WA Lamb Set To Ride Out Global Uncertainty
WAMMCO is anticipating that 2009 could see a long-awaited turning point in WA’s declining sheep flock, on the prospects of a good year ahead for WA lamb producers.
WAMMCO CEO Des Griffiths said after recent meetings with the Co-operative’s export partners, that whereas uncertainty clouded the market prospects for lamb in North America, prices were holding well, and returns to local lamb producers were reflecting the low $A and pending supply shortages.
“We have not changed our view that 2009 will be a good year for producers and difficult for almost everyone else,” Des said.
“However the level of uncertainty in global markets is unprecedented as WAMMCO and its customers try to anticipate violent swings in currency, and a global economy running in all directions.”
Des said WAMMCO had successfully built domestic lamb sales over the past 12 months to represent about 15 percent of its lamb market – partially to counter exchange rates of more than 95 cents in the dollar.
“That rate is currently around 65cents and exports are now more lucrative, but in the current global economic climate, it makes sense to also maximise our domestic market share.”
He said maintaining the throughput of quality lamb in the year ahead would be the most critical test for WAMMCO.
“We hope to maintain current throughput at Katanning, but the prices to producers are already moving higher and we will be announcing new supply contracts in December in an effort to attract volume.
“Keeping a viable workforce at Katanning will be more critical than ever to seeing WAMMCO survive the worst global crisis for decades,” Des said.
INDUSTRY ACCOLADES FOR DAWSON BRADFORD
For a farmer who started farming almost from scratch to build one of WA’s most successful farm enterprises, Dawson Bradford is still contributing to some of the most ...
Read moreASBV SYSTEM LIFTS APPROVAL FOR DUAL PURPOSE MERINOS
Impressive gains in sheepbreeding to enhance the unique dual purpose capacity of the Merino breed, have been applauded by WAMMCO’s Producer of the Month for June 2021, Darrel Hudson ...
Read moreWAMMCO WIN FOLLOWS BAD SEASON TRIFECTA
Irish agricultural exchange student Francis McKee has attributed his success as winner of WAMMCO’s Producer of the Month title for June 2021, to his ongoing information exchange with the ...
Read moreWhites become “Ultra” Lambs
A move to replace slower finishing lamb production with some of the State’s first UltraWhite genetics has enabled Kulin’s Smoker family and some of their neighbours ...
Read moreBORDER CHANGES AT FRANKLAND
The Higgins family of ‘Bangalup’ Frankland River, have had a long association with the Border Leicester sheep breed. But four years ago Brad and his father Robin purchased ...
Read more
