KOOLE VALE
*32 of 36 Poll Merino and Merino rams sold to $1900, av $1006
*Total clearance of 15 White Suffolk rams to $1100, av $700
SUCCESS in the show ring has translated to the sale floor for Koole Vale Merinos and Poll Merinos, Costerfield, according to stud principal Alan Harris.
Koole Vale took out the first place in the fine Merino ewe and strong Merino ram fleece at this year’s Royal Melbourne Show, backing up from a Champion strong wool fleece at the Bendigo Australian Sheep and Wool Show (ASWS).
“Show success has attracted a new clientele; it was a little bit different to last year, it’s definitely attracting new people,” Mr Harris said.
“For our second sale, we are really pleased. Last year we passed in eight, this year, three so we are really pleased with the clearance rates
“We offered three more White Suffolks and cleared the lot.”
Buyers at the second on-property ram sale were looking for what he said was the stud’s “bread and butter” – wool cut and frame.
“We stick to what we know and hopefully we are improving each year,” Mr Harris said.
“We put up a good line of Polleys this year.
“We thought they were nice and even, hence they topped the sale and we were pretty pleased with their progress and how they looked.”
Mr Harris said clients were looking for wool cut and frame.
“They are our bread and butter clients, they want to cut wool and have a bit of frame, when they join them to a Suffolk or a terminal and sell their old sheep.”
The sale topper went to one of last year’s volume buyers, Ian Ross, Shepherd’s Creek, Mia Mia.
Lot 17, sired by Koole Vale B1171, a Nyowee L216 cross, was sought after by several bidders, before being secured by Mr Ross.
The polled ram has a 19.8 micron fleece, a standard deviation (SD) of 3.7, co-efficient of variation (CV) of 18.9 per cent and a comfort factor (CF) of 99.2pc.
“He had the type of wool I liked,” Mr Ross said.
“I bought rams here, last year and was impressed with them, so I came back.”
The ram would go over maiden ewes in his self-replacing flock.
Last year, Mr Ross bought five rams, paying top price of $1400 twice.
He said he was attracted to the Koole Vale rams as they were big, upstanding sheep, with bold and attractive wool.
The top White Suffolk was sold to Muller Pastoral for $1100.
Elders’ Livestock manager Nigel Starick said there had been an additional 10 to 15 registered bidders at the sale.
Koole Vale significantly improved its Merino clearance rate, with only three passed in, and average, on last year.
Mr Starick said the average was up about $100 on last year.
“The way the wool job and the prime lamb job is at the moment it’s not surprising to see these results,” he said.
“We had a lot of different people who came this year who didn’t come last year,” Mr Starick said.
Prices were giving buyers confidence to purchase rams.
“The lamb job is remaining consistent, with that six dollar mark or fractionally better, this deep into October and we certainly haven’t seen that before,” Mr Starick said.
The Helmsman sale was conducted by Elders.
