Spotlight on Speckle prices

In the past 12 months, the breed has set new record stud prices, achieved exceptional returns in the saleyards, won premier carcase competitions and performed well in consumer taste tests.

This highlights the increasing popularity of the breed and growth in demand for Speckle Park cattle that is expected to continue in 2023.

At a stud level, there were strong clearance rates recorded at all Speckle Park sales, increased average prices and two new world records set during 2022.

In April, the Battalion Speckle Park stud sold a heifer at Scone for the world record price of $100,000.

This was for Battalion Heartbreaker R16, which was bought by Dale and Stacey Jones, of Ivery Downs Speckle Park stud in Queensland.

The previous world record price of $75,000 was held by Wattle Grove P503 Cara S101, which was purchased by Ivery Downs Speckle Park only six months earlier.

With six heifers on offer out of the (now deceased) matriarch of the Battalion Speckle Park herd - Battalion Heartbreaker M1 - it was no surprise to see such strong buyer interest, according to Battalion Speckle Park co-principal Grant Kneipp.

"Heartbreaker M1 had been consistently breeding progeny that stood among our best ever, but none more so than Heartbreaker R16," he said.

Having purchased a Heartbreaker-bred bull - Battalion Upper Class - at Scone the previous year, Mr Jones said he was intent on securing a Heartbreaker heifer to add to his growing herd.

"When I saw the offering at Scone, I knew it would be a perfect opportunity for us to add further maternal strength to our program," he said.

Less than two weeks after the Scone stud sale, the bull Six Star Southern Aurora "Justice" R10 was knocked down for $100,000 to Toebelle Speckle Park at the Six Star Autumn Alliance Sale.

The previous Speckle Park bull world record price was $68,000 for Wattle Grove Paperboy, which sold to Temple Mount Farm in October 2020.

Greg Ebbeck, of Six Star Speckle Park, is a stalwart of the breed, having been involved from its beginning in Australia.

"At a very young age, I was blown away with Justice - actually, from the minute he was born I knew I had something very special," he said.

"I consider him to be the best, or equal to, any bull of any breed I have bred in my 55 years of breeding cattle.

"His IMF score was the largest we have measured on any two-year-old."

In other 2022 Speckle Park stud sale highlights, Te Mooi Speckle Park sold a bull for $36,000 to Minnamurra Speckle Park and a female for $22,000 to Danzville Speckle Park.

Premier Cattle Co sold a female at $28,000 to Lagoon Speckle Park Partners, which was a New Zealand record price.

JAD Speckle Park sold 37 bulls to an average of $22,514 and top of $55,000 to Minnamurra Speckle Park and a female for $24,000 to Te Mooi Speckle Park.

Jackungah HSE11 Codiak Pink S21 sold for $40,000 to Pemberton Speckle Park and Black Diamond Speckle Park sold a bull for $27,000 and a female for $30,000.

At the Maungahina Stud annual sale, Maungahina Rising Star R286 was sold for $65,000 to Minnamurra Speckle Park. Minnamurra Speckle Park then sold a bull for $42,000 to Black Diamond Speckle Park.

Ivery Downs Speckle Park stud set a new record price for semen from an Australian-bred Speckle Park bull with the sale of semen from Battalion Upper Class for $860/straw to Deeargee Speckle Park.

While the popularity of the breed is evident with these high prices, it is commercial demand that will dictate the fate of Speckle Park cattle in Australia.

Saleyards have been producing increasingly remarkable results for vendors.

The Naracoorte female sale in 2022 saw 24 Speckle Park heifers sell for 757 cents per kilogram, to average $2240 per head.

More recently, six-month-old Speckle Park cross weaners sold through Gracemere saleyards for 842c/kg, returning $2315.50 per head.