In a recent meeting of the Horsham Livestock Agents Association, the decision was made to switch to a fortnightly sheep and lamb market for the winter period, or for the next six-to-eight weeks, until such time the throughput of stock increases again in the spring period and beyond.

At that point, the market will revert back to a weekly event.

The idea of the temporary measure is to consolidate numbers on a fortnightly basis, in order to put more head together on market day. 

This makes it a more attractive proposition for more buyers to attend, compete and put loads together, helping to gain efficiencies on their end as well as achieve sale results reflective of the wider market for the clients of Horsham-based agencies.

This is a measure that has rarely been taken in the past and is an additional lever that can be pulled, along with the usual change to an afternoon market in the winter months, designed to work in with the Hamilton market, which operates weekly on a Wednesday morning at this time of year.

At present, all selling centres are seeing a dramatic fall in numbers being put up for sale that speaks to the current state of sheep numbers, not only locally but Australia wide. 

With ‘arguably’ unprecedented high prices in the sector, the flip side is an equally ‘arguably’ unprecedented level of low supply, off the back of ‘arguably’ an unprecedented set of seasonal circumstances over recent years. 

This all leads to a slightly different set of challenges that need to be navigated and worked through. 

The latest Meat and Livestock Australia, MLA, six-monthly projections are set to be released this month, which will be an interesting read to see where things are at in terms of the supply cycle. 

All growers would rather it this way than the other, and to a point low supply is music to the ears of many. 

However, like any system or machine, if the RPM’s get too low, the chances of stalling start to become a risk. 

It is of high importance to do everything practicable to maintain the strength of selling centres such as Horsham during lower supply periods in order to maintain their permanency in the landscape. 

Not only is Horsham one of the best selling centres in Victoria from an infrastructure standpoint, it acts as a source of revenue and employment for the council, as well as a meeting place for the region. 

Equally, if not more importantly, the physical market acts as a level of insurance to the producer, providing an underrated avenue of sale that, when firing, will often exceed contracted rates that are on offer at the time as well as providing an option for stock that don’t neatly fit into a processor grid.

Things can change quickly, and fortunately seasonal conditions have been kind with new-season stock already starting to appear in northern markets. 

With prices strong and particularly if grass remains available, or not available for that matter, our local physical market will be back in full swing sooner rather than later.

The entire July 29, 2026 edition of The Weekly Advertiser is available online. READ IT HERE!

The entire July 29, 2026 edition of AgLife is available online. READ IT HERE!