Most cattle at WVLX Mortlake March store sale go for cheaper prices

Agents yarded about 4600 cattle for the second store sale of March, in a sale where prices did fall back 70 cents at times compared to the Mortlake's February store sale.

But premium weaner cattle mainly held firm compared to other more recent store sales across the state.

JME Livestock agent Jack Hickey said prices were as expected across the board, but good lines sold for reasonable prices.

"The downward trend is something which we've all braced for, but I still do think we actually got out of it alright, even though it wasn't where it was a month ago," he said.

READ MORE:

"Better steers in the sale received $1500-$1700 a head, which is solid without it being brilliant."

Weaner steers were slightly cheaper across most weights and on average, cattle over 400kg sold between 400-420c/kg while lines weighing between 330-400kg regularly achieved 380-440c/kg

Tinpot Pastoral had a large draft of over 100 cattle and sold 56 Angus weaner steers, 371kg, for 412c/kg or $1693.

Sovereign Trust was also up there in their yarding, selling 80 cattle in total, with one pen of 14 Angus weaner steers, 411kg, sold for 412c/kg or $1684.

Erinmore sold eight Angus weaner steers, 452kg, for 390c/kg or $1764, while another pen of 42 Angus weaner steers, 404kg, sold for 416c/kg or $1684.

Portside sold 11 Angus weaner steers, 430kg, for 402c/kg or $1730.

Wilgunyaa Pastoral sold 12 Angus weaner steers, 408kg, for 405c/kg or $1653.

J & J Swayn yarded a significant run of steer and heifer cattle of various breeds, with a pen of nine Angus steers, 404kg, sold for 402c/kg or $1625 and another pen of 14 Charolais-cross steers, 389kg, sold for 380c/kg or $1480.

Lighter steers under 330kg got the higher c/kg prices as per normal, with the top of the entire sale going to Baulch Feedlot, who sold a pen of 24 weaner steers, 219kg, for 490c/kg or $1074.

Stonemans sold 26 Angus weaner steers, 309kg, for 456c/kg or $1411.

Mr Hickey said the heifer job also did a bit better than expected despite it falling back a little.

"There was a great run of 18-20 month old heifers with probably all of them being prepared for spring joining and they were consistently making from 350-380c/kg," he said.

"There were no holes in that proper feeder heifer job which was solid and strong and not too far off to what many of their brothers were making."

Sovereign Trust also did well in the grown heifer run, selling a pen of 16 Angus grown heifers, 458kg, for 360c/kg or $1651.

Kilkenny sold 28 Angus grown heifers, 437kg, for 376c/kg or $1644.

Annieville sold nine Angus weaner heifers, 390kg, for 368c/kg or $1437.

Railway Close sold 20 Angus weaner heifers, 340kg, for 414c/kg or $1408.

While feedlotters were present, Mr Hickey said they had been subdued in their purchasing, while Mr Hickey also said a wide range of commission buyers from right across Victoria shared in among the purchases.

Naracoote agents were also present and bought up many heifer pens offered at the sale.

One of the best of the heavier steer pens over 500kg belonged to vendor Damian Wines, Windy View, Cooriemungle who sold 43 Angus grown steers, 509kg for 398 cents per kilogram or $2026 a head.

He said that we had been satisfied with the price of his cattle, despite the softening market.

"While prices have definitely fallen, it is somewhere we needed it to be," he said.

"We look to weigh the cattle, grade them basically and for us, there wasn't a lot for us other than that to do for this sale by just bringing them in and presenting them."

The heaviest pen of the day belonged to the AP & NL Rentsch, who sold a pen of seven grown steers, 604kg, for 336c/kg or $2030.

Swan Lake sold 21 Hereford grown steers, 550kg, for 364c/kg or $2030, while Tourac sold eight Angus steers, 506kg, for 390c/kg or $1974.

Vendor Peter Wotherspoon, Wurdiboluc, attended WVLX Mortlake's store sale this past Thursday to see the last three of his Hereford steers be sold off.

While it wasn't a major dispersal or huge event to see the last of his cattle be sold off, it was a significant moment for him be a small amount of cattle

He will be bidding a fond farewell to farming after looking after a small farming operation for over 30 years.

And while he won't be selling up his property, it was time for him and his wife Jenny to do a bit of travelling and enjoy the surrounds of the Surf Coast a bit more.

"We want to do other things now and retirement seems a good idea," he said.

"We intend to sit back, lease our land out so we'll stay in the area, but just won't have all that responsibility to breed cattle and the time.

"Having cattle for an operation like ours, you have to always be at your place all time, or try to find people to look after them when you have to go away.

"We have been fortunate that there has been local people to look after our place, but those people have moved on as well, so it becomes more difficult, and so I think we've reached a time to give it away."

Mr Wotherspoon had always bred Herefords over the decades with his farm holding 100 cattle at most on his property throughout that time.

He said prices being "exceptionally good" over the past few years were a highlight, and found that picking a selective set of bulls from the right bloodstock made a big difference to his farming.

There were many lows throughout the years as well.

"At one point we sold some cows and calves at foot around five years ago and we more or less got nothing for them, and in our view, we had thought they were really good top cows at the time," he said.

"That's farming though and as economists will tell us, there are price makers and price takers, and we are a small operation in producing 60-70 head of cattle a year, and we do have to take a punch sometimes.

"But in a way this has been a sideline gig for us - an interesting sideline gig - which is a wonderful lifestyle."

Subscribers have access to download our free app today from the App Store or Google Play