In fact, this was the first sale for Victoria for the annual calf sale season, and it aided some strong competition throughout all of the sale.

Corcoran Parker, Elders, and the newly formed Landmark Paull & Scollard, combined to offer a large yarding of 6978 cattle.

It was a credit to everyone concerned, to provide the outcome seen at Barnawartha.

Due to a late, but good spring, the cattle presented in very good condition, which saw most of the steers weigh over 300 kilograms liveweight, and most of the heifers upward of 270kg.

Everyone was expecting a long, hot, and humid day, under the big top at Barnawartha, and while it was hot and humid, a fast sale saw an early completion to the day.

Opening the sale, agents sold four pens of better quality yearling and older steers from $1270 to $1385.

However, the feature of the sale was the long line up of 2018 drop Angus steers, most of which weighed from 320 to 380kg liveweight. A single pen of 15 Angus steers, offered by J&A Wallace, Porepunkah, weighed 437kg, and sold for $1275, while many other steers sold from $1000 to $1190 per head.

Davilak Pastoral Company, Mansfield, sold 491 Angus steers, 298kg to 366kg, in just three lots. Their top pen sold for $1120, but Bowyer and Livingstone, Bathurst, purchased 306 head in one line of 306 head, and paid $1050 for that privilege.

The Davilak steers equaled 309 to 337c/kg liveweight, and was a good representation of the whole steer sale.

Deepdale Seaton Park Partnership, Tallarook, sold 132 Angus steer calves, 301-391kg, from $970 to $1195.

DKF Heywood & Sons, Everton, were hit very hard by the torrential rain the fell before Christmas, and were very pleased to sell 325 Angus steers from $775 to $1125. All of these steers sold equaling over 310c/kg liveweight, and with the lightest steers weighing just 228kg, they equaled 352c/kg.

However due to strong demand from Tasmania for lighter weight steers, some sales were noted equaling over 360c/kg.

Purchasing under the name of JBS Tasmania, steers and heifers were purchased in three or four different ways.

Much of their buying power was seen in the heifer sale, and competing against Alexandra Downs, Scone, these two buyers put a good floor in the heifer sale.

Processor competition, either for grain feeding or slaughter, purchased the heaviest heifers, some of which were yearlings.

The top price for these heifers was $1045, and many of the heifers purchased for grain feeding sold between $800 and $950.

This solid competition saw most heifers equal 270 to 285c/kg liveweight, making all vendors very happy.

Noted throughout the sale of better weighted heifers, was producer competition for future breeding heifers.

This saw a few pens of heifers sell over 300c/kg liveweight.

Equally strong demand for lighter weight heifers, put some liveweight prices over 300c/kg too. DKF Heywood sold 175 Angus heifers from $700 to $810 with the lightest 59 head equaling 309c/kg liveweight. Very few heifers sold under $700 per head.