Central Victorian clients snap up a selection of Vortex's 100-plus rams

Two White Suffolk rams and one Charollais ram sold for the top price of $1900 at the Vortex stud sale at Benalla on Wednesday.

The sale offered a total of 112 rams, including 53 Charollais rams and 50 White Suffolk rams.

From the total number of rams offered, 80 were sold, achieving a clearance rate of 71 per cent and an average price of $1200.

Vortex stud co-principal Daniel Hooper said most of the rams were bought by clients in central Victoria.

"It was good considering we were fairly drought-affected, but I think we're all happy with the result," he said.

"We did sell some stud sheep to Western Australia, so that was something new for us."

According to Rodwells agent Margaret Corboy, Lot 1, the top Charollais ram, was bought by a "very competitive buyer" from Bendigo.

"He was a strong buyer who bought 10 rams total," she said.

The rams were bought on behalf of John Addlem, Addlem Farms, Bendigo.

Lot 1 was shown at the Australian Sheep & Wool Show in Bendigo this year.

The other two top-priced White Suffolk rams, Lot 25 and Lot 38, were bought by Alister and Sara Sastron, Pepperton Farms, Elmore, and the Kealey family, Shepparton, respectively.

Ms Corboy said all of the rams were in good condition despite dry seasonal conditions.

"The rams presented really well, even though the vendor supplementary fed them with grain during the dry periods," she said.

"Buyers were sourcing them based on their structural soundness, correctness and length.

"Considering it was a pretty tough season at the start of the year, it was a pretty good sale."

Mr Hooper said while there were more buyers at the sale compared to last year, they bought fewer rams due to being impacted by seasonal conditions.

"People have destocked a little bit over the last couple of years, and some people have gone out of sheep completely," he said.

He said the ram market could follow the trend of the lamb market in having a price boom.

He said if the season turned in their favour with enough rainfall, ewes and rams could be in "red-hot demand".

"At some stage, the ram and ewe market is going to boom," he said.

"But we don't know when that's going to happen - it could be next year.

"People are going to scramble to get back onto sheep; there's good money in it.

"They'll increase their ewe numbers if the season allows them to.

"A lot of people are thinking this year is a good year to buy rams because they may be dearer next year."