INDEPENDENT Victorian stock agency, Alex Scott & Staff, will launch a new monthly store sale at the Yea saleyards this month.
The decision comes after national agencies Elders and Nutrien, which already hold a monthly store sale at the council-owned Yea yards, refused to admit Alex Scott & Staff to operate at the existing fixture.
Yea has become a more important selling option in southern Victoria, following the permanent closure of the Pakenham yards, located 120 kilometres further south. Alex Scott & Staff operated for years out of the Pakenham facility.
Alex Scott & Staff’s Warragul branch livestock manager, Neil Darby, said since the closure of Pakenham, Leongatha had become congested.
“We have clientele over in the Yarra Valley, and its just too great a distance to take the cattle to Leongatha,” he said.
“We’ve been talking to both Elders and Nutrien since November, when Victorian Livestock Exchange (VLE) announced it was closing Pakenham, about becoming involved in their monthly sale, and possible building that into a fortnightly sale,” Mr Darby said.
“They didn’t want a bar of it, electing to continue to their monthly sale on their own.”
Mr Darby said Elders and Nutrien would accept Alex Scott & Staff client cattle on consignment for sale at Yea, charging a rebate.
“But that’s not what we wanted – we want to get up and sell our own cattle,” he said.
“As a result, we’ve pulled the trigger on this new sale.”
Elders and Nutrien’s monthly Yea sales are held on the first Friday each month. The first new Alex Scott & Staff sale will be held on Friday, September 13, with monthly sales booked for the second Fridays each month thereafter.
Mr Darby said vendor bookings were already in place for the new fixture, and further bookings were invited. Other private agents are welcome to inquire about joining the new sale.
“July and August are always quiet months for selling store cattle in this region, but we are ready to go next month,” he said.
The former VLE Warragul Saleyard that closed in 2021 pushed local cattle to Pakenham, and as of June this year, Pakenham itself had closed. That forced cattle vendors to either Leongatha or Yea.
“A lot of our clients in the West Gippsland didn’t want to go all the way to Leongatha, looking for another option with their weaner cattle. We think a fair percentage of them will now direct their cattle to Yea to sell, partly motivated by the way the VLE has treated people,” Mr Darby said.
“Our clients through the Yarra Valley clearly want to go to Yea, and we have clients in West Gippsland who would much prefer to send their cattle to Yea than going to the VLE yards at Leongatha.”
– Beef Central
