Export heifers market may see another $100 jump

Dairy export heifer prices have been on the rise for the past three years and are set to take another jump with tightening supplies.

Friesian heifers at 220kg are selling to the export market at around $2400.

Dairy export heifer prices continue to reach new highs as supply tightens with more and more dairy farmers leaving the industry.

While the price for export heifers to China has been climbing steadily the past three years,

Wellington Livestock agent Steven Boulton said it took a $200 jump in the past 2½ months when another company, Australian Global Exports, got “a lot more active”.

“The prices at the moment you could be getting $800 above domestic value,” Mr Boulton said.

Currently, 220kg Friesian heifers are making around $2400 on the export market, and there is a rumour prices may lift another $100 due to the ongoing supply shortage.

“There’s only so many Friesian heifers out there at the moment and if you want them you’ve got to pay for them,” Mr Boulton said.

In the past six months Mr Boulton said his inquires for people wanting to sell export heifers has gone up one-third.

“There’s a third more people that weren’t selling their heifers because they put a lot of breeding and effort into them but when the price is where it is they’re thinking its better to sell.”

Dairy farmer Jeremy Bayard is currently operating in Northern Victoria, with farms previously in Gippsland and western Victoria, and has been selling export heifers for the better part of 20 years.

“This is the highest (the market) has ever been, and it’s been at sustained record levels for the last three years,” Mr Bayard said.

However, Mr Bayard has scaled back the number he sells to export despite the record prices, choosing to only sell his surplus heifers now.

Replacement heifers have become increasingly expensive off the back of “exceptionally high cull cow prices” Mr Bayard said.

The number of dairy farmers leaving the industry, pressured by labour shortages and incentivised by soaring land prices, has also contributed to expensive replacement heifers.

“There’s diminishing numbers (of cows) — the amount of people exiting the industry in the past 12 months has been quite extraordinary.”