The Country
  • The Country home
  • Latest news
  • Audio & podcasts
  • Opinion
  • Dairy farming
  • Sheep & beef farming
  • Rural business
  • Rural technology
  • Rural life
  • Listen on iHeart radio

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • Coast & Country News
  • Opinion
  • Dairy farming
  • Sheep & beef farming
  • Horticulture
  • Animal health
  • Rural business
  • Rural technology
  • Rural life

Media

  • Podcasts
  • Video

Weather

  • Kaitaia
  • Whāngarei
  • Dargaville
  • Auckland
  • Thames
  • Tauranga
  • Hamilton
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Tokoroa
  • Te Kuiti
  • Taumurunui
  • Taupō
  • Gisborne
  • New Plymouth
  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Dannevirke
  • Whanganui
  • Palmerston North
  • Levin
  • Paraparaumu
  • Masterton
  • Wellington
  • Motueka
  • Nelson
  • Blenheim
  • Westport
  • Reefton
  • Kaikōura
  • Greymouth
  • Hokitika
  • Christchurch
  • Ashburton
  • Timaru
  • Wānaka
  • Oamaru
  • Queenstown
  • Dunedin
  • Gore
  • Invercargill

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / The Country / Listen

Livestock report: Spring has sprung for the market

The Country
8 Sep, 2022 12:00 AM2 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Photo / Lucy Davidson

Photo / Lucy Davidson

Content brought to you by PGG Wrightson

Rowena Duncum from The Country touched base with Steve Wilkinson, the Lower North Island Regional Manager for PGG Wrightson Livestock, based in Wairarapa.

With spring finally here, Duncum asked if there had been any change in livestock pricing coming through.

Wilkinson said yes, the covers were coming off, the weather was improving, days were getting longer and it was all leading to really strong pricing - particularly on the cattle side of things.

While there weren't a lot of sheep left to handle, there were excellent returns for wintering cattle, with two-year steers "the real flavour of the month," he said.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Heavy cattle were making up to $3.50 - $3.60 per kilo, with light-weight cattle up to $3.70 - $3.80, Allen said.

Some really good lines were even getting close to $4, he said.

Duncum asked whether yearling bull sales had started yet.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Allen confirmed they were just starting now but, over the next month, there would be a number each week targeting heifer-mating in the beef industry, or dairy-mating type bulls.

Duncum suggested it might be a bit of a quiet time for livestock sales and asked if some of the old season's lambs were still coming through.

Allen said yes but it was very much "the last of the last" with pretty small yardings.

They were meeting good demand with a lot of the tidier lambs making in excess of $5 a kilo through the sale yards, he said.

This means good returns for farmers holding on to lambs through the winter.

Duncum asked if there had been any early indication as to how new season lambs coming through in October and November were shaping up.

Wilkinson said not too much yet, as many farmers were still lambing now.

He said fingers were crossed for continuing good weather for good survival rates.

Listen below:

On a final note, Duncum asked whether there was a sense of farmers being buoyed by current higher returns.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Wilkinson said this was the case and that everyone knew what on-farm costs had done, so returns needed to be good.

It had been a long, wet winter and farmers would be looking forward to some warmer weather, he said

"[There's] a bit of sun on everyone's back now and the mud's drying out.

"The grass is starting to grow and that's lifting the mood of everybody."

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Listen

Rural Property

Dairy farm values steady, future growth expected despite challenges

Listen

Farmstrong: Abbi Ayre’s Shed Shout a hit with Reefton farmers

The Country

Chris Hipkins ponders a grand coalition on The Country


Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Listen

Dairy farm values steady, future growth expected despite challenges
Rural Property

Dairy farm values steady, future growth expected despite challenges

Sponsored content: GM of PGG Wrightson Real Estate's monthly look at the rural market.

17 Jul 03:33 AM
Farmstrong: Abbi Ayre’s Shed Shout a hit with Reefton farmers
Listen

Farmstrong: Abbi Ayre’s Shed Shout a hit with Reefton farmers

17 Jul 01:53 AM
Chris Hipkins ponders a grand coalition on The Country
The Country

Chris Hipkins ponders a grand coalition on The Country

17 Jul 01:45 AM


Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
Sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

06 Jul 09:47 PM
NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP