At the seventh annual on-property sale of Curracabark Herefords & Angus, Gloucester, Guy and Suz Lord of Branga Plains Pastoral Company, Walcha, paid $30,000 for Curracabark Northern Lights N003 (AI) (ET).

The 18-month-old, homozygous polled Hereford stud bull, sired by Allendale Anzac E114, hit a new high for Curracabark.

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Mr Lord said the purchase was in keeping with the long-term goals of the company, in his wife’s family since 1929.

“We breed cattle year in, year out. In dry times we’ve still got to maintain good genetics – seasons come and go, but good genetics last forever.”

“We breed all our own bulls; it’s a self-replacing herd.

“We try and supply the high-quality meat markets, including a 52-week-a-year alliance with the Stapleton family of butchers in Sydney.”

Mr Lord said that with 5000 head of cattle, they’d been feeding stock every day for months and he “would be lying if I said I wasn’t concerned about the future”.

“I’ve been in the industry all my life and this is the worst drought I’ve seen since ’65, since it’s so widespread,” he said.

“We’d love to think it’s going to break soon.”

However, he said, they’d bought a lot of feed early and had a “few strategies in place” besides – and they had another key element.

“We have three employees and, in times when it’s tough, good people really stand up,” he said.

“We’ve got a great team around us and that makes a difficult situation a bit better …

“We’re lucky in that regard.

“In all the bad you've got to look for the positives.”

Back at Curracabark, a further four embryo flush full brothers to Northern Lights N003 were also well received at the sale, including C. Mathew M101 (AI) (ET) for $14,000 to the Nivison family’s Yalgoo Polled Hereford Stud at Walcha, and C. Nevada N002 (AI) (ET) for $12,000 to Landmark Townsend, Scone A/c Ellerston Station.

Of the 23 Hereford bulls offered, 21 sold at auction and two more immediately after, and they sold to the top of $30,000 for an average of $7520, a similar average to last year.