Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) has launched two new livestock market indicators in a bid to improve livestock market transparency.
They unveiled the National Feeder Heifer Indicator (NFHI) and the Online Sheep Indicator (OSI) to try and promote informed decision-making for producers and consumers.
These indicators are the latest addition to MLA’s National Livestock Reporting System (NLRS), a system that already has 18 indicators.
They are designed to give producers, processors, and stakeholders more targeted, real-time insights into the two critical market segments.
According to MLA managing director Michael Crowley, “These indicators are a direct response to industry demand for more granular and accessible market data.”
NFHI
Crowley said: “The NFHI is the first of its kind, offering a dedicated lens into the feeder heifer market, an area previously underrepresented in national reporting.”
The NFHI provides detailed data on heifers including price trends, head counts, and breakdowns by saleyard, region, and category, using the same structure used for the feeder steer indicator.
Crowley added: “The NFHI will be an important decision-making tool for both producers and buyers as – in combination with the existing National Feeder Steer Indicator (NFSI) – they now have a complete picture of the entire feeder market.”
OSI
OSI uses online sales data for its indicator, the first time MLA have done this. The system is designed for restocker and breeder sheep, and works by tracking price and head count trends over 12-month periods.
Crowley said; “The indicator will be useful for tracking value and price during cycles of flock rebuilding,”
“With poor conditions currently impacting producers in South Australia and Victoria, it will be especially valuable as producers move into a rebuild once conditions break.”
These indicators are designed to respond to the recommendations from the 2017 Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) report on improving competition in the cattle and beef industry.
MLA have said they have invested significantly in developing these tools, using over two decades of data.
Crowley said; “The more information we can capture, the better the price transparency across all livestock markets.”
“We continue to encourage participation from all livestock sale platforms to strengthen the value of these indicators.”
MLA continues to works in partnership with the red meat industry and government to deliver marketing, research and development products and services to the beef cattle, sheep, and goat sectors.
