Light calves make more than expected at Wodonga

Two major lines of heifers helped carve-out a stronger cents-a-kilogram price average for light calves at Wodonga’s store cattle sale today. See the details.

Two major lines of heifers helped carve-out a stronger cents-a-kilogram price average for light calves at Wodonga’s store cattle sale today.

However the uncertain season remains a key concern in the store cattle market.

It was another wintry yarding of 1451 cattle, with quality and numbers boosted by a feature line of 400 spring-drop Angus calves from Riverina breeder Wayne Durnham, Widgiewa Station at Morundah, and a draft of slightly older 14-16-month Herefords from the Reid family, Chudleigh at Howlong.

The seasonal impact had prompted these vendors to make tough decisions, and was reflected in the condition of the cattle which showed a lot of frame-size but were in light condition.

Scott Reid said the Chudleigh Hereford steers were 100kg lighter than a year ago: “The season has forced our hand and while we would have liked to have kept them longer and put weight onto them for buyers – it is what it is.”

Scott Reid, Wodonga cattle sale Picture: Jenny Kelly

It was a sentiment mirrored by Wayne Durnham who said he didn’t take pride in presenting cattle in such light condition.

“They are 12-months old and its pretty bloody ordinary when most of them are under 300kg,” he said.

But with solid reputations for breed quality and the bull power behind their cattle the price outcomes were deemed OK.

The main run from Widgiewa was 300 heifers, all spring 2023-drop. The lead pen of 17 Angus weighing 361kg sold for $1020 (282c/kg); 12 at 310kg made $940 (303c/kg); a big line of 93 at 260kg sold for $930 (357c/kg); followed by 112 at 231kg at $820 (354c/kg).

Mr Durnham said the big lines of lighter heifers had sold above expectations.

“Three weeks ago when we made the decision to sell them I thought if we could average $700 it would be alright, and then when there was some sprinklings of rain I thought maybe $750 – so this has been a lot better than I expected,” he said.

Wayne Durnham. Picture: Jenny Kelly

Price results for the Reid family’s feature line of Hereford heifers, aged 14-16-months, were: 66 weighing an average of 294kg sold at $900 (306c/kg); 26 at 253kg sold for $780 (308c/kg); and 20 at 252kg made $660 (261c/kg).

The overall price snapshot from the sale was a dearer price trend for heifers compared to the previous Wodonga store sale held a fortnight ago. However there was a wide price variance based on breed quality and type, and it was some of the stronger results for the main heifer lines which boosted the final result.

Based on sale data from the NVLX:

452 HEIFERS weighing 200-280kg sold from $520 to $930 to average $804 at an average of 329c/kg liveweight, an improvement of about 20c/kg on the last market which had fewer numbers;

223 HEIFERS weighing 280-330kg sold from $450 to $1070 and averaged $933 at 316c/kg, also up about 20c/kg.

Overall there was 920 heifers in today’s Wodonga yarding and they averaged $878 at an average price cost of 321c/kg.

The steer run also showed a dearer trend of around 20c/kg compared to a fortnight ago on mixed quality and a lot of odd winter lots of fewer than 10 head.

Among the best steers in the yarding were 20 Angus-Simmental influenced black baldies from JT and LC Scholz, Howlong, which were in fresh condition weighing 407kg and sold for $1570 (385c/kg), with the second draft of 13 at 363kg selling for $1380 (380c/kg).

There was lighter calves under 200kg that went as high as 446c/kg in this sale, and there was deemed to be some reasonable buying considering a lot of steers had plenty of frame size but just lacked weight.

Auctioneers implored buyers to “throw away the calculator” for the Widgiewa Station Angus steers which displayed more growth and frame than their weight suggested. And buyers did seem to factor this in. Of the 90 steers offered, the 16 tops at 259kg made $1120 (432c/kg); 36 at 215kg sold for $960 (446cc/kg); and 15 at 172kg at $715 (415c/kg).

The Chudleigh Hereford steers, which also had a much bigger frame size than their weight indicated, sold to $1180 for 20 at 304kg (388c/kg); followed by 24 at 245kg which made $990 (404c/kg).

Saleyard data shows the average price paid for steers in the 200-280kg weight bracket was $955 or 396c/kg.

While there was some modest price improvements for store cattle at this sale, agents said the season and patchy rainfall was still playing on people’s confidence.

Schubert Boers auctioneer Craig Schubert said there was a lot of negativity around the current weather pattern of predicted rain not eventuating.

“The season is all everyone is talking about and they are concerned and some (people) seem to have dismissed the spring already, but while conditions are tough the potential for reasonable feed is still there if we can get some timely rain,” he said. “We are still only in the middle of August.”

For breeders like Scott Reid the concern is maintaining breeding herds into next year.

“I’m not concerned about this year as much as next year,” he said.

“We didn’t want to burn through all our hay reserves this year as we still don’t know how things are going to play-out in the next 12-months,” he said.