A buyers’ market

Press, 9 June 1978, Page 16

A buyers’ market

For about the fifth year in succession, store calf vendors again sold on a buyers’ market this autumn.

Their returns were also affected, probably substan-

tially, by the general fall in quality, for after a long lean summer, many lines were backward in size and condition. A few vendors, who were able to present wellgrown calves in forward order, obtained quite satisfactory sales, but these were the exception. The season again demonstrated that there remains a sound inquiry for the better-than average steer calf, but for many hill country vendors, it was simply not possible to grow calves into this category. It seems certain that in spite <yf an improved outlook for beef, and the guarantee of minimum prices as from October 1 next, the calf crop in Canterbury will from now on be smaller than usual. The tallies of calves sold in the Canterbury area in recent years tell their own story. From mid-March until this week, Addington handled 13,600 calves, compared with 18,855 last year, and 21,605 in 1976. District sales at Coalgate, Culverden and Kaikcfura accounted for a further 5000 (in round figures); compared with 8720 last year. Although the very poor prosoects at the opening of the selling season led to some breeders retaining some calves, the figures leave no doubt about beef breeding trends in this area. The subsidy on beef cattle, announced in the Budget last week, will have brought little help to breeders, the majority of whom have disposed of their annual sale calves and surplus stock. The buyers, who had already bought on a weak market, will collect payments, so reducing further their outlays. However. the selling season for calves could well have been worse. A very mild and growthy late autumn occurred in time to assure a regular demand. But for that, many farmers who buy calves to winter-over would not have been in a position to make any purchases. During the season a large number of useful medium size calves were bought at $4O to $45. Large calves often reached $7O, and the Addington sales did have their occasional moments when top lines bettered $lOO. Heifers, as usual, sold at a discount. Even those of good growth and condition looked very welt bought- With many small to medium calves’ selling at $2O to $3O. the return from the hill country breeding cow was again lamentably low. Small wonder, then, that many breeders, particularly those in the foothills, have been getting out of cattle as fast as they can.