Livestock, wool sale rules tighten amid coronavirus pandemic

Livestock sales are being disrupted amid cancellations and strict new regulations, and wool transactions aren’t immune from coronavirus either.

Keep clear: New rules are in place to reduce close contact.

THE livestock industry has been thrown a curveball, with a raft of restrictions implemented by the Federal Government to stem the spread of coronavirus triggering sale cancellations.

But despite the flurry of cancellations and new regulations in the past week, saleyard operators across the nation have still been able to sell stock and keep the supply chain moving.

It comes as Agriculture Minister David Littleproud last week confirmed livestock saleyards and wool auctions could continue as they were “an essential part of the broader agriculture supply chain”.

Before Mr Littleproud’s statement, a number of Victorian store cattle sales, including a mammoth yarding of 4000 cattle at Leongatha, were cancelled last week.

Last week’s Ballarat, Pakenham and Warrnambool store markets were also abandoned, while a number of saleyards, including the Western Victorian Livestock Exchange and Wangaratta, said they would allow buyers to view livestock prior to sales taking place this week in a bid to maintain social-distancing rules. As sales were cancelled, AuctionsPlus saw record numbers of new registered buyers.

About 27,000 cattle were sold on the online platform last week — down from a record 30,600 cattle the previous week.

However, AuctionsPlus product manager Anna Adams said it represented a significant increase on the corresponding week last year when 6500 cattle were sold online.

“You’re looking at least a fourfold increase,” Ms Adams said.

“We’ve been experiencing record numbers for the last six weeks, and obviously the restrictions at saleyards haven’t been in play for that long. The start of that peak was more to do with market conditions.”

Meanwhile, wool sales have been shut down for at least three weeks in South Africa and at least four weeks in New Zealand.

Despite uncertainty last week, Australian Wool Exchange chief executive Mark Grave said wool auctions would continue this week in Sydney, Melbourne and Fremantle in a two-day format, rather than three.

“We have done everything as an industry to ensure we can continue,” Mr Grave said.