Tuesday 19 January 2021
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Trade

2021 grinding beef export sales off to slow start

It’s been a particularly quiet start to the year for Australia’s export grinding beef sales, with low January beef kills being balanced by continued subdued demand out of the US and other key export markets…Read More

Jon Condon, January 18, 2021

Markets

Young cattle dearer in 10,920 head AuctionsPlus offering

Young steer and heifer categories mostly rose in price in a larger AuctionsPlus offering last week, when 10,920 commercial cattle were offered. Above average seasonal conditions in many areas of eastern Australia continued to underpin very strong buyer demand…Read More

Beef Central, January 18, 2021

News

Encouraging uptake of new National Vendor Declaration

Positive uptake of the latest version of the Livestock Production Assurance National Vendor Declaration, the only version now accepted for all species of livestock being transferred, is being reported by MLA’s subsidiary, the Integrity Systems Company. ..Read More

Beef Central, January 18, 2021

Trade

Meat in the mail – ButcherBox meeting grassfed beef demand in the US

Several years ago US tech entrepreneur Mike Salguero went in search of grassfed beef for his family but couldn’t find any. Five years later his ButcherBox is now a fully-fledged “meat in the mail” business supplying ethically-raised, grassfed beef, mostly from Australia and New Zealand, in curated boxes to subscribers across the US…Read More

Beef Central, January 18, 2021

Lotfeeding

Summer crops revel in ideal conditions

The return to favourable summer growing conditions this season has been a boon for summer crop growers throughout the eastern Australia growing regions…Read More

Neil Lyon, January 18, 2021

Trade

ICMJ launches new podcast series with meat industry heavyweight

The Australian Intercollegiate Meat Judging Association (ICMJ) has released the first episode of its podcast series, ‘Chiller Room Secrets: the stories behind the Australian meat industry’s quest for perfection’…Read More

Beef Central, January 18, 2021

Live Export

SE Asia Report: Access to stock tightens with return to normal wet season

Importers continue to struggle with a combination of a strong AUD and rising Australian cattle prices, while a “normal” Australian wet season after four weak monsoon years is restricting access to the small number of stock still available for live export, Dr Ross Ainsworth writes in this month’s South East Asian market report. ..Read More

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Dr Ross Ainsworth, January 15, 2021

Markets

Premiums being paid for heifers over steers in super-heated young cattle market
1
Jon Condon, January 15, 2021

Lotfeeding

Feedgrain Focus: Prices firm on global strength
Liz Wells, January 15, 2021

News

Cattle grid confuses modern car sensors and sends UK drivers into a spin
Beef Central, January 15, 2021

Live Export

Laporan Pasar: Industri Daging Sapi Asia Tenggara – Desember 2020
Dr Ross Ainsworth, January 15, 2021

Recruitment

Recruitment: Operating smarter in 2021
Beef Central, January 15, 2021

News

People on the Move: Appointments, retirements, achievements
Jon Condon, January 14, 2021

Industry Dashboard

$A / $US Graph

Updated 7am daily
Today
0.7700
Source: NAB

ASX Market Index

19 Jan 2021 (updated 10am daily)
Company Price Trending
Elders $10.69
Australian Agricultural Co $1.11
Graincorp $4.38
Ridley $0.96
Woolworths $39.90
Wellard $0.06
Source: ASX

Beef Kill

Eastern States, weekly

Last Week

107510
Source: MLA's NLRS

EYCI

Eastern Young Cattle Indicator, c/kg

Today

841.75
Source: MLA's NLRS

90CL Cow

Imported 90CL cow beef price. Landed US, Ac/kg CIF

Today

Source: Steiner Consulting, MLA

Live Export

Live export feeder steer prices ex Darwin (c/kg liveweight)

Today

400
Source: Trade contacts

SOI Graph

Southern Oscillation Index (SOI)

Today

16.63
Source: Australian Bureau of Meteorology

Feeder Steer Graph

Shortfed feeder steer 380-500kg - c/kg paddock sales, eastern states.

Today

Source: MLA's NLRS

What readers are saying

Cattle groups meet to end industry fragmentation

I was one of those heads in the room, and I'm happy to talk to anyone who has any questions. Constructive contributions and thoughts are very welcome. First....

Alice Greenup
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London’s historic Smithfield meat market set to close, after 800 years + photos

Work there for 18 years 1972 to 1989 . Breaks my heart to know how the market has changed. Had the best working days of my life , with....

John gamon
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Processing: ACC’s new business model adapts to changing times

Such a positive story. Congratulations to the Lee Family and to the long serving David Foote and the team.....

Greg Campbell
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Unis must prepare students for the future of agriculture

The regenerative agricultural program offered by Southern Cross University attempts to address many of the issues covered by this interesting article. Our attempts to modernise the approach to agriculture....

