December Title to Newdegate Lambs
A poor growing season did not prevent Newdegate farmer Geoff Galloway averaging 25.66 kg for a line of 415 Poll Dorset/Merino cross lambs processed at WAMMCO Katanning on December 5, to win the cooperative’s Producer of the Month title for December.
His consignment of lambs from “Golden Ridge” Newdegate, realised $3.17 per kg under a WAMMCO heavyweight supply contract to return an average of $82.69 per head including $1.30 for the skin.
Geoff said he had worked with Merino sheep all his life and decided to try crossbreeding to produce prime lambs about 15 years ago.
He began with Poll Dorsets and is now happy with rams from the Howe stud at nearby Lake Grace he has been using for the past few years.
He also regularly buys whiteface crossbred stores when they are available at Katanning for fattening on his “secret ration.”
“I aim to buy in good stores in January, shear any woollies, and if I think I can get them up to the required weights I usually arrange a heavyweight contract through Fiona at WAMMCO, Katanning for delivery in March.”
A further consignment of about 300 lambs is due for delivery to Katanning in March.
Geoff previously sold paddock reared lambs through the Katanning saleyards before moving over to WAMMCO’s weight and grade supply system several years ago. He has already accumulated shares in the cooperative and sees them as a bonus for his lamb enterprise.
He crops about 1,000 hectares of barley and lupins on the Newdegate property, finding the stubbles and grain for self feeders an essential component of his prime lamb enterprise.
397 of the lambs in the winning consignment achieved a contract price of $3.20 per kg over the scales with some of the lambs at the top end of the weight scale returning just under $100 per head.
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