A single yard of Border Leicester Merino-cross young ewes won the honours for the best priced at the Landmark Casterton summer sheep sale last Friday.
The market toppers, which made $250 a head, were sold November-shorn by the Jewell family, Homebush, Heywood while most other first-cross young ewe lots, which were secondary in style, made $180 to $220.
Sustained interest in Composite-bloodlines however stole the limelight with an impressive display.
Amaroo, Merino offered the first pen sold at $205. These Jaydee-blood and November shorn young ewes were snapped up by Mandy Straw, Touchstone, Penshurst while Elders Heywood and then Steve Milich, Nareen each snapped up yards at $228 and $218 a head respectively offered by Craig Grant, Tandarra, Pigeon Ponds: these comprising Chrome//Wairere bloodlines.
A second draft of the Grant family Composite ewes, Cloven Hills-blood sold under the Bochara Park banner made $228 and $200 while Elmvale sold pens at $216, $212 and $210, and Hillview a yard of 160 Composites at $216.
A line of Levantine BLM-cross young ewes, sold as proven breeders, were also well rewarded with prices of $170 while Robin Valley sold Coopworth/Ile de France three year-olds, at $184 as an April-shorn lot of 108, and $170 a head for their year-older sisters.
Sales of ewe lambs, comprising various breeds made $144 to $170 a head while a small selection of fattening store lambs made $88 to $106.
Rick Smith, Landmark said the mild and damp weather in the days prior to sale allowed more spectators than normal to leave off their farms to obvious the auction.
The market he said traded expectedly with buyers from Casterton, Hamilton, Heywood, Warrnambool and Mt Gambier, SA dominant.
Some 8500 head of ewes and store lambs were offered in the store market section of the sale while in the preceding mutton sale a field of at least eight processor buyers and several more in the wings fuelled a solid demand for 9000 head for mutton sheep.
Placing bids a tightly framed between $80 and $118 a head, successful buyers consigned a broad range of ewe and wether purchases to all southern mainland states on a market built on 330 to 430 cents per kilogram.
Medium, heavy and extra heavy weight crossbred ewes mostly realised prices from $90 to $114 a head with isolated sales higher. Lighter weight crossbred ewes $75-$95 while a limited number of wethers made $100-$112 however odd pens of the heaviest wethers remained unsold after the auction.
