Rainfall sets up region for spring

Photo / iStock

The main event in June was rain. However, while the 30mm to 40mm that fell around Hawke's Bay was too late to do any good for pasture growth this season, it will help set Hawke's Bay up for the spring.

It was not so much that it killed early lambs or pugged what pasture there is. Some dry coastal areas had received up to 80mm-90mm.

Mild weather and frequent light rain early in the month also helped with stock condition.

PGG Wrightson livestock agent and auctioneer Neil Common said early lamb survival rates have been good but keeping their mothers fed could be a problem.

At the Stortford Lodge saleyards last month store stock prices continued to rise.

Lambs were in particular demand from grazers looking to fill contracts. Last September's heavy rain killed many new lambs in the back country, contributing to a shortage of supply.

Mr Common said Hawke's Bay finishers were carrying a lot less stock than usual because of a lack of grass. However, the markets were supported by buyers from Waikato and Manawatu which had had plenty of rain and grass.

There was a steady supply of one-year scanned-in-lamb ewes coming from farmers who did not want the struggle of getting older stock through winter with little grass.

Good ewes made up to $130. Lesser types made little better than prime money.

The first of the season's ewes with lambs at foot appeared later in the month and sold for a healthy $80.40 all counted.

Both the ewes and the dorset-cross lambs were of top quality.

The demand for R2 bulls was the feature of the store cattle market for the month.

Again, shortage of cattle generally after the big cow kill of 2013 was the reason. Also after some years of poor returns some calf rearers had given up.

Mr Common said the dairy downturn and subsequent fall in demand for dairy grazing meant farmers had room for more bulls.

"Next year there are likely to be more calves reared. They are much better value as four-day-old calves than as $30 bobbies," Mr Common said.

In-calf cows have also been in good demand with all but the lightest of them being priced beyond the reach of the meat companies.

Angus cows in-calf to an angus made the best prices.

Mr Common said there was an all-round firming of store stock prices later in the month which was about a month earlier than usual which he put down to the outside buyers seeking mouths to eat their grass.

In the prime markets ewe prices were steady but not spectacular as good numbers of scanned-empty ewes came forward.

It was noticeable that there were few heavy ewes in the later sales as they had gone earlier in the season.

Prime cattle prices also remained steady on smaller than usual yardings.

Ewe scanning has been in full swing and despite the prevalence of facial eczema Mr Common said he had not heard of any disasters.

Ewes with a later ram date were back by about 10 per cent which could be put down to falling feed levels and the effects of eczema.

June is also the month for sire bull sales in the North Island. Mr Common said the results this year were down on last year with lower average prices and clearances.

However, further up the East Coast the results were different with better prices and clearances than last year.

Mr Common said it was too early to tell if the British vote to leave the EU would affect New Zealand's export markets.

"It is an established mature market for us and drives the Christmas chill trade. Now we are staring into the unknown."

One immediate effect of the vote has been a fall in the value of the pound, which makes imports such as New Zealand lamb dearer.

Otherwise Hawke's Bay farmers are hoping for a mild, damp, spring.

"It's been a tough year for farming sheep."