Mutton prices record major turnaround

There has been a stunning surge in mutton prices in the past week, with the indicator rising up to 100c/kg. But what’s next for the market?

Agents take bids at the Deniliquin sheep sale.

The power of farmers rejecting another bout of extremely low sheep returns has been linked to a major turnaround in saleyard mutton prices in the past week.

Heavy Merino ewes in wool sold to $183.50 and big crossbred ewes to $165 at Griffith in NSW last week as prices surged to levels not recorded for some time.

In a stunning turnaround, the national price indicator for mutton has surged 100c/kg carcass weight in the past week, according to figures published by the National Livestock Reporting Service.

It is a gain of $20 to $40 depending on sheep weight, and this rolled into Bendigo on Monday as the market continued to rise.

Nutrien Bendigo auctioneer Nick Byrne said the rapid price changes for sheep were something the industry was grappling with.

“Volatility is the word you would use and it is making it difficult on everyone because it is hard to run a business with such price swings,” he said.

Numbers at saleyards have lowered in the past week.

“It was good to see prices back up again but who knows what is around the corner. I know we’ve still got surplus sheep hanging around that would normally have been sold in the spring and that is still over inflating supply to a degree.”

Data shows there has been a strong reaction from farmers to this most recent downturn in sheep and lamb prices which has hit the auction system this month, with saleyard numbers slashed in the past week

According to Meat and Livestock Australia, farmers cut sheep and lamb supply by more than 100,000 in the past week.

The combined sheep and lamb numbers at NLRS monitored saleyards last week was 229,193, down 110,783 on the previous week.

Mutton prices started gaining momentum early last week but gathered pace in the past two days. The national mutton indicator closed on Monday at 314c/kg carcass weight.