford cattle making the same money as the blacks – the top Hereford calves are up over $5/kg and the top black calves on Wednesday were similar or a touch under,” Mr Wallis said.

Bindaree Beef livestock buyer Matt Spry, Holbrook, was impressed with the evenness, growth pattern, softness and shape of the Kelly calves.

When it comes to supplying Hereford cattle to Bindaree Beef, Mr Spry said it came down to a quality carcase, no matter the breed.

“From the point of view of the beef industry, regardless of colour of the hide, producing cattle with good meat quality and yield in a package keeping those fertility rates right for their breeding program is important to us as a processor,” he said

Mr Spry sources large numbers of Hereford and Hereford cross cattle from southern NSW either direct or from sales for both branded domestic and export product. He remarked on the high quality of the weaner cattle throughout the sales week across all breeds.

“This week I have been buying domestic feeder weight cattle from 350kg to 480kg and lighter cattle to go back into the paddock at 340-350kg. The prices have been quality driven. The heavy steer price has a big impact on the weaner price – the market this week has been extremely strong.”

“These cattle will go into a backgrounding program and then into the bunk while the heavy cattle go straight into a feedlot with the majority on a short fed domestic 70-day program.”

Mr Spry said the Hereford’s quiet temperament helped them settle onto feed quickly.

Regular vendor David Sleigh, Ruffy, managed to deliver his quality weaner steers to Wodonga but was heavily impacted on his farm in the Longwood-Ruffy fire. Juandah Plains paid $1760 or 483c/kg for the tops of his steers, Allendale and Days Whiteface blood, weighing 364kg.

His brother Andrew Sleigh, Sleigh Pastoral, Jerilderie, elected to stay home with the fire unit but his son Sam and wife Julie were on hand to see their lead pen of Glentrevor and Yavenvale blood steers, weighing 351kg, top at $1790 or 483c/kg to Juandah Plains.

The family offered 79 March-April drop steers, finished on native pasture and supplementary hay on a low rainfall for the year of around 236mm.

Sam was surprised at the liveweight of 351kg considering the challenging season. “The sheep get the sweeter country, and the cattle go where the sheep can’t go so it is impressive to see what the calves achieved,” he said.

Bulls are selected on birthweight, calving ease and ability to perform under the pastoral environment.

In the heifers, Stephen and Rachelle Wilson, Forest Reefs, NSW, sold pregnancy tested empty spring droppers, weighing 485kg, to a top of $2060 or 424c/kg.

The family travelled from central NSW to see their March-April drop Gunyah and Sugarloaf steer weaners sell at Wodonga.

Mr Wilson wanted to capitalise on the increased buyer competition at the larger selling centre for grass fed markets.

Their steers and heifers carried accreditation for European Union and Greenham Never Ever, were yard weaned in December and educated through the yards for a further 10 days. All steers had been vaccinated with Rhinoguard IBR for the first time to prevent bovine respiratory disease and increase buyer acceptance.

The top pen weighing 299kg was bought by Elders Albury for $1600 or 535c/kg while the seconds made $1260 or 492c/kg to Elders Tamworth.

Topping the autumn drop heifers was R and M Trethowan, Cookardinia, with a run of 30 Glenellerslie and Sugarloaf blood females, weighing 301kg, and snapped up by Juandah Plains for $1510 or 501c/kg.

Cecily Trickett, Morven, was awarded the best presented pen of heifers by Nutrien for her draft of 29 Wirruna blood females weighing 299kg. They returned $1120 or 374c/kg.

Loch Fraser, Mudgegonga, sold 18 Rosstulla blood females, 348kg and aged 15 months. They were bought by GDL Toowoomba for $1590 or 456c/kg.

Jeff Garland, Grant Daniel Long Toowoomba, bid on more than 700 head of cattle across the week including Hereford steers and heifer for backgrounding operations in Queensland at Thallon and Hebel, as well as the New England region in NSW.

Mr Garland said storms had resulted in plenty of buffel grass growth for the calves to be finished for grass fed programs. He factored in the transport cost of 23 cents per head to the northern destinations.

“The targeted buy-in weight was 280-290kg at an average of 505c/kg. It is marginally dearer than I expected – we set ourselves a price per kilogram and a liveweight, and we stick to that,” he said.

The Hereford cattle had all the credentials of weight, frame, bone and softness his clients were after.

Auctioneer Luke Deimel, Paull & Scollard Nutrien Ag Solutions, Albury, reported the sale held up to expectations, with prices exceeding those achieved across the week of the sales circuit.

Mr Deimel said backgrounders had exceeded their budgets of late in order to secure numbers.

“This is tremendous for Hereford breeders to be rewarded here this week after their time and effort,” he said. “It was great to see the consistent pricing throughout the sales (for all British bred cattle) as they (Hereford breeders) put as much time and effort into breeding these calves as other breeders. You can’t say there is any particular breed has made significantly more or less than any other, and that is a great thing for the industry.”

Mr Deimel said Barnawartha had yarded north of 20,000 head across the week, stamping its dominance on the industry with the quality of the cattle and prices, attracting buyers from all points of the compass.

“The northern buyers know they can come to Barnawartha and Wangaratta to buy quality vendor bred cattle. Even the northern buyers without an abundance of feed know they can tuck these well-bred cattle away and go a good job with them out the other end.”

Mr Deimel said backgrounders operated heavily on the heifers with several feedlots at the higher weights and a few pens returning to the paddock for joining.

Quotes:

Grown steers

C M Bourke, Kiewa: 15, 563kg, Tarcombe blood, 20-22 months, $2650 or 470c/kg

A McKoy & Son, Holbrook: 12, 520kg, Ohio bred, $2410 or 463c/kg

T & L Weldon, Wirlinga: 10, 398kg, Daintree blood, $1820 or 457c/kg

D & V McCallum, Tooma: 9, Yavenvale blood, 367kg, $1770 or 482c/kg

A H Odewhan & Sons, Walla Walla: 21, 372kg, Yarram Park and Rotherfield blood, $1720 or 462c/kg

Weaners

G & C Kelly, Kilmore: 17, 372kg, Tarcombe blood, $1875 or 504c/kg

Sleigh Pastoral, Jerilderie: 35, Glentrevor and Yavenvale blood, 351kg, $1790 or 483/kg

Sleigh Farming, Ruffy: 37,364kg, Allendale, Mawarra and Wirruna blood, yard weaned, $1760 or 483c/kg

J M Hiscock & Sons, Kilmore: 18, Tarcombe blood, 339kg, $1760 or 519c/kg