FAVOURABLE market and seasonal conditions this year have resulted in Alcoa Farmlands rethinking the way it markets its calves.
Instead of offering calves in AuctionsPlus sales as it has in the past, this year they’ll be marketed through the Elders Boyanup monthly store sales.
Alcoa Farmlands manager Vaughn Byrd said the new marketing strategy was a response to the season and market conditions.
“We still believe strongly in the benefits of the AuctionsPlus system, but this year we believe we’re better off putting the cattle through the saleyards to get the best returns,” he said.
“We achieved good results in March with the lines we offered and this month we’ll offer another 350 head along with further lines of steers and heifers in the May sale.”
In the Elders Boyanup sale on Friday, April 21, Alcoa Farmlands will offer its first steer drafts for the year – 200 Angus steers and 51 Murray Grey steers.
It will also offer 30 Angus heifers and 70 Murray Grey heifers.
The calves are 10-11 months old (May/June/July drop) and are from the operation’s 3300-head breeding herd, which is run across properties at Wagerup and Pinjarra.
Mr Byrd said their aim was to breed animals suitable for the feedlot or grassfed market.
The Angus calves on offer are based on predominantly Koojan Hills blood, while the Murray Greys are based on Tullibardine and Melaleuca bloodlines.
All the heifers in the line-up will be pregnancy tested empty and suitable to breed making them ideal for producers looking for future breeders.
Elders Waroona representative Michael Longford said the heifers were both excellent lines and would make ideal future breeders.
“They are good feminine heifers which come from a highly fertile breeding herd,” he said.
The calves were all yard weaned 10 to 12 weeks ago and have been running on irrigated pastures and supplemented with hay and silage since weaning.
They have also been educated through the yards on a regular basis using low-stress stock handling methods.
In terms of health treatments, they have been vaccinated twice with 5in1, treated with Pilligard and Multimin and have received a B12 selenium and Eprinex treatments in the last month.