Nick Burton Taylor
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News

Encouraging uptake of new National Vendor Declaration

Positive uptake of the latest version of the Livestock Production Assurance National Vendor Declaration, the only version now accepted for all species of livestock being transferred, is being reported by MLA’s subsidiary, the Integrity Systems Company. ..Read More

Beef Central, January 18, 2021

Cattle grid confuses modern car sensors and sends UK drivers into a spin

A humble old cattle grid is sometimes all it takes to trip up the most advanced car computer systems…Read More

Beef Central, January 15, 2021

Recruitment: Operating smarter in 2021

The commencement of a new year is often a time for employers in the agricultural industries to reflect on their future hiring requirements, and for employees, to plan a career move. For employers and candidates alike, there are implications from operating in a COVID-affected job market…Read More

Beef Central, January 15, 2021

People on the Move: Appointments, retirements, achievements

New CEO for Red Meat Advisory Council | NH Foods appoints GM for its Borthwicks Mackay plant | Beef City feedlot team-member earns Young Lotfeeder title | New market information manager for MLA | Brahman breeders notch up 75 years | Inspector-General of Live Animal Exports reappointed | New Austrade CEO..Read More

Jon Condon, January 14, 2021

Markets

Young cattle dearer in 10,920 head AuctionsPlus offering

Young steer and heifer categories mostly rose in price in a larger AuctionsPlus offering last week, when 10,920 commercial cattle were offered. Above average seasonal conditions in many areas of eastern Australia continued to underpin very strong buyer demand…Read More

Beef Central, January 18, 2021

Premiums being paid for heifers over steers in super-heated young cattle market

Heifers have gone past equivalent steers in value in young cattle trading during the opening stages 2021 in large parts of eastern Australia, for the first time in recent memory. What’s driving it?..Read More

Jon Condon, January 15, 2021

Chris Howie’s southern sales wrap: Options aplenty as market runs hot

Why experience and understanding trumps luck in understanding the trends | Don’t get wound up about market indicators, look for the subtle changes inside the larger number | Positivity in the livestock industry should be our focus leading into 2021…Read More

Chris Howie , January 14, 2021

MLA Indicators return to operation after shutdown

MLA has recommenced reporting the over-the-hooks (OTH) indicators and feeder report and yarding reports after shutting down for the Christmas period…Read More

Beef Central, January 14, 2021

Production

New research targets bloat in southern beef production systems

Charles Sturt University researchers are calling on southern Australian beef producers to complete a short online survey as part of research examining the impact of bloat on the industry…Read More

Beef Central, January 12, 2021

Tag retention: NLIS tag losses still frustrating producers

Cattle producers are reporting high ongoing rates of National Livestock Identification System (NLIS) tag losses, almost 14 years after it became compulsory in Australia for all cattle to have an NLIS device at the time of sale for traceability purposes…Read More

James Nason, December 15, 2020

Million-dollar planet prize for CSIRO FutureFeed seaweed innovation

FutureFeed, a livestock feed made from seaweed that reduces methane emissions in beef and dairy cattle by more than 80 per cent has been awarded the world’s largest monetary reward on the global food arena…Read More

Beef Central, December 17, 2020

Snake bite vaccine for working dogs could be on the way

Almost anybody working long enough in the bush will have a story about losing a good working dog to snakebite. Now, a leader in the development of snake antivenom believes a protective vaccine for dogs and cats could be on the cards using new scientific techniques developed around the race to develop a a COVID-19 vaccine…Read More

Beef Central, December 11, 2020

Processing

Weekly kill: Processors’ ‘opening gambit’ cattle offers sharply higher

Two factors appear to be behind a a sharp lift in processor price grid offers for slaughter cattle across eastern and southern Australia since the start of the new trading year…Read More

Jon Condon, January 12, 2021

Processing: ACC’s new business model adapts to changing times

Changing circumstances are seeing Australian Country Choice transition into a much more diverse, multi-stream vertically integrated processing/supply chain business model…Read More

Jon Condon, December 18, 2020

TFI starts construction at its new Murray Bridge processing site

An official ground-breaking ceremony was held this morning on the site of the new Thomas Foods International processing plant site near Murray Bridge in South Australia’s east…Read More

Beef Central, December 16, 2020

Weekly kill: Processing year ends on softer note

Buffeted by a series of unexpected and often unique events, the 2020 slaughter cattle season largely draws to a close on Friday. Many large export beef plants across eastern Australia draw a line under their 2020 operations on Friday, with significant losses recorded on many slaughter cattle during the back half of the year.  ..Read More

