Breeders and feedlotters do battle at Ballarat

It has been a case of breeders versus feedlotters at Ballarat where producers and commission buyers have gone head-to-head trying to secure quality cattle.

Producer Greg Shaw from Langdon Hill sold 28 Angus heifers to a top of 526c/kg or $2010 at Ballarat today. Picture: Petra Oates

COMPETITION between breeders and feedlotters heated up at the Ballarat female sale today.

Bids flew back and forth for the 3600 head of females as producers and commission buyers alike tried to secure quality breeding cattle amid the nation-wide herd rebuild.

“Being a full female sale we had lots of people from different areas come to buy top end breeder cattle for breeding purposes and they had to outbid the feedlotters to do that,” TB White and Sons agent and auctioneer Tom Madden said.

“There was a lot more breeders here but you still had a good field of commission buyers that were buying big lines of cattle, presumably to go north and into NSW.”

The top end of the older grown heifers to solid rates returning anywhere from 400c/kg to 450c/kg for 500kg-plus types.

Stepping down into the feeder weight heifers between 380kg and 480kg, heifers sold anywhere from 440c/kg to 480c/kg depending on number and type.

“And the smaller the calves the dearer they were. There were a lot of calves that sold between $5 and $6 weighing between 200kg and 300kg,” Mr Madden said.

Local producer Greg Shaw topped the weaner portion of the heifers with a pen of twelve 382kg Angus heifers for 526c/kg or $2010. With not many pens cracking the $2000 threshold.

Mr Shaw offered a total of 28 Angus heifers yarded with the seconds selling to $1700 or 495c/kg for 15 Angus at 343kg.

“There was two bidders that got on them and just didn’t stop. Normally I sell in March but the market at the moment is just too good to pass up,” Mr Shaw said.

Next week the Ballarat yards will sell 5500 steers with many local breed cattle present.