A smaller buying gallery at the second of the Ballarat weaner sales for the month had little effect on prices, which remained within agents' expectations.
Agents yarded 2934 head of grown and weaner female cattle.
Weaner heifers reached a top of $1400 a head, while grown females made up to $1850.
TB White & Sons livestock agent Tom Madden said there were several volume buyers, with Melbourne-based commission buyer Campbell Ross picking up between 600-700 head, backed by local interest.
Buyers also came from Gippsland, Kyneton and south-east South Australia.
"The better end of the grown heifers were somewhere between $1300-$1600," Mr Madden said.
"Most of the heifers in general sold for between 290-330 cents a kilogram, with the odd exception of some very, very-good lines of well-bred females that are going to go back into breeding programs.
"Some of those could have been up to 360-380c/kg."
He said notable sales were by LG Shaw, who made $1380 or 377c/kg, and High Spa Angus, which sold one run of 71 calves for $1230 or 380c/kg.
"I think this is well and truly every bit of what we expected it to be, even though it was a smaller buying crowd," he said.
He said a clash with other sales might have kept buyers away.
Elders Ballarat livestock manager Nick Gray said there were not many "spectators" at the sale.
"The ones here were here to buy," he said.
"There were three main commission buyers, with a few agents from the NSW Riverina poking along."
Mr Ross was joined by Duncan Brown, Albury, NSW, and Luke McMahon, Echuca.
"We haven't blown it out of the water in comparison to other feature female sales but we are there with them and it's certainly better than were we expected to be three months ago," he said.
Mr Gray said grown heifers "bounced around from 290-320c/kg and the lead end of the weaner heifers weren't quite where we thought they may have been".
He said they sold for around 300c/kg, but lighter-weight females exceeded expectations.
PR, C, M and KM Berlyn sold 10 Banquet-blood heifers, 627kg, for $1850 or 295c/kg.
IG and HM Matthews sold 13 Franc blood heifers, 521kg, for $1600 or 307c/kg.
Lake Goldsmith Pastoral sold 17 Raff and Texas-blood heifers, 489kg, for $1550 or 316c/kg and 14, 421kg, for $1320 or 309c/kg.
KJ and JA Britt sold 13 Langi Kal Kal-blood heifers, 513kg, for $1650 or 321c/kg.
DB Muir sold 18 Tiarna-blood heifers, 448kg, for $1560 or 348c/kg.
Daelroem sold 22 Merridale-blood heifers, 441kg, for $1610 or 365c/kg and 21, 405kg, for $1280 or 316c/kg.
TJ Blackmore sold 17 Murdeduke-blood heifers, 459kg, for $1500 or 326c/kg.
Real Food Farming sold 15 heifers, 425kg, for $1300 or 305c/kg. They also sold a further 40, 401kg, for $1200 or 299c/kg.
Treetop Estate sold 51 Oak Well and Stoney Point-blood heifers, 383kg, for $1200 or 313c/kg and 47, 359kg, for $1100 or 306c/kg.
DJ and KL Trigg Family Partnership sold 18 Francs-blood heifers, 376kg, for $1150 or 305c/kg.
AR and W Gellie sold 17 Langi Kal Kal-blood heifers, 370kg, for $1130 or 305c/kg.
Rosevale sold 12 Mount William and Cratloe-blood heifers, 482kg, for $1380 or 286c/kg.
Aberfeldie sold 14 Yarram Park-blood heifers, 465kg, for $1250 or 268c/kg.
LG Shaw and Sons sold 15 Franc-blood heifers, 372kg, for $1380 or 370c/kg.
Springdallah Pastoral Company sold 20 Franc and Murdeduke-blood heifers, 442kg, for $1460 or 330c/kg.
Rush Brothers sold 20 Adameluca-blood heifers, 427kg, for $1320 or 309c/kg.
Wolgan sold 14 Langi Kal Kal-blood heifers, 387kg, for $1270 or 328c/kg, and a pen of 30, 336kg, for $1230 or 366c/kg.
WA and KM Blackmore sold 23 High Spa and Langi Kal Kal-blood heifers, 354kg, for $1290 or 364c/kg.
Knight and Sons sold 19 Franc-blood heifers, 360kg, for $1180 or 327c/kg.
High Spa sold 35 High Spa-blood heifers, 360kg, for $1230 or 341c/kg, and 13 heifers, 281kg, for $900 or 320c/kg.
Andrew Miller
I'm a general reporter with Stock & Land, with a special interest in irrigation issues. I completed my cadetship, with the Age, in 1980. Over my career, I've worked for ABC radio news (Mt Isa, Qld) and at provincial and suburban newspapers.
I'm a general reporter with Stock & Land, with a special interest in irrigation issues. I completed my cadetship, with the Age, in 1980. Over my career, I've worked for ABC radio news (Mt Isa, Qld) and at provincial and suburban newspapers.
