Reiland Angus meets the market with confident bull clearance

It was good value buying for commercial producers at the 2024 Helmsman bull offering as Reiland Angus met the subdued seasonal market.

Hosted by the Lucas family at Killimicat Station on May 21, the sale was interfaced with AuctionsPlus and resulted in 33 bulls offered with 18 sold to a top of $7000 and average of $5111.

The top price bull was Lot 15 Reiland Thomas T923, a son of Reiland Ned N1164, sold to W, L, and E Nixon, Merriwa, NSW. The bull has BREEDPLAN figures of +137kg for 600-day weight, milk +21kg, carcase weight of +90kg, eye muscle area of +9.1sqcm, and intramuscular fat of +1.4. Thomas ranked top one per cent for docility at +45, top 4 per cent for gestation length and top 5 per cent for calving ease daughters.

Volume buyers were Connan Hill, Elders Goulburn, with three bulls to average $5000, and A and F Nichols, Gundagai, with three head to average $5000.

Reiland Angus co-principal Mark Lucas said a truckload of seven bulls was sold after the sale to a new commercial client at Surat, Queensland, along with an additional two bulls to northeast Victoria.

“Dry seasonal conditions have resulted in subdued demand for bulls as commercial producers turn off cast for age cows and I am expecting some major destocking in the eastern Riverina before winter,” Mr Lucas said.

“There has been a reassessment of economic outcomes in beef enterprises to retain their core younger breeding females.”

Bulls are now available for sale by private treaty.