AUSTRALIAN NOTES

Dominion, Volume 34, Issue 157, 29 March 1941, Page 8

AUSTRALIAN NOTES

Record Sheep Numbers I Latest statistics show that at the ■nd of 1939 the sheep population of Ausi fralin was at the record high level ot i 116.541.000 and since then there has been a further increase, so it is esti- ! mated that the total is now close to i 120.000,000 sheep. “Stock and Land, I Melbourne, recently published a 20-year average of prices on the great Newmarket sales. Melbourne. Figures are: Beet 38/- a hundred pounds, lamb 6d. a pound, and mutton 3?d. The sheep prices are exclusive of skin and ofral, which it is customary in Australia to value separately. It would appear that the addition of these would on average have ' raised the lamb value to at least Ltdand possibly 7id. on a New Zealand schedule basis. For the year just ended the average price of mutton at Newmarket was ..-fd. a pound, lamb 6d.. and ox beef 42/- which compare with the previous years (I.MH) 3d sfd and 34/6 respectively. Ihe importance of this selling centre may lie gauged from the fact that there were offered during 1940. nearly 51 million ffieen and lambs; an average of 100.000 weekly. Lambs alone totalled 2J million and the fat sheen came out at 1.834,000. which equals till the mutton annually slaughtered in New Zealand.for export, oniv a few years ago. “Bobby calves are making wonderfully good prices, equalling fully 6d. a - nound dead weight with the skin bn.” This is reported for the first week ol March from Newmarket, ami the report further declares “Evidently they arc being used for the iminufacture of a particular class of small goods.” and the fear is expressed that such high orices tnay b'li'l to a future shortage <>r dairy heifers. “Al present there is a good demand for old ewes for ennning purposes nt from round Id. a imund to belter.” the report adds.-