Ongerup farmers Tim and Vicki O’Neill were surprised to learn they had won WAMMCO’s Producer of the Month title for March.
“The 665 lambs in the winning consignment were mainly from ewes we had purchased from producers at Tambellup and Nyabing and mated with our Poll Dorset rams,” Tim said.
“Our agent Mike Moore said they were good when he was selecting them, and WAMMCO buyer Brian Norsworthy complimented us on the lambs when he came to inspect them, but we sent them off at the end of March, not expecting to win the title.”
The O’Neill lambs averaged 23.52 kg and came in on WAMMCO’s daily schedule at $3.27 per kg to realise $76.95 per head. A further $3.45 for pelts took the total per head to $80.40.
Of the 665 lambs processed by WAMMCO at Katanning on March 28, 56.5 percent were in the premium, 22.1 – 22 kg fat score 2-3 category, priced on the day at $3.40 per kg.
Tim said he was particularly pleased with the yields from 594 lambs scanned at Katanning. 84, or 14 percent were included in the high yield benchmark of 54 percent and 373 lambs or 62.8 percent were in the average 49-54 percent category.
Tim and Vicki started crossbreeding their Mianelup merinos in 2000 and found the transition reasonably simple.
“We started with a small flock of ewes and I found the first WAMMCO returns of around $80 per head very acceptable,” Tim, said.
“Each year since has gone reasonably well and when we can reach the heavier weights, the lambs go to WAMMCO.”
He said the lambs in the winning consignment were shorn on November 5 and originally went onto oat stubbles before grazing lupin and barley stubbles until they were delivered to Katanning.
The mineral/vitamin supplement Stockade has been used over the past few years and Tim believes that it assists the growth of lambs on stubble.
He said the 2007 season was dry and slow to start but came to a ‘miracle’ finish.
Tim and Vicki are winding down their sheep/lamb operations, but son Greg and his wife Peta are continuing the family Merino/cropping tradition.
Wayne Radford, will retire at the end of 2022 after a 56 year career in the industry. Wayne left John Curtin High School at Fremantle to join the skins team at Wesfarmers ...
Read moreMedia Release 28/07/2022 Western Australia’s largest sheep and lamb processing cooperative will return a record $8.4 million in pool bonuses to its producer members at the end of August 2022. The 2021/22 ...
Read moreMedia Release 14/07/22 Des Griffiths, an early CEO of the WA Meat Marketing Cooperative, credited with helping WA lamb producers to reshape an influential global lamb processing and marketing cooperative, passed ...
Read moreMedia Release (20-06-2022) Recently appointed Livestock Manager for WAMMCO, Mike Curnick is looking forward to capping his 37-year career in WA’s livestock sector in the lamb and ...
Read moreA distinguished career in the meat processing and livestock industry will end with the retirement of the WA Meat Marketing Cooperative’s Livestock Manager Peter Krupa on June 30. Mr ...
Read more