Farm Tender

Lamb supply halved at Bendigo

Yarding - 21,500 (-13,267).
Lambs - 13,500 (-13,387).
Sheep - 8000 (+120).

Lamb supply was cut in half compared to the previous week, with 13,500 penned. There wasn’t as much weight available across the yarding with the majority of pens estimated below 30kg cwt. The regular buying group attended, although some domestic orders were quieter than usual. The market was generally firm, with some of the best trade weight lambs in short skins quoted as $10 to $15/head dearer than the reduced rates of last Monday. There was still processing interest in MK bag lambs and any suitable light weight lambs still sold strongly despite little restocking interest. The sale did operate under tight Covid-19 restrictions, with paint dots on walkways to ensure buyers kept to social distancing regulations.

Heavy export lambs sold to a top of $280/head for an estimated 34kg cwt. Sale data shows most sales to major export processors were from $220 to $265/head. The average quote for heavy lambs was 770c to 790c/kg cwt. Competition from the major domestic processors remained solid, and there was a lot of sales of good trade weight lambs, around 22-26kg cwt, from $185 to $210/head. Quality trade lambs were estimated at 790c to 830c/kg cwt for most, with rates creeping higher for the limited number of neat 18-21kg lambs that were available. Secondary and plainer domestic lambs, often in small pen lots, sold from $160 to $180/head. Small lambs to MK processing orders made from$135 to $158/head, with buyers working out many of these between 850c and 900c/kg cwt.

A yarding of 8,000 sheep featured some stand-out runs of heavy Merino wethers – the best selling to $280/head for an estimated 40kg cwt plus in a reasonable skin. Heavy wethers sold from $170 to $250/head. Big crossbred ewes made from $200 to $240, with the general run of trade weight ewes making from $150 to $190, and light sheep from $90 to $126/head. Mutton costs started at around 660c, rising to over 700c/kg cwt on the main runs of good processing sheep.