The new South Eastern Livestock Exchange, Yass, has the potential to be the fourth biggest selling centre in New South Wales, according to one of its developers.
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CBRE Agribusiness director Colin Medway told the Australian Livestock Saleyards Conference, in Melbourne, there were one million cattle and 8.2 million sheep, in the catchment area.
He said the first cattle sale at the centre would take place next week, after years of planning and construction; the project was first suggested in 2008.
“This has been quite a stop-start process, we all get busy in life, and this was a sideline.”
“Overwhelmingly all the agents in the catchment said ‘just get it built, we are sick of all the talk, sick of all the carry on, just get it built’.”
The initial impetus for the exchange was local, regional saleyards which were small, council run, outdated and required serious capital injection.
He said it was expected Yass would sell 1.2 million sheep and 120,000 head of cattle a year.
“We are not a super fund, we are not investment bankers looking at disruption, we have come from within,” Mr Medway said.
“If we pull it off, it will put us back at number four in the state, behind Wagga, Dubbo and Forbes.”
He said one of the main drivers was AuctionsPlus, which he identified as a “real time-killer.”
Selling on AuctionsPlus meant the agent potentially had to go on farm three times, which was quite time consuming.
He said one of the reasons Yass was chosen was because it was at the juncture of several major transport routes.
“The livestock demographic has changed, it has moved west, and Yass is actually at the junction of seven arterial roads,” Mr Medway said.
“Most of our processing capacity is to the west of Yass, having the centre situated in that major junction, made that site quite compelling.”
The site was zoned industrial, which was another positive for the yards.
“We won’t have any land conflict issues – you were well out of town, when you started, now the town has come out to meet you and with right to farm issues, and everyone who has moved near the saleyards, wants them moved.”
The yards had also been designed to cater for future occupational health and safety issues.
“You can’t get blindsided by legislation, and find you can’t comply.”
Mr Medway said he believed saleyards had a bright future.
“They still set the hook rate and will always have a place in the supply chain,” Mr Medway said.
“If you it efficiently, it is quick and transparent, you may say it is the closest thing you can get to a free market.”
