Herd dispersal: 700 Absolute Angus breeders to go under the hammer at Roma
Australian graziers will be given access to some of the country's best-known Angus genetics next week amid the forced herd dispersal of cattle stud Absolute Angus.
The sale will include about 700 female cattle, ranging from yearling heifers through to mixed-age stud cows, with a portion of those cattle being sold with calves at foot.
The cattle, on agistment at Ingaby, Qld, were mustered in late August after the owner of Victorian stud Absolute Angus, Trafaglar South, allegedly failed to meet requests by creditors to pay a series of unpaid bills.
A solicitor acting on behalf of the stud's principal, Anthony Pisa, Cronin Miller senior associate Jonathon Sole, said Mr Pisa was "in dispute with his financier regarding the debts allegedly owing and will be providing no further comment at this stage".
The unpaid debts relate to money owing on livestock finance, agistment costs, transport and fodder.
One of the livestock agents overseeing the dispersal, Grant Daniel & Long senior livestock agent Anthony Hyland, Roma, Qld, said the sale would include 700 cows, of which 300 have calves at foot. A portion of these cows have also been rejoined.
The sale will take place at Roma on Tuesday, September 9.
"Sires with Te Mania, Landfall, Murdeduke, Milwillah and Ardrossan bloodlines have been extensively used in the Absolute Angus herd over the last several years," Mr Hyland said.
"It's a great opportunity for someone to step into these cows and take them on and better their breeding."
On Tuesday, September 2, 105 Absolute Angus heifers were sold at Roma, averaging 508 cents a kilogram or $975 a head, while 143 male Angus calves averaged 564kc/kg or $1210.
The cattle were aged six to nine months and grossed $295,830.
The sale of the breeding females next week will include cows born from 2018 through to heifers born in 2025.
Late last month, 98 Absolute Angus cows and 18 calves were sold at Tamworth, NSW, as part of the dispersal, while 232 pregnancy-tested cows, yearling heifers and weaner cattle went under the hammer at Dubbo, NSW.
Rain delays aerial muster in Queensland
Agents tasked with the job of mustering the Absolute Angus cattle on agistment at Ingaby said rain delayed the operation, grounding helicopters and agents on foot for several days.
The cattle were being agisted on a 9700-hectare property north-west of St George, Qld.
"We did the right thing by the cattle and pulled up, and progressed once it dried out," Mr Hyland said.
"Once mustered, we had all the cows and calves, and the weaners trucked to Roma within 48 hours, where they have been spelled.
"The cows will present from good, strong store condition through to fresh-forward condition."
Mr Hyland said it was unclear what bulls had been joined to the breeding females before mustering.
ACM Agri confirmed in August livestock finance company Agrifunder was on site to handle the collection of cattle at Ingaby, however, Agrifunder declined to comment on the matter.
"When we mustered, we pulled 30 bulls out of this offering of cows," he said.
"Bulls, including Rimfire and NewGround, were not in the paddock when we mustered these cattle, but we know those bulls have been used extensively in the herd over the years."
"There was a sufficient amount of bulls with these females at mustering, so if something was to be preg-tested empty, there is a very strong chance it could be presenting in-calf within the next month."
Mr Hyland said more information about the cattle would be released online in the lead up to the September 9 sale.
In 2019, Absolute Angus made headlines when it purchased Landfall New Ground N90 in a syndicate with ABS Global Australia for $75,000.
In 2021, Absolute Angus bought the second-top-priced bull at NSW stud Milwillah Angus' sale at Young for $80,000.
