Saturday, March 30, 2024

Temuka sale, in-lamb ewe fair 09.07, 11.07

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Lambs from the Chatham’s and Pitt Island filled pens at Temuka on Monday, adding plenty more weight to the pens. These made up a significant portion of the store lamb section, and also a few flowed into the prime lamb pens. Other sections of the overall sale were small.
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Last Wednesday played host to the in-lamb ewe fair, and any lines under $200 were hard to find.

With the extra weight from the Chatham’s a large portion of the store lambs offered were 40kg and heavier, in all sections including the ewe lambs. The heavy males and mixed sex made similar values at $152-$167, with ewe lambs earning $147-$151. The remainder of the yarding were mixed sex, and prices did come back for good types at $134-$144, but given that was the same range for medium types these sold on a strong market.  

The prime markets continued to go from strength to strength and for the second week running $200 was exceeded in both sections. The lamb market firmed $2-$4 and most sold for $155-$198, with a further 147 head selling for $200-$211. 

The top ewe price was $240, and just over 160 of the 846 head yarding managed to make $216-$240.  Second cuts traded at $170-$198, with third cuts making $120-$164. Very few ewes sold for less than $100.

In the cattle pens exactly 100 lots were offered but half of those housed just a lone beast, and buyers really had to work to secure numbers, with all aspects of the sale at improved levels. 

The best of the prime steers reached $2.93/kg – a level reserved for 690-745kg Angus and exotic cattle with good yield. The next tier of beef and also Hereford-Friesian reached $2.84-$2.89/kg, which was a 5c/kg lift on the previous week. 

A massive Angus heifer, 805kg, raised the bids to $2.84/kg, putting $2286 on her head. Other heavy Angus and exotic heifers returned $2.74-$2.85/kg, while Hereford-Friesian, 483-565kg, lifted 4c/kg to finish at $2.71-$2.80/kg. Even the Friesian heifer market showed promise, with prices firming. The better types in a 525-620kg range made $2.57-$2.64/kg, with most other lines earning $2.21-$2.31/kg.

For the first time this year beef cows outnumbered the dairy, as a big entry of Angus came forward. The cow market lifted and good Angus, 605-655kg, managed $2.27-$2.37/kg, and the second cuts, $2.18-$2.28/kg.

The Friesian cow market improved by one of the biggest margins, with prices up 10c/kg for all bar the very heavy lines, which soared. Those 602-606kg exceeded $2.00/kg to $2.04-$2.10/kg, and most other lots traded at $1.82-$1.95/kg.

July is in-lamb ewe fair month at Temuka, and the much anticipated fair attracted more buyers from North Canterbury through to Southland than there were pens of ewes to sell. 

Prices easily exceeded last year’s levels and while all classes sold well it was the annual draft and older ewes that really stood out, while it was thought that younger ewes could have sold better, with prices very similar for both. At last year’s sale no lines came close to the $200 mark, with $186 the top price, but for this year’s fair that was where the third cut mixed age ewes were sitting. The top ewes were a line of 205 2-shear Romney, scanned-in-lamb 165% to a terminal sire, which made $233.

Volume to this sale reduced by nearly half on the 2017 tally as some vendors look to retain more. Capital stock ewes made up a big portion of the yarding and mainly featured Romney, Border-Texel and Coopdale, from three properties. 

Scanning percentages through the 2-tooth pens were up, and prices lifted by $70-$80, with Romney’s trading at $216-$232. Most 2-shear ewes made $216-$233. 

Mixed age and annual draft ewes made up the biggest section and prices lifted $60-$65 for Romney. All were to a terminal sire and had scanning percentages ranging from 165% up to triplets. The top cuts made $203-$215, while second cuts earned $196-$200 and third, $174-$186. Other breeds were as strong if not stronger, and Border-Texel showed their popularity, going under the hammer for $214-$228.

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