Round-up of the 10th Annual Bandeeka On-Property Sale

Once again we headed down to Bandeeka for their 10th Annual On-Property Sale and were pleased with the results. There were eight Tronar-bred bulls in the sale. Six of the bulls were sold at auction.

It was an interesting auction as they used the Helmsman auction system; it’s the first time Bandeeka has used this system and it’s the first time we’ve seen this auction system in action. It’s kind of like a silent auction. It’s certainly less stressful than a usual auction. You can take your time to think about how much you’re willing to pay for a bull.  First, buyers look at the bulls out in the pens. There is a board listing all the bulls and their reserve prices. The buyers have a bidding card and they write down their offer on the bidding card. When a bid is placed for a bull it is written up on the board. Buyers can then put in higher bids. Once bids stop coming in they announce there is a minute left to put in bids. If the bull you want goes for a price above your limit, unlike the ordinary auction system where you might have missed your chance, you can still bid on all the other bulls.

There were about five buyers looking for red angus bulls. Our yearling bulls were a surprise—they all sold and there was a lot of bidding action for them. The buyers were strongly influenced by EBVs choosing bulls with low birth weight and high intramuscular fat. One progressive buyer was also looking for above average figures for the Northern Steer Index.

We’re looking forward to the 11th Annual On-Property Sale.