The step into the unknown by 10 Australian and New Zealand Wagyu breeders, to hold the breed's first multi-vendor sale, paid off in Roma, Queensland, on Thursday when 59 bulls were sold for an average $13,525.
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Two bulls, offered by Amberoo Wagyu at Hirstglen in the Lockyer Valley and by Kookaburra Wagyu at Chinchilla, Qld, brought the equal top price of $30,000 at what was titled a national Wagyu bull sale.
Sale organiser Harvey Weyman-Jones said Roma was chosen as the venue due to the number of existing buyers in southern and central parts of Queensland.
"The 10 vendors have all been good clients and when I approached them, I couldn't give them any guarantees but they all supported the idea, and their risk paid off," he said.
"We'd like to grow this sale to 200 head, and perhaps incorporate a dinner and dance the night before."
All up, 74 bulls were offered at the inaugural sale, resulting in an 80 per cent clearance rate under the hammer.
The sale was the first open market sale for Tony and Rachael Pascoe of Kookaburra Wagyu, who have sold via private treaty until now, and receiving the sale's equal top price was a happy surprise.
"We were a bit nervous because of the downturn in the market so we're very happy," he said.
Also happy was the purchaser, Michael Katz of Koolang Wagyu Australia, based at Clear Hills near Canberra, the only stud breeder buying at the sale.
The long-established Wagyu breeder said the 13-month-old fullblood bull, Kookaburra T225, suited his operation down to the ground.
"A bull's marble score is the critical number for us, and this bull's score of 2.8 was particularly good, considering the breed average is around 1.5," he said.
"His other scores were very good too.
"We needed a new bull for genetic diversity, and he'll be a back-up to our AI program."
Kookaburra T225 was sired by MaxFQ15 Miku Maestro Q15, and according to Dave Fuller of Kinto Wagyu, who worked with the Pascoes to produce the sale line of 10 bulls, his genetics go back to the Sumo Pastoral Co.
Dulacca-based commercial cattleman Gary Johnson was equally as impressed with the marbling score of Amberoo Turbulence, an embryo son of Arubial United and Mayura P0084, the sire being in the top 1pc for marble score and marble fineness EBVs for the breed, outlaying $30,000.
Mr Johnson has been using Wagyu bulls over Angus cows to produce F1 offspring for feedlots and he said marbling scores were mainly what he looked for when making bull purchases.
"This is the first time I've bought from Amberoo," he said. "I'll be putting him with heifers this year."
Mr Johnson bought a second Amberooo bull, the son of Mayura Prodigy P0916, for $12,000.
Amberoo Wagyu principal Peter McCullagh said the $30,000 sale price was a bit less than he'd been receiving but it was understandable in the current market and he was happy to support Mr Weyman-Jones' concept for the sale.
The sale's second top price of $20,000 was reached three times, twice for Hamilton Park Wagyu bulls based in the South Burnett, and once for a bull from Irongate Wagyu from Albany, WA.
The first three bulls in the sale were passed in, for $25,000, $10,000 and $12,000, but Mr Weyman-Jones said after that sticky start, the sale found a good level of support, with strong online interest contesting lots with those bidding around the sale ring.
Buyers from NSW were from Tenterfield, Armidale and Uralla, along with buyers in Queensland and Victoria.
A number of lots were fought out by buyers online and Elite Livestock Auctions said 89pc of the sale had online bids.
There were 150 viewers watching the sale online, 68 registered bidders, and 26 lots purchased by online buyers.
G & K Heelan from Clermont, Qld, one of those buying online, were the sale's main volume buyer, successfully bidding for 11 bulls for an average $9636.
Brian Philp's C1C Grazing Trust, based at Tambo and Collinsville, Qld, outlaid an average $14,600 for five bulls that will all be going up north.
Three bulls received no bid in the sale ring.
Vendor summary
Geneflow Wagyu, Deniliquin, NSW - $14,000 top, $10,571 av, 7/8 bulls sold
Amberoo Wagyu, Hirstglen, Qld - $30,000 top, $15,500 av, 8/8 bulls sold
Rocala Wagyu, northern New England Tablelands, NSW - $12,000 top, $10,000 av, 4/9 bulls sold
Kookaburra Wagyu, Chinchilla, Qld - $30,000 top, $14,800 av, 10/10 bulls sold
Hamilton Park Wagyu, South Burnett, Qld - $20,000 top, $14,058 av, 17/20 bulls sold
Carnana Wagyu, Upper Clarence, NSW - $14,000 top, $11,666 av, 6/6 bulls sold
Jemalong Wagyu, Harrisville, Qld - $16,000 top, $13,750 av, 4/4 bulls sold
Irongate Wagyu, Albany, WA - $20,000 top, $19,000 av, 2/6 bulls sold
Lendarlou Wagyu, Dalby, Qld - $10, 000 top, $10,000 av, 1/1 bull sold
Miku Wagyu, NZ - 0/2 bulls sold (both passed in)
- Selling agents - GDL, Weyman Jones & Co, simulcast by Elite Livestock Auctions
Sally Gall
Based at Blackall, CW Qld, where I've raised a family, run Merino sheep and beef cattle, and helped develop a region - its history, tourism, education and communications. Get in touch at 0427 575 955 if you've got a story idea for me.
Based at Blackall, CW Qld, where I've raised a family, run Merino sheep and beef cattle, and helped develop a region - its history, tourism, education and communications. Get in touch at 0427 575 955 if you've got a story idea for me.
