Restockers in big $10 gamble on prime lamb

Prime lamb sales have kicked off the year with a bang, and the reason behind the trend speaks volumes about what producers can expect to get paid in autumn.

A prime lamb sale at Swan Hill last year.

RESTOCKERS are paying more than $10 a kilogram for lambs to put back into the paddock as they bank on prices staying high during autumn.

Prime lamb sales have kicked off the year with a bang, averaging 948c/kg carcass weight for store lambs, 36 per cent higher than a year ago.

The national restocker lamb indicator closed on Monday at 946/kg.

Last week’s offering on AuctionsPlus saw light mixed sex lambs, three to four months and 22kg liveweight, make $127 or 588c/kg liveweight or a stunning 1307c/kg carcass weight.

And it wasn’t an isolated sale with another line of 31kg second cross store wether lambs making $169, 552c/kg liveweight or 1226c/kg carcass weight.

The whole store lamb offering of 10,070 on the online selling platform averaged 462c/kg liveweight or 1026c/kg carcass weight.

It’s a similar story in the saleyards according to Ballarat’s HF Richardson and Co livestock manager Bernie Nevins, who said the rates were simply a reflection of feed and demand.

“There are not a lot of little lambs about due to the good season, so restockers are paying $130-$150 to get little woolly lambs,” Mr Nevins said.

“Woolly suckers weighing 13-15kg (carcass weight) will make $140-$150 all day long, or that $9-$10/kg (carcass weight price).”

Mr Nevins said the rates were similar to last year, where producers who spent at this level were rewarded with good prices through late autumn and winter when they sold the finished lambs, and it was “good for everyone”.

“Like any market, you have to pay what the rate is, but who knows how the finished lamb prices will track this year,” he said. “Whether you plant a crop or buy lambs, it’s all a gamble.”

But Meridian Agriculture’s Rutherglen-based consultant Paul Blackshaw said producers should do sums carefully before they spent large amounts to restock their paddocks.

“You should do your numbers about what you are prepared to spend and what you hope to get at the end (of restocking),” Mr Blackshaw said.

“A lot of Australia is looking to restock, whether that is with sheep or cattle, and some people need to generate income.

“The lamb job might look more attractive to some people as there is a shorter time frame in terms of turnaround.”

He suggested those buying lambs should not try to secure all their stock at one sale but instead over several to spread the risk of being exposed to one extreme market.