Weaner season comes to end
The Tjijahura brothers farming in the Omaheke Region sold the biggest number of weaners at the recent Otjiwarongo auction.
Agra said the weaner auctions and the weaner competition have almost come to an end and Agra livestock looks back at this season with satisfaction.
With the late winter grazing conditions and a looming drought, a very high number of animals was marketed at both weaner auctions and commercial auctions. The auctions reached a peak volume with a total of 7300 animals sold in the first week of August. Auctions that stood out was the Mariental auction that sold 1397 cattle, a record number for this auction point. The Otjiwarongo weaner auction sold the most weaners for the season with a total of 2454 cattle followed by Grootfontein, where 2019 weaners were sold. Auction points in the south sell increasing numbers of large stock and at the weaner auction in Keetmanshoop on 18 August, 798 cattle were sold while Samehaling sold 611 cattle at their auction on 13 August.
A great number of weaner calves were entered for the weaner calf competition that was hosted at all the weaner auctions and where producers had to enter lots of 15 calves to participate. Calves were judged according to a set of criteria in the categories feedlot potential, veld potential and heifers.
In the weaner competition at the fifteen weaner auctions that have been hosted, twelve winners were awarded first place in the feedlot potential category, 14 winners in the veld category and 14 in the heifer category. With one weaner auction left, at Helmeringhausen on 9 September, all the winners will be in the run for the awards of regional champions and a national champion who will be announced and awarded at a function on 10 October.
The weaner competition is made possible by the main sponsors, Feedmaster, FNB, Sanlam and Santam with co-sponsors Nictus, MSD, Amalgamated Motor Holdings, Marsh, Bayer, Virbac, Indongo Toyota and Henco Engineering.
