Prices falling daily as market sheds value for lambs

There were few smiles at this week’s Corowa lamb sale as producers held out hope for a market turnaround that didn’t occur.

There is little joy if you are a vendor attending prime lamb sales as the market continues to lose value.

And for Colin and Allan Coyle, both of who run lambs on their own properties at Barnawartha, it’s a disappointing turn of fortunes for the industry.

On Monday, Colin sold a run of Suffolk-cross lambs for $169 which were rising one year old and about to cut their teeth.

Brothers Allan and Colin Coyle, both from Barnawartha, are disappointed with diving lamb prices but for oclin, who sold Suffolk-cross lambs today for $169, the prices could have been worse.

He said there was little option but to sell now, or cop a big discount if they did cut their teeth and had to be sold as hoggets.

And with his paddocks of lucerne running out, there was no choice but to sell.

“Thankfully I sold a lot of my lambs as suckers but it is hard to make money when old lambs are selling like this,” Colin said.

“To be honest, I thought the market might have been even worse but it seemed to gain a bit of momentum during the sale thankfully.”

Colin said winter used to be a time for lamb premiums, where producers were rewarded for holding onto stock and finishing them, but it wasn’t the case this year.

“We understand there is a blockage at the processor level – perhaps too many numbers and not enough staff – but it is really disappointing,” he said.