Charlotte Varcoe
MORE sales may come to the Mount Gambier Saleyards with the impending closure of the Millicent facility.
Wattle Range Council elected to close the Millicent Saleyards on June 30 at its recent meeting.
The move was made by councillor Dale Price with all but three elected members voting in favour of the closure.
Councillor Moira Neagle recently called a special meeting to be held on June 29 in an effort to overturn the decision despite being on a leave of absence.
The year’s rolling average of cattle was 4513 head per annum.
Incoming chairperson of the Mount Gambier agents committee Brad Holdman said the local saleyards may have more cattle come through following the closure in Millicent.
“They will make the best arrangements based on what is the best marketing option for their cattle and farmers,” Mr Holdman said.
“There has been a lot of talk about it for a long time and we are supportive of the saleyards, having ours open and that medium which creates competition in the market.”
He said the Mount Gambier/Berrin facility had “set the bar for pricing” but also allowed young stock agents to have an opportunity to sell and see the auction system which has been around for a long time.
“We have seen a lot of saleyards close in Victoria and there has been a lot of talk of more closing over there,” he said.
“It is a shame the Millicent one will close and is unfortunate for the community and farmers.”
Mr Holdman said there had been talk about the Millicent Saleyards closing for quite some time and hoped for both the truck washing facilities and a transport facility to help small farmers.
“If farmers cannot sell in Millicent we would like a transport facility there to support the smaller farmers which is what the saleyards have been doing,” he said.
“A facility where stock can be dropped off and picked up to be taken to market or the abattoir as well as the truck washing facility for animal health would be great.
“Trucks which transport stock from one farm to the other need to have the ability to wash out and to have them drive to Mount Gambier or Naracoorte to wash or set up for travels is impossible.
“We would like to see those facilities remain at the minimum and if they can continue to keep the saleyards open we would also support that.”
Mr Holdman said cattle numbers at the Mount Gambier/Berrin facilities had been lower than traditionally but was due to a mix of reasons.
“The numbers of cattle in the area has not dropped but the saleyards have and whether that is because of online auctions or people buying into paddock sales it has all had an effect,” he said.
Despite this, Mr Holdman remained confident in the future of the saleyards and looked forward to continuing to advocate for its future upgrades and improvements.
“We see a larger event of people who would like to sell their stock at auction because it is a good opportunity to show your stock after having them for a year or two and the best area for our buyers to buy them in,” he said.
“We want the most people to want to be there and we see a bright future at the Mount Gambier Saleyards.”
