Impressive top price marks Wormbete Simmentals' first fully-black bull sale

Strong competition for the best of the yearling bulls has underpinned the top price for Wormbete Simmentals, in what was the stud's very first sale of fully Black Simmental and SimAngus sires.

Of the 33 lots offered at Illabo on Wednesday, September 9, 22 were sold for an average of $9455 and to a top of $32,000 for the pick of the offering.

The sale high was achieved by Wormbete Wolverine W32, by Bonnydale Ulysses U220 out of Wormbete Advanced Iris T82, which sold to an undisclosed buyer.

Last year's sale had the Black Simmental offering reach an average of $8060 to a high of $14,000, while the final Traditional Simmental bulls averaged $9860 and to a top of $27,000.

The 710-kilogram, July 2025-drop, top-priced sire, described by the stud as a "deep, thick and soft with huge sire appeal", tested for estimated progeny differences (EPDs) in the top 3 percent for weaner weight, yearling weight and maternal weaning weight.

The second top-price of the day went to Wormbete Winchester W100, by Bonnydale Rock N Roll T232 out of Lancaster Poppy M295, selling to Darcey Heffernan, Heffernan Livestock, Merrinehbek, Cathkin, Vic, for $18,000.

The July 2025-drop bull was in the top 15pc for maternal weaning weight and stayability, with a total of eight traits measuring in the top 30pc or better.

Ms Heffernan said it was her third time buying from Wormbete, and always Black Simmentals for her "generally terminal" breeding operation.

"We originally started with Poll Hereford cows and we put the Black [Simmentals] over them," she said.

"And then slowly, we've been keeping the heifers out of them, so we have the baldies, and then keep putting black over them.

"It wouldn't be close to purebred, but close enough."

Pictures by Dakota Tait.

The operation runs 240 breeding cows across 1470 hectares in central Victoria, aiming to turn off yearlings at the September and October sales at Yea.

The property had been burnt out in the devastating Victorian fires earlier this year, and while now recovered, would still be cleaning up for some time.

Ms Heffernan said she had been beaten out for the top-priced bull, which she had her eyes on for his "nice and smooth, good-bodied" qualities.

She was also the largest volume buyer of the sale, taking home a total of four bulls for an average of $10,000.

The new sires would go over second, third and fourth-time calvers, while the largest would go over the more mature cows.

Ms Heffernan said most of the bulls had medium birth weights, but with the growth to follow it up.

"I like bulls that keep growing, there's no slowing down," she said.

Berembee Farming P/L, Galore, went home with two bulls, each for $6000, as did G and A Wilford, Tarcutta, both also for $6000.

Nutrien Stud Stock's Tim Woodham said the sale was very competitive for the top end of the offering, with buyers ranging from northern NSW right down to Gippsland.

He said the positivity in the southern bull selling season had come as a surprise, given the challenging season many producers were facing several months ago.

Many breeders were on the hunt for heifer bulls, he said, as they moved to rebuild their herds on the back of younger females which hadn't been destocked.

Co-principal Nicole Hopkins said she and her husband John had been breeding Simmentals for close to 55 years, though the couple only dispersed their traditional herd last year and transitioned into a fully black herd.

The bulls had had a "rugged start to life" as a poor season persisted until June this year, she said, but since the break they had benefitted from a mild winter and grazing oats.

"We've been building our Black Simmy numbers now for well over a decade, and we've put some huge selection pressure on them," she said.

"It's allowed us to have this sale as our first fully Black Simmental and SimAngus sale, with some really, really smart bulls and some really good-performing bulls that we believe are well-suited for the beef industry."

The sale was conducted by Nutrien, with auctioneer Tim Woodham, and interfaced with AuctionsPlus.