NUTRIEN Livestock and Elders offered a combined 1376 weaners at the first special weaned weaner sale at Boyanup for the season last week.
There was a wide difference in weights evident and surprisingly a large number of lighter weights than expected penned.
The usual commission buyers, agents and lotfeeders dominated the clerking sheets, with local graziers managing to buy a few pens as well.
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Steers sold to a high of $2352 and 754 cents per kilogram for lightweights, while heifers, which made up a smaller percentage of the yarding topped at $1900 and 594c/kg.
Overall the yarding of 1376 weaners averaged $1769.
Sale summary
- Steers: 500-754c/kg ($1241-$2352)
- Heifers: 420-594c/kg ($1277-$1900)
Nutrien Livestock
The Nutrien Livestock team sold first.
In its pens steers topped at $2184 with lightweights selling to 754c/kg, while heifers were in lower numbers and reached $1800 and 550c/kg.
The section started with three pens of black calves from D & JM Walters, Busselton and these sold to a top of $2086 for the third pen which averaged 379kg for steers when knocked down at 550c/kg to Kalgrains, Wannamal.
Ten Angus steers weighing 407kg from MJ & CS Scott, Elgin, topped the Nutrien Livestock steer line-up at $2184 when Semini Enterprises, Treeton, bid to 536c/kg.
Another pen of 12 Scott steers went to the bid of John Gallop, buying for O'Meehan & Co, with the 365kg steers selling at 550c/kg to cost $2007.
Later, Mr Gallop snapped up four pens of Angus steers from RA & A Maiolo, Coolup, paying to $1817 and 574c/kg.
Kalgrains bought the heaviest of the Maiolo cattle weighing 376kg and these cost $2048 at 544c/kg.
Graeme Brown secured one pen also, paying $2017 at 552c/kg for the 11 weighing 365kg.
One of the larger drafts was from McIntyre Ag, Waroona and its first run saw a top of $2046 and 550c/kg when bought for Caris Park Grazing, Pinjarra.
At the mid-point of the Nutrien Livestock section was a pen of eight steers weighing 418kg from MJ & LV Bell, Capel and these went to the bid of Semini Enterprises at $2174 and 520c/kg.
Selling numbers but not weight, Stoney Pastoral Co offered a run of six pens of lightweight Angus resulting in Nutrien Livestock, Waroona agent Richard Pollock paying the top of $1802 and 620c/kg for 14 Angus weighing 290kg.
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KL & SA Payne, Capel, snapped up five pens, including the top cents per kilogram pen at 754c/kg for 16 weighing 180kg that cost $1357.
Lifting the weight level, eight Charolais from MJ & LV Bell weighing 386kg sold to Semini Enterprises for $2034 after it bid to 526c/kg.
Late in the section Galati Family Trust paid $2032 for 10 Charolais from Pinjarrah Park that weighed 375kg.
It was well into the heifer offering before the top of $1800 was paid for 10 Charolais from MJ & LV Bell when M & AJ Bell, Elgin, added the pen weighing 363kg to its earlier purchases at 496c/kg.
The top of 550c/kg was paid by Elders Harvey/Brunswick agent Craig Martin for two Angus of 202kg when sold by Jennifer G Coolum, to return $1113.
Several pens of Angus heifers sold by MJ & CS Scott saw a top of $1739 when bought by a Nutrien account with M & AJ Bell paying the top of 492c/kg.
Elders
In the Elders section steers sold to a high of $2352 and 694c/kg, while heifers made up to to $1900 and 594c/kg.
Elders took top-priced steer honours when heavyweight Red Angus steers weighing 465kg sold account AD & RM Corker topped the whole sale at $2352 when bought for Princess Royal Trading at 506c/kg.
A second pen of 12 weighing 427kg went to Kalgrains for $2257 and 528c/kg.
Angus calves from TJ & MB Waugh, Manjimup, started the Elders run, with the first pen weighing 399kg selling to Semini Enterprises at 540c/kg to return $2157. Kalgrains paid $2024 for 20 weighing 365kg, while B & M Waddell spent $1985 at 560c/kg for steers weighing 354kg.
The Waddells later paid $1985 again for 11 from MA Sherwood when bidding 558c/kg for the 355kg cattle.
Kalgrains also liked the Sherwood calves, paying $2171 at 528c/kg for the 411kg steers.
Several pens of mediumweight black steers from TH & L Gibbs, Dardanup, topped at $1961, when Elders, Boyanup representative Alex Roberts bid to 620c/kg for the 316kg steers.
The lightest 10 steers from the Gibbs offering topped at 694c/kg when an Elders Manjimup account, bought the 273kg steers at $1894.
Mr Roberts was again successful when paying $2030 at 618c/kg for 10 Angus steers sold by
RM McKenzie that returned $2030.
A line of 10 Limousin cross steers weighing 390kg from Daros Family Trust made $2116 at 542c/kg when joining the load to Semini Enterprises.
An attractive blue roan steer weighing 425kg from Kelside West appealed to Rodney Galati who bid to 498c/kg to spend $2116, before adding the two Limousins in the pen for $1786 and 514c/kg.
The first pen of heifers from MA Sherwood topped the Elders heifers when the 407kg females sold to Kalgrains at 466c/kg and $1900.
A line of 12 heifers from RM McKenzie made the top cents per kilogram price when the 317kg heifers went to the bid of Mr Roberts at 594c/kg, to be the better returns for the small number of females yarded.
What the agent said:
NUTRIEN Livestock Boyanup/Capel agent Chris Waddingham said it was a good quality yarding of weaners for the first sale of the season with many of the drafts on offer from regular vendors which always sold early in the season.
"Although the market was strong and there was good demand, buyers didn't appear to have quite the same enthusiasm in their bidding compared to last year," Mr Waddingham said.
"In broad terms, the market was back $250 a head across steers and heifers compared to the first sale last year which wasn't unexpected given current cattle market trends."
