Livestock market report

SPRING is finally here, with the paddocks beginning to dry up and the feed starting to get ahead of the stock.

With the dry in the north starting to bite, we are seeing leftover over hay from last season starting to move, although at discounted rates.

Cattle prices are coming back with the heady prices of the previous couple of years all but gone.

The lack of feed and quality of lambs in the north has led to more demand for suckers hitting the southern markets, resulting in a lift in prices for quality lambs.

Farmers are having to navigate their way through a new set of regulations and requirements with LPA accredited producers receiving instructions to complete Biosecurity and Animal Welfare assessments in order to renew their accreditation.

Market Highlights:

Heavy sucker lambs to $187
Light lambs to $139
Crossbred sheep to $105
Crossbred wethers to $134
Grown heifers to 20 cents cheaper
Heavy cows eased 50 cents
Quality vealers to 302 cents

Ballarat Lambs:

Lamb numbers were up again this week with 13,183 mostly new season lambs of improved quality yarded.

The usual buying group attended and operated in a firm to slightly dearer market with the heavy young lambs selling from $2 to $5 per head up on last week.

The best heavy young lambs sold to $187, with heavier trade weights selling from $146 to $158 per head and averaging 605 cents per kilogram carcase weight.

There were good numbers of lighter lambs penned, suiting both restockers and processors. Processors paid $2 to $3 per head more for their purchases and restockers and feeders paid from $114 to $139 per head with most staying local or going to Mallee areas.

Lighter weights sold from $60 to $90 per head with most restocker lambs selling around firm. A few pens of young Merino lambs were yarded selling from $70 to $89 per head with the best of the old lambs sold to $195.20, with most of the export weight old lambs selling from $124 to $165 per head.

Heavy hoggets made from $102 to $165 per head with light weight 1 and 2 score young lambs sold from $80 to $115 per head.

Heavy 3 and 4 score export lambs sold from $158 to $187 per head and averaged 600 cents per kilogram cwt.

Ballarat Cattle:

This week’s yarding of 167 cattle at Ballarat was 40 head down on last sale with agents penning a mixed quality selection for the usual following of buyers.

There were some very good vealers yarded and they sold up to 10 cents per kilogram higher with restockers paying more for light weight steers.

Plainer young cattle were unchanged to cheaper, and lean conditioned cows along with all grown heifers sold 10 to 20 cents per kilogram lower.

Heavy weight well covered beef cows eased 20 to 50 cents and heavy weight bulls averaged 15 cents per kilogram back on last week prices.

The yarding comprised of 40 steers, 61 heifers, 55 cows and 11 bulls with the better-quality end of the C2 and C3 vealers selling from 278 to 302 cents and the plain to average quality vealers down to 232 cents per kilogram.

Restockers paid 256, 259, 300 and 338 cents per kilogram and processors spent 230 to 280 cents for C2 and C3 yearlings, with restockers going from 228 to 276 cents for heifers and from 250 to 301 cents per kilogram for steers.

Grown heifers were from C3 to C5s and made 204 to 238 cents per kilogram with C3 to C5 heavy weight beef cows making 188 to 216 cents per kilogram.

D2 grade cows made from 170 to 185 cents and the D and E muscled 1 score cows sold between 120 and 162 cents per kilogram, with heavy weight B2 bulls at 213 and 220 cents per kilogram.