AS THE green carpet spreads across NSW, many growers have elected to hold on to cattle to add weight to them, instead of selling.
As a result, grown steers surged to an average yearly high of 188 cents a kilogram last week – nearly 10c/kg more than the week before.
The spike coincided with grown steer supply falling 12 per cent on the previous week.
A Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA) report said demand from processors increased for heavyweight grown steers, but medium-weight grown steers were not as keenly sought after.
Across the Southern Tablelands, the improved season is definitely a reason for the limited supply, says Landmark Goulburn agent, Daniel Croker.
“Supply is generally low around here at this time of year anyway, but supply is pretty hard to find and it’s been like that for a few weeks,” Mr Croker said.
“The better season is a factor for it.”
Mr Croker said heavier and feedlot steers were making up to 210c/kg, with most steers for slaughter ranging from 185c/kg to 190c/kg.
But he predicted the situation might not last long.
“I think you will probably find that it will not rise much more and will flatten out over the next month or so.”
The good season across much of eastern Australia has helped push grown steer prices higher than the average of 172c/kg recorded this time last year, although prices are down slightly on the 192c/kg producers received in early September 2008.
Grass-fed steers suitable for export sold to 190c/kg at the Wagga Wagga prime sale on Monday, and demand for all grown steers was good, Rodwells Noonan Livestock director, Michael Noonan, Wagga Wagga, said.
“It’s good money but a lot of people have a lot of feed over a wide area so I don’t think we will see big numbers of stock coming through the yards any time soon,” Mr Noonan said.
However, demand for steers would continue to be strong throughout the early spring because of the good season.
“If you sit down and analyse the numbers, there doesn’t appear to be an oversupply of beef across the world, so I expect the demand to still be there,” he said.
In the north of the State, growers were increasingly holding on to stock and looking at a long-term strategy, Elders Inverell agent, Kieran te Velde, said.
“Anybody with feed is holding on to their steers to add weight,” he said.
“In the long term, the good season and those decisions will help the industry, but in our area we are down on grown steer numbers.”
Mr te Velde said prime grown steers were lagging behind store counterparts on prices.
“I wish I had a crystal ball to say how the prices are going to continue but the prime market is not holding up as well as the store market and I think the prime market will start to fall if there are not many more cattle coming onto the market,” he said.
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