Strong prices fetched at local calf sale

Ken Johnston
Editor

While prices were down from last year, they were strong in comparison to cattle sale prices in Winnipeg of late.

The Rainy River Cattlemen’s Association held its annual Feeder Sale last Saturday at the Stratton Sales Barn and had just over 1,200 head of cattle pass through the auction yard.

Tom Morrish, RRCA President, said that the overall feeling of the buyers and sellers was that prices were good at the local sale. Himself, a seller, said that he was please in how the prices compared to Winnipeg, even though they were down from what was fetched last year at the same sale.

Morrish attributed a lot of the strength of the sale to the fact that there is about $1.5 million in Feeder Finance Dollars in the district this year.

That is a loan coop program that is guaranteed by the government. However there is no government money in it. Basically cattle farmers get a loan to buy the calves and when they are sold next year the Feeder Finance Club gets paid first and whatever is left over the farmer pockets. “It is a good way for local guys to get started buying cattle,” said Morrish.

While buyers came from as far away as Waterloo, Ontario and Winnipeg, Manitoba, Morrish said it was the local buyers who kept the bottom from falling out at the sale. “There could have been a really big spread (in prices),“ said Morrish.

While he did not have exact figures, he noted that the top price per pound was around $1.80 and the lowest was just below $1.00 per pound.

The Feeder Sale is mostly this past spring’s calves. With good pastures in the area this summer, the bulk of the calves were of really good quality.

All of them were locally grown and a good many of them were bought by local buyers. Morrish said that he was only aware of about a dozen yearlings and about six cows that were sold at the sale.

Morrish said that fetching strong prices now was a good thing for cattle producers as there are fears out there that the bottom will fall out of the market this fall as huge quantities of cattle from drought stricken areas are dumped. Large numbers all at once could see prices fall dramatically.

Plans are almost finalized for a Breeder Sale to be held Oct. 20th at the Stratton Sales Barn. Morrish said that it is mainly breeding cows, a few bulls and some 4–H feeder calf prospects. These animals are sold to producers looking to improve the quality of their herds and for that reason there are only the very best animals for sale there.