Agricultural
18 August, 2025
Top local product and the dry south, with best lamb price ever
One of the longest-established family-owned farms in the region, achieved a record price for a lot of lambs at Dubbo saleyards last week.
By David Dixon
In agriculture, one region’s cloudy skies, can be another’s silver lining. Drought in southern Australia and prized product from one of the longest-established family-owned farms in the region, led to a sky-high price for a lot of lambs at Dubbo saleyards last week.
According to the best knowledge of the agency handling the sale, it may in fact well be a new national top-price ever!
“I’m actually the auctioneer with Christie and Hood stock and station agents,” Paul Alchin explained.
“My understanding is, that the average price for the lot of $477.20, that is, the average price for each sheep, is an Australian record price for lambs ever sold,” he added.
The 200-lamb lot, he explained, was auctioned on Monday, August 4, from one of the longest- established and most prestigious holdings in the region.
“The lambs were from Shanks Farms, located between Dubbo and Collie.
“The Shanks family have been involved in farming for decades, if not centuries, so they are one of our best-known producers,” Paul revealed. He said that while the price was an amazing record for local agriculture, it was not a total surprise to garner such a great final figure for the truckload.
“I think that when you receive a price like that, it’s a pleasant surprise, if not a shock, let me put it that way. “I’m not saying that there weren’t worthy of it - they were.”
He said that good-old supply and demand, and the vagaries of the Australian weather, had been factors in the record result.
“There’s a number of reasons, Victoria, South Australia, southern NSW, they’ve been dry for well over 12-months now.
“So, we had buyers from all those areas, as well as Dubbo, Narromine, Gilgandra, it is very competitive at the moment,” he added.
With this correspondent lamenting the passing of the time when lamb and mutton were staples of the Australian diet – due to their plentiful supply and relatively low-cost – he said not to mourn its passing, the industry was still in good health.
No fear, don’t give-up on lamb and stop buying it, it’s a wonderful product,” Paul said.
“It’s still the best meat out there, and makes a great meal, by sure,” he concluded.
