WANGARATTA’S Victorian Farmers Federation branch will host a “Barnawartha Beefs” update meeting on Monday.
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The branch has reviewed all submissions made to the Senate Inquiry into the effect of market consolidation on the red meat processing sector and will present a summary.
Attendees at the meeting will be asked for feedback on the submissions to date, and their responses will be forwarded to the Senate Committee.
Wangaratta VFF president Greg Mirabella said the meeting was a chance for producers to get an up-to-date overview of all the information the Senate committee received in its submissions.
The Senate held public hearings in Albury, Canberra and Queensland and was due to hand down its findings in March.
The ACCC is investigating buyers who did not attend the first sale at NVLX Barnawartha in February – dubbed the Barnawartha Boycott – which sparked the inquiry.
The VFF hosted a crisis meeting on March 2 in Barnawartha following the boycott and all those who attended have been invited to Monday’s gathering.
It will be at the Wangaratta CWA hall in Templeton Street at 7.30pm and is also open to non-VFF members.
Meanwhile, cattle have been sold under a roof and with soft fall beneath their hooves at the Wangaratta Livestock Exchange for this first time this week.
A Certificate of Occupancy has been granted for the first stage of the upgrade, allowing for Thursday’s prime cattle market and Friday’s store sale to take place using the upgraded facilities.
“While the roof has been constructed for some time, other work has been occurring on the ground, including reconfiguring pens, installing new walkways, ramps and cattle laneways and installation of softfall,” Wangaratta council’s Alan Clark said.
“A significant portion of the project has been completed, with just yard alterations and auctioneers walkways in stages two and three to be carried out.
“Installation of softfall in the areas covered by stages two and three will take place as the stages are completed.”
Cattle prices continued to remain hot hot on the back of a surging indicator price and strengthening competition from restockers.
The Eastern Young Cattle Indicator was at 597.75 cents a kilogram on Wednesday.
