Lot 9, Whangara 330, sold for $92,000. Photo / Supplied
The new owners of Gisborne's Whangara Angus sold a 22-month-old bull for $92,000 and donated $7500 to the local school from the proceeds of their latest auction.
The bull, Whangara 330, was just $500 shy of the top price paid this season.
Tom Sanson co-owns the stud with Gisborne-based veterinarian Andrew Cribb, after taking over 16 months ago.
Sanson said the pair were "blown away" by the auction.
"We are thrilled and humbled by the result."
The bull was high-functioning with excellent performance data and great structure, Sanson said.
"[He] will perform very well for the new owners."
The bull was bought by Blair and Paige Crawshaw of Tawa Hills Angus, breeders from Motu, also on the East Coast of the North Island.
Sanson said in 2021 the bulls sold for around $7500 on average, and the top price paid was $11,500.
He said the result was a vote of confidence in the herd's quality, after decades of focused genetic selection, and an excellent reward for the team's recent efforts.
"The stud is 1100-hectares on hill country. And when I say hill country, I mean hill country," he said.
"That's great for ensuring our commercial bulls can take whatever's thrown at them and produce better beef, but a lot of work needs to go into ensuring we're looking after the land."
Since March last year when they took over, the team had been busy fencing, working on their stock policy and ensuring their practices supported continuous improvement.
They'd also been busy getting to know the local community.
"We both have families, and as well as being good stewards of the land, we wanted to show our support for Whangara," Sanson said.
So, the pair and their wives donated $7500 to Whangara Primary - a rural school with 84 children - following the sale of one of their bulls.
This was topped up by $4000 from local realtor Tom Lane.
"We visited the local school and were really impressed," Sanson said.
"As farmers, we also know how important rural schools are and we were really happy to see the roll going up there."
He said getting the letters of thanks from the kids was a reward in itself.
"We're not too sure what the money will be used for yet, but it was great to get the letters and see some of the ideas that were being thrown around – from a chicken farm to a school dog."
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