Farm Tender

Mutton on the rise - Sheep considerably dearer at Bendigo this week

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Yarding - 20,000 (+3950).
Lambs - 10,000 (-1250).
Sheep - 10,000 (+5200).

Similar sized yarding of lambs, but a doubling in sheep supply due to the influence of rising mutton prices. Lamb quality was very mixed, with a lot of the longer wool young lambs now showing dryness and unevenness in carcass finish. There was some very good heavy shorn lambs, but once again quality and fat cover was lacking over a big percentage of stock. Lamb prices did improve on a week ago, but bidding was erratic at times as buyers picked through the offering. Not all processors are now buying longer wool lambs, and the shorter-skinned types did sell to the strongest demand.

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Heavy export lambs sold to a top of $242/head for an estimated weight of 34kg carcass. The heaviest lambs over 30kg sold from $210 to$240/head, and on size the price estimate was around 700c/kg cwt and less on some pens. The neatest trade weight lambs, 24kg to 26kgand shorn, sold from $180 to $202 and the next category down, 22kg to 24kg, sold from $168 to $190/head. Price outcomes for trade lambs were linked to breed quality and condition, and there was a wide carcass range of 700c to nearly 800c/kg cwt recorded. The bulk of sales sat between 740c to 780c/kg cwt. Reasonable numbers of plainer light weight lambs were available, those in the 18kg to 20kg category mostly sold from $140 to $156/head. Store lambs with some frame and style sold from $125 to $155 to the paddock, while very small lambs were down to $90/head.

Price and the on-going dry conditions drew out 10,000 sheep, including crossbred ewes and lines of Merino wethers and ewes still displaying plenty of weight and cover. The mutton market was considerably dearer than a week ago, with the main runs of heavy sheep averaging around 600c/kg cwt. The heaviest crossbred ewes sold from $170 to $220, and heavy Merino ewes in various skin lengths sold from $155 to $190/head. Heavy Merino wethers sold to $222/head.


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