Jon Condon, December 15, 2020

Lotfeeding

Summer crops revel in ideal conditions

The return to favourable summer growing conditions this season has been a boon for summer crop growers throughout the eastern Australia growing regions…Read More

Neil Lyon, January 18, 2021

Feedgrain Focus: Prices firm on global strength

Domestic wheat, barley and sorghum values have firmed this week based on strength in Northern Hemisphere markets, and were bolstered by minimal post-harvest selling from growers…Read More

Liz Wells, January 15, 2021

Feedgrain Focus: Market firms as trade covers

Short covering in the barley and southern wheat markets has supported prices this week, while on logistics, export pace has hit its straps despite two rail derailments…Read More

Liz Wells, December 18, 2020

Feedgrain Focus: Values buckle under supply-side pressure

A whack of grower selling, a logistics-driven easing of nearby demand and a firming Australian dollar have combined to depress prices for wheat and barley in most markets by up to $10 per tonne in the past week…Read More

Liz Wells, December 11, 2020

Live Export

SE Asia Report: Access to stock tightens with return to normal wet season

Importers continue to struggle with a combination of a strong AUD and rising Australian cattle prices, while a “normal” Australian wet season after four weak monsoon years is restricting access to the small number of stock still available for live export, Dr Ross Ainsworth writes in this month’s South East Asian market report. ..Read More

Dr Ross Ainsworth, January 15, 2021

Laporan Pasar: Industri Daging Sapi Asia Tenggara – Desember 2020

Edisi ke-85: Para importir masih terus berjuang menghadapai kesulitan akibat kombinasi antara nilai tukar AUD yang kuat dengan meningkatnya harga sapi Australia; Harga eceran daging sapi di Indonesia dan Vietnam tetap stabil, kendati terjadi kenaikan tajam pada CIF dan harga sapi potong; Setelah 4 tahun mengalami muson yang lemah, musim hujan Australia yang “normal” kembali membatasi akses ke sejumlah kecil kawanan sapi yang masih tersedia untuk diekspor sebagai ternak hidup…Read More

Dr Ross Ainsworth, January 15, 2021

Hull damaged live export ship hit with unprecedented two-year-ban by AMSA

The Australian  Maritime and Safety Authority (AMSA) has taken the extraordinary step of banning an Australian livestock vessel from entering any Australian port for two years, after it suffered hull damage in the Indian Ocean during a ballast voyage on return from Indonesia two months ago…Read More

James Nason, January 13, 2021

Surveys measure impact of buffalo meat in Indonesian wet markets

It is now estimated that around 75 percent of Indian Buffalo Meat in Indonesia is now sold through wet markets, competing directly with fresh beef from locally processed Australian and local cattle. A new survey is now underway to learn more about what drives consumer meat purchasing decisions in Indonesia’s wet markets…Read More

Beef Central, December 15, 2020

Trade

2021 grinding beef export sales off to slow start

It’s been a particularly quiet start to the year for Australia’s export grinding beef sales, with low January beef kills being balanced by continued subdued demand out of the US and other key export markets…Read More

Jon Condon, January 18, 2021

Meat in the mail – ButcherBox meeting grassfed beef demand in the US

Several years ago US tech entrepreneur Mike Salguero went in search of grassfed beef for his family but couldn’t find any. Five years later his ButcherBox is now a fully-fledged “meat in the mail” business supplying ethically-raised, grassfed beef, mostly from Australia and New Zealand, in curated boxes to subscribers across the US…Read More

Beef Central, January 18, 2021

ICMJ launches new podcast series with meat industry heavyweight

The Australian Intercollegiate Meat Judging Association (ICMJ) has released the first episode of its podcast series, ‘Chiller Room Secrets: the stories behind the Australian meat industry’s quest for perfection’…Read More

Beef Central, January 18, 2021

2020 Australian beef exports fall 15pc, to 1.039 million tonnes

Hampered by reduced national cattle herd size after years of drought, Australia’s beef exports to all markets fell dramatically to 1.039 million tonnes last calendar year, trade statistics released this morning by the Department of Agriculture show…Read More

Jon Condon, January 6, 2021

Genetics

Multi-breed EBVs will allow producers to compare bulls between breeds

A new $7.3 million research project launched in Armidale last week will ultimately enable beef producers to directly compare bulls of different breeds for a range of traits…Read More

Beef Central, December 12, 2020

2020 bull sales: Your complete guide to how each major beef breed fared

Fuelled by herd rebuilding across large parts of the country after drought, and a red hot restocker and slaughter cattle market, bull breeders have ridden a wave of producer confidence to re-set the bar for all major metrics for the industry this year. In Beef Central’s annual breed-by-breed analysis published today, major beef breeds have recorded dramatic growth in average prices paid for bulls, clearance rates of bulls offered, and numbers sold…Read More

