There have been 10 stud dispersals in Victoria and NSW in the last six months

In the past six months, 10 beef studs have undergone full or partial dispersal sales in Victoria and NSW.

Yarram Park Herefords, Willaura, Pinora Angus, Heyfield, Riddellvue Angus, Markwood, and Riga Angus, Mansfield, are among the studs that have dispersed all or part of their herds.

While the dispersal reasons vary, the volume of dispersals in the past six months has raised some eyebrows in the industry.

Campaspe Rocks Angus stud principals John and Robyn Knight, Axedale, recently dispersed their Angus stud and sold their property near Bendigo for $1.75 million.

Mr Knight said getting into stud breeding was harder these days than it had been in the past.

"It's very difficult to get going, and if you're a smaller stud you do struggle to get noticed," he said.

"It takes time to build your reputation, so it can be a hard industry to crack.

"But our stock was as good or better than the larger studs."

The historic Yarram Park Hereford stud, Willaura, also shut its gates to stud breeding in February this year after 75 years of breeding stud Hereford cattle.

Yarram Park stud principal Antony Baillieu said while the day was sad, it was "a relief in some respects that it's over".

The Baillieu family decided to disperse the stud for succession planning reasons.

"A stud is not a passive investment," Mr Baillieu said.

"It's something you've got to be heavily involved in and love doing."

Elders stud stock agent Michael Glasser, Albury, NSW, said he didn't see any underlying trend in the number of recent stud dispersal sales.

"I don't see anything sinister in that number," Mr Glasser said.

"The reasons for dispersing are as many and varied as the studs themselves.

"Everyone's got their own reasons for dispersing."

Mr Glasser said he didn't think there was a huge number of additional dispersals than what he normally saw.

"A lot of dispersals are around succession planning and there's not always someone to take over," he said.

He highlighted that one positive to come out of the many dispersal sales had been the clearance rates, particularly of the stud female herds, which showed the continued interest in seedstock breeding.

"I know a lot of studs that are starting up now too, so you've got them coming in and going out," he said.

Raff Angus stud, which has been primarily based on King Island, Tas since 2015, has recently taken the opportunity to expand through the dispersal of EJ Angus stud, Book Book, NSW.

EJ Angus dispersed its stud herd and sold the 300ha property at the end of last year to Raff Angus, which will now have a secondary base on the mainland in addition to its King Island-based stud.

Gateway Wagyu stud, Bakers Creek, NSW, completed its full dispersal of 1350 registered full-blood and Wagyu cattle this week.

The stud also sold both their properties, totalling 2150ha of grazing land in Gloucester, NSW, and Upper Manning, NSW.

While the Gateway stud is getting out of Wagyu, others are honing in.

Circle 8 Angus stud principal Jeremy Cooper, Marulan, NSW, said he was dispersing the Angus portion of his seedstock herd to focus on and build his full-blood Wagyu stud.

Circle 8 Angus held the first stage of its complete female stud dispersal at the end of March.

Pinora Angus stud, Heyfield, held its final dispersal sale at the start of April, with the sale of their female herd signifying the end of the stud, which was established in 1947.

"It's a hard job running an Angus stud these days and I really believe it's a job for a young person who has a bit more drive and go to promote the herd," Pinora stud co-principal John Sundermann said.

"We're not getting any younger, and we needed to ease off a bit of the pressure of running a stud."

While some studs have dispersed in their entirety, others are moving to downsize instead to manage the increased workload of stud bookkeeping.

Riga Angus stud, Mansfield,sold off its spring-calving cow herd last week, while Riddellvue Angus, Markwood, dispersed its autumn-calving cow herd in February this year as both studs move to downsize.

"I'm not getting any younger and I'm trying to make my life a bit easier," Riddellvue stud principal Ian Bates said.

"Running a stud isn't an easy job and I do it on my own.

"To do all the bookwork and put together two bull sales and two calvings a year at that scale takes its toll."

Among the other recent dispersals was Spring Run Hereford stud, Wingeel, which dispersed its full stud herd at the end of last year.

Yallambee Angus, Berrima, NSW,also dispersed the full seedstock herd of bulls and females at the end of last year.

"It is more challenging to be involved in the seedstock industry now," Mr Glasser said.

"There's a lot more involved in the record-keeping and paperwork that has to be submitted.

"But we've also got the technology to make that easier than it was years ago.

"The seedstock industry is not an easy industry to be involved in, you need to be fully dedicated to reap the benefits and it doesn't happen overnight."