Producers making small profits, despite a big weaner price lift

While weaner prices held up well as thousands of young cattle were sold from southern farms, margins are tight for some producers.

Weaner steer and heifer prices continued to draw bids well above last year’s results over the past week, where the Western District sales alone sold off more than 30,000 young cattle.

Vendors and agents have been pleased rates held relatively firm throughout the week in the south, thanks to good interstate competition with big NSW and South Australian orders supporting prices.

Mortlake held one of the biggest individual yardings of weaners in Victoria’s history on Thursday – 7869 steers and heifers in one sale.

The 5588 all breeds steers, weighing on average 323kg, sold for an average rate of 409c/kg or $1319, and a top cents-a-kilogram return of 460c/kg, according to data supplied by the Western Victorian Livestock Exchange.

This was a touch shy of where the week started off at Hamilton, with Monday’s Angus steer sale recording 412c/kg or $1370 on 332kg average-weight calves.

And while prices softened on some lines of Herefords and coloured cattle in smaller yardings, most vendors were happy to be lighten off stock on farms where feed is becoming short and in some cases, water, as dry conditions continue.

Selling at Mortlake, Bobby Mann from Caramut, said prices were about $1/kg better than at this time last year. “It has been a tough season and we fed a lot, we are back on cow numbers,” Mr Mann said, adding extra feeding costs were hurting margins.

At Hamilton, one of the biggest vendors, David and Sophie McClure, Mooree Partnership, Tarrayoukyan, sold 320 Hereford and Poll Hereford steers Wednesday after selling 260 Angus steers Monday. Their Herefords averaged 320kg weight and returned 372c/kg or $1197.

Mr McClure said he had hoped for an average rate of 380c/kg on Hereford steers.

“So it was a reasonable to good result; the market seems to be softening slightly,” he said.

However, with the dry season tightening on McClure properties, it was time to sell. “It looks like March here, so (we are) happy to have the numbers lifted.”

Over two days of selling 580 Mooree steers added up to more than $700,000 worth of cattle.

Many other producers The Weekly Times spoke to at sales in the past fortnight noted the high costs and limited margins at current rates.

Jack, Heather and Riley Drysdale. Picture: Rachel Simmonds

Yarck farmer Heather Drysdale sold 261 weaner steers at the Yea saleyards on Friday, and 133 heifers at its Wednesday sale. There, steer prices hovered around 400 cents a kilogram and averaged $1410 with a top of $1880.

But current costs meant vendors were “barely scraping through” after rising prices for feed, she said.

Ms Drysdale said her run of cattle this year weighed less than the previous year, due to the 2024 weather conditions.

She has sold at Yea for 44 years and kept records of prices from 2008.