A relationship that has stood the test of distance has once again succeeded with a Western Australian-produced clip topping the Melbourne wool sales in its category.
During week 41 of selling at Melbourne, two lines of Merino wool from Connemara in the northern WA wheat belt sold through Barwon and Yarra Valley Wool Brokers (BYV).
BYV director David Pink said a line of 10 bales, 21.3 micron, account Connemara, sold to 2255 cents a kilogram clean, or 1346c/kg greasy, on a yield of 59.7 per cent.
A second line of seven bales, 21.4 micron, sold for 2264c/kg clean, or 1328c/kg greasy, with a yield of 58.7pc.
Mr Pink said the clip was stored in Fremantle and sampled and tested in WA and the samples sent to Melbourne for the sale.
He said it was the second year the Fremantle-stored clip had been marketed in Melbourne.
Mr Pink said an employee of the property producing the Connemara clip was originally from the Geelong region.
"We had a working relationship in the past and they wanted to continue that relationship even over in WA," he said.
"The wool sold extremely well; we think growers in WA would be attracted by the increased competition in our sales as well as more regular sales."
Mr Pink said his firm was a family business marketing 26,000 bales a year, and saw the WA production as an opportunity to expand those numbers.
He said the wool was keenly sought after with good figures for staple strength and point of break.
"Yields were a bit down compared with high yielding Victorian clips, but these WA wools were not drought-affected," he said.
Mr Pink said the drought that had affected areas through the eastern states that had led to destocking, would have an impact on the supply pipeline for some time.