Millah Murrah Breaks Record Av
By Struan Pearce (courtesy The Land, Thursday, September 11, 2014, page 62)
Buyers with a renewed confidence in the season and beef industry were active at the annual Millah Murrah Angus bull sale last Thursday, resulting in a 100 per cent clearance of 95 bulls selling to a high of $70,000.
The Thompson family’s draft of bulls met overwhelming demand from a huge crowd of stud and commercial buyers, setting a new national Angus breed record sale average of $9147, surpassing the previous record of $8850 for 80 bulls set by Millah Murrah in 2011.
The pre-sale hype was about lot 21, Millah Murrah Hercules H250.
At 23 months, it was the heaviest bull in the draft at 1082 kilograms, was by Millah Murrah Neutron E78 and out of Millah Murrah Flower E120 – the full sister to the number one ranked feed efficiency bull in the first cohort of the Angus Sire Benchmarking Program, Millah Murrah Equity E123.
When bidding reached $70,000, Hercules H250 was knocked down to Ed Bateman of Gilmandyke Angus Orange.
Mr Bateman said the Millah Murrah catalogue was the “best line up of bulls I have seen at a sale”, and he (MM Hercules H250) was the “best of the best”.
“The feed conversion potential is of use to us, as it means our clients will make more money, which is what it is all about,” he said.
Gilmandyke Angus will use their new sire over daughters of Millah Murrah Equator D78 and he will follow on from KO Godfather – purchased for $110,000 in 2012, as the main stud sire used in the herd.
Gary and Julie Buller of Monterey Angus, Karridale, Western Australia, became the first WA Angus stud to purchase Millah Murrah genetics when they bought lot 8, Millah Murrah Equity J48, a Millah Murrah Equity E123 son, for $7000.
The Buller’s have been following the Millah Murrah program for many years, in particular the female herd, and jumped at the opportunity to purchase bulls from some of Millah Murrah’s “leading cow families that breed bulls with great phenotype”.
The Buller’s purchased three bulls at the sale including the second-highest priced bull Millah Murrah Docklands J193 for $17,000.
The 690 kilogram yearling sire Docklands J193, by Carabar Docklands D62 and out of Millah Murrah Brenda F123, was described as a “special bull with no holes in his structure complimented by sensational figures”.
These included a low estimated breeding value (EBV) birthweight of +2.3kg, 400- and 600-day growth figures of +83kg and +112kg respectively, an eye muscle area (EMA) of +4.5 square centimetres, and positive rib of +1.3 millimetres and rump of +1.9mm.
The Woodruff family, Witherswood Angus, Glenrowan, Victoria, has been using Millah Murrah genetics for more than a decade, having initially purchased Millah Murrah Woody W100 back in 2003.
John and Joan Woodruff, along with stud manager Ian Peake, purchased two bulls at the sale, Millah Murrah Conversion J137 at $10,000 and yearling sire Millah Murrah Jock J197 for $14,000.
Jock J197 was by Millah Murrah Doc F159, whose 10 sons topped the sire averages for the sale at $11,200 and was described by John Woodruff as an “outstanding yearling bull with thickness, depth and real stud sire presence”.
While studs operated throughout the sale so too did commercial buyers, including Matt Crozier, Cavan Station, Yass.
The sales’s volume buyer, Cavan Station has been buying at Millah Murrah Angus for the past four years.
Mr Crozier purchased 10 bulls at the sale paying to a top of $9000 and averaging $7000.
Having purchased five bulls last year Cavan Station has since taken on more country and required more bulls to cover extra females in the breeding herd.
Mr Crozier said he liked Millah Murrah bulls because they were “consistent, nice even cattle and early maturing types, with balanced figures that can handle a Yass winter”.
The sale saw 118 registrations from across Australia with 60 buyers taking bulls as far as Western Australia, Rockhampton and King Island.
Auctioneer Paul Dooley said “it was a record-breaking sale thanks to return clientele because the cattle clearly performed at the top end of the breed”.
“The yearling bulls averaged more then 620kg on pasture, while the 18 months bulls averaged 760kg, you can’t beat that sort of performance,” he said.
“He’s (Hercules) been used over heifers and they had no problems – he’s a big, free moving bull that delivers.”
Clearly moved by the result of the sale, principal Ross Thompson said the result was “beyond belief”.
“Three to four days ago I thought we would struggle to sell them all”.
“The sudden surge of positive sentiments in the beef job certainly fell in our favour”.
“(There were) 118 registrations and 60 buyers took bulls home – those are wonderful numbers and hopefully augur well for our plans to increase numbers to 120 in 2015.”
Big Pay Day Comes for Beef Cattle Genetics
By Jamie-Lee Oldfield (courtesy The Land, Thursday, September 11, 2014, page 6)
Confidence hasn’t waned for beef cattle genetics across NSW in the past week, with stud stock producers continuing to record impressive results.
Leading the way was Angus powerhouse Millah Murrah, Bathurst, whose sale last Thursday broke the Australian Angus on-property bull sale average and also topped at $70,000.
Millah Murrah principals Ross, Dimity and Jane Thompson sold all 95 bulls offered to average $9147, with no lots selling for below $5000.
Topping that sale was Millah Murrah Hercules H250, a 1082-kilogram sire sold to Gilmandyke Angus, Orange, for $70,000 – the highest price a bull has sold in Australia this year.
Down the road at Karoo Angus, Meadow Flat, principal Annie Scott achieved this spring’s second highest Angus on-property sale average nationally of $7288.
Selling a total clearance of 52 bulls the Karoo sale held last Friday topped at $30,000 for Karoo Regent H135 to commercial buyers the Evans Family, “Netheraby”, Walgett.
The Carlow family’s Kidman studs, Dubbo, also fared well last week, selling 43 of 45 Poll Hereford bulls to a top price of $30,000 and averaging $6210, while their Angus offering topped at $11,000 for all 29 sold and an average of $5931.
Landmark NSW stud stock specialist John Settree, Dubbo, said sales had lifted as the season progressed for several reasons.
“A good general rain early on and the cattle market improving eight to 20 cents a kilogram across the board has had a big impact,” he said.
“You can also cash in your old bull at the moment and get about $2000 a head, so it isn’t a lot of money to have to add on to buy a replacement sire.”
“And obviously as we’ve moved a bit further south it has helped, with the season from Dubbo south being better than the north.”