Jon Condon, December 2, 2020

2020 bull sales: 10pc increase in numbers sold at auction

A combination of more bulls being catalogued for sale by bull breeders, and dramatically higher sale clearance rates has driven a 10pc increase in the number of bulls sold at auction this year across Australia…Read More

Jon Condon, December 2, 2020

Selection pressure for temperament drives big shift in Limousins

Limousin cattle have made big inroads into temperament, since EBVs for docility were introduced in 2000, Breedplan data suggests…Read More

Beef Central, November 25, 2020

Ag Tech

New service supports regional Aussies to solve phone & internet problems

Regional Australians can now access free, independent advice on the best internet and mobile phone connection for their work, study and lifestyle needs…Read More

Beef Central, December 14, 2020

Surgical robots may have application in red meat processing industry

Scientists are working to develop robotic principles that could help the red meat processing sector boost its global competitiveness – using technologies developed for use in human surgical procedures…Read More

Beef Central, November 25, 2020

Aussie start-up’s Wi-Fi solution picks up $500,000 prize in prestigious US agtech competition

An Australian company focused on resolving inadequate internet and phone connectivity in rural and remote parts of the country has claimed a US$500,000 prize in the hotly-contested US food and ag-tech competition, Grow-NY. ..Read More

Beef Central, November 24, 2020

World-first investigation raises ethical and policy challenges in using robots in agriculture

With automation poised to transform agriculture in Australia in the coming years, Monash University researchers have published the first-ever analysis of the ethical and policy issues raised by the use of robots in agriculture…Read More

Beef Central, November 22, 2020

Property

Weekly Property Review: What lies ahead for grazing land sales in 2021?

The rural property transaction space saw an increasing number of Australian farming families looking to expand in 2020. Many foreign-owned properties were returned to locals and cheap money and a scarcity of properties put upward pressure on land values. In our final weekly property review for the year, stakeholders reflect on the year that was and give their thoughts on what 2021 may bring…Read More

Property editor Linda Rowley, December 17, 2020

Movement at the station: Recently completed property sales

North QLD breeder country sells after several years | Gulf country purchased for a reported $23m | Around $19m for South Australia’s Calgara Station | Investors pay $10m for Victoria’s Kaloomah | Picturesque Flinders Ranges station settles | Record price for northern NSW cattle country | Historic Riverina property makes $9m+ | Picturesque red gum grazing in Victoria | Southern Tablelands block smashes reserve | CQ country sells to first-time property purchasers | Interstate buyer snaps up Cooladdi’s Nimboy
..Read More

Property editor Linda Rowley, December 17, 2020

Weekly property review: 2020’s defining property sales

This week’s property review showcases a state-by-state snapshot of the defining property sales across Australia, as reported over the past 12 months. The inclusions below are not necessarily the largest in each region, but properties that performed considerably above local expectations…Read More

Property editor Linda Rowley, December 9, 2020

CBRE’s Danny Thomas calls time, tackling new challenges

After 23 years in the rural property marketing game including the last nine as head of CBRE Agribusiness, high-profile property identity Danny Thomas has called time, taking on a number of new challenges…Read More

Property editor Linda Rowley, December 9, 2020

Sheep Central

First cross ewes to $424, Merinos to $358 at Deniliquin

BREEDERS’ lines of empty, unjoined ewes and those scanned in-lamb with high percentages met the best demand at the Deniliquin store sheep sale on Friday...Read More

Wool growers and NFF hit back at AWU low shearing rate claim

PEAK wool grower body WoolProducers has hit back at a union claim that farmers and pastoralists are able to get way with paying below award rates when New Zealand shearers..Read More

Interest sought for non-mulesed wool auctions

INTEREST in designated non-mulesed wool sales is being sought after a mixed market reaction to the marketing of NM wool in separate sections within Australian auction catalogues...Read More

Ewe prices dip in first full week of AuctionsPlus sales

FIRST cross ewes sold to $444 and Merinos made to $352 on AuctionsPlus last week, but average prices dropped in several categories...Read More

Grain Central

Kembla grain line returns to normal after derailment

Both rail paths directly connecting Port Kembla's GrainCorp and Quattro terminals with up-country grain sites resumed full operation yesterday following last month's derailment...Read More

Construction to commence on massive SA urea project

Leigh Creek Energy has awarded two engineering contracts for the Stage 1 commercial development of a large-scale urea production project in South Australia...Read More

Recruitment: Operating smarter in 2021

The commencement of a new year is often a time for employers in the agricultural industries to reflect on their future hiring requirements, and for employees, to plan a career..Read More

Teenager critical after tractor rollover

A teenage boy is in a critical condition after being injured in a tractor rollover earlier today north west of Gympie in Queensland...Read More

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