Australian record $360,000 as top bulls defy bearish market

Stud breeders are spending big on bulls despite the year’s drop in commercial cattle prices.

Genetically elite bulls are defying a bearish cattle market by creating records across the eastern states.

Last week, the Mayne family’s Texas Angus at Warialda, NSW, set an all breeds record of $360,000 for a yearling bull in a result that stunned the beef world.

The 12-month-old Angus bull, Texas Thunderstruck T383, sold for the eye-watering sum to fellow Angus breeders Mackas Angus at Salt Ash, NSW.

Vendor Ben Mayne, in the lead-up to the auction, said he believed Thunderstruck was “very special”.

“We believe he will take the Angus breed to the next level,” Mr Mayne said.

“Texas Angus had exclusive semen rights to Poss Rawhide for the last two years and Thunderstruck is the first and only Rawhide son to be sold in the southern hemisphere this year.

Texas Thunderstruck, a 12-month old bull made $360,000 and sold to Mackas Angus at the Texas Angus sale at Warialda, NSW.

Thunderstuck has Breedplan figures of +2.7 for birth weight and is the top 4 per cent of the breed its age group for calving ease and top 4 per cent for eye muscle area with a figure of 12.7.

Angus Australia chief executive officer Scott Wright said everyone he had spoken to was “really excited”.

“This record price reflects both the market position and also the continual and compound effect of genetic gain within our breed,” Mr Wright said.

“It is a real vote of confidence in Angus genetics. I congratulate Texas particularly but it also is good to note the average genetic gain made by the breed over the last 25 years.”

Mr Wright said the result demonstrated the importance of genetics, especially in a lower market.

“Production efficiencies are one aspect of a commercial operation that producers can control and they value high quality genetics,” he said.

“I think it does show that genomics helps make accurate decisions earlier and that is really helpful in terms of both generation interval and accuracy giving buyers confidence.”

The $360,000 sale is the lead of a succession of northern NSW results where studs are setting records for their operations including Bowen Herefords at Barraba, NSW, which sold a bull for $140,000 to the Lyons family, Melville Park Herefords, Vasey.

Marc Greening from Injemira Beef Genetics at Book Book, NSW, paid $70,000 for the top price Poll Hereford bull from Mountain Valley at Coolatai, NSW, a record price for that operation, and said it was important to keep investing in genetics.

“From a stud perspective, it will be three years down the track until the progeny of the top bulls we are buying now are marketed,” Mr Greening said.

“The strength of the northern NSW bull sales shows that stud breeders realise the fundamentals of the cattle industry are still pretty good despite the blip we are in at the moment.

“From a seedstock perspective, when you find the bulls which suit what you want, you buy them as you can’t lose focus on the long game which is to supply superior genetics which are suitable for the markets my bull clients supply.”