Australia’s biggest saleyard loses $1.7m a year. Why is the council that owns it being pressured not to sell?

Australia’s biggest livestock saleyard may be put up for sale and people in the New South Wales city of Dubbo are worried.

The saleyard is council owned and run, and injects about $80 million per year into the local economy.

Last year it processed more than 1 million sheep and 150,000 cattle, with throughput increasing by almost 25 per cent.

But it still ran at a loss of $1.7 million. 

Now the council wants to sell the yard or lease it out.

Dubbo Regional Council Mayor Matthew Dickerson said there was no doubt the saleyard benefited the city, but councils were inherently “not good at running businesses”.

He said the potential to privatise would ensure the saleyard’s deficit was not taking away from other revenue streams.

He used the history of abattoirs as an example of another business type that councils had moved away from.

“In the old days, many councils owned abattoirs around the state, and now most councils don’t — including Dubbo,” Mr Dickerson said.

“We’ve now got abattoirs owned by a private company that expanded way beyond anything that a council would have been able to do.”

Council will be presenting a report on the expressions of interests received in the coming weeks, but farmers have already expressed their opposition.

City to take the hit if saleyard privatised

Warren local stud owner John Kater has been attending the Dubbo saleyards for decades.

He said if it was to be privatised he may consider moving his business elsewhere.

“If the council isn’t running it and a private enterprise running it puts the prices up … I [will] go to another livestock market, such as Forbes, because it’s cheaper,” Mr Kater said.

He said the city of Dubbo would take a hit if the saleyards lost customers.

“I do banking, accounting, I purchase motorbikes there,” he said.

“We would fill up the groceries and go home.

“If I am going to another livestock market … I will actually do as much business as possible in that particular shire.”

Privatisation means higher costs

Sheep producer Andrew Martel wants to see it maintained in council’s hands.

“Privately-owned saleyards charge a lot more for their usage than the council-run ones,” Mr Martel said.

And he is worried about the economic impact.

“From Queensland down to Victoria, there’s stock sold in the saleyards,” he said.

“If it’s privately sold, and privately managed, all the profits will leave the town. I think it’s better being maintained in town.”

Livestock agent Martin Simmons is on the Dubbo saleyard advisory committee.

He said privatising the facility would impact his livelihood.

“Do I want to see clients or producers send their stock elsewhere? No, I don’t. Because obviously that is costing us business as agents,” Mr Simmons said.

A trend for saleyards

According to the Australian Livestock Markets Association (ALMA) there is a trend for council saleyards to become privately owned.

However, association president Kevin Rodgers said it was the fear of the unknown that causes the producers to worry.

He pointed to the amalgamation of the Carcoar and Orange saleyards as an example. 

“A new set of yards were built at Carcoar by a private enterprise consortium. There was a hell of a blue about fees and charges, which I think never really came to fruition because it’s been a very successful livestock market since,” Mr Rodgers said.

Prudence Barwyck, executive officer of ALMA, said that while each entity was different, anywhere fees have gone up tended to be in line with better services.

“A council saleyard going to a more corporate entity has been in line with things like improved safety management, OH&S, animal welfare — and the services that go around that business actually operating,” she said.