Last week, $3.40 a kilogram for 20 to 30 kilogram carcase lambs delivered in November may well have been frowned on given saleyard prices were commonly up to a dollar per kilogram higher.

But with the lamb market coming off by at least $10 a head at Bendigo and Wagga Wagga this week, 340 cents in two months time suddenly doesn’t look so bad, particularly when prices hovered around 300 cents during the lamb flush last November.

Making the running in the market is Tatiara Meat Company (TMC).

Livestock Manager Dale Cameron has decided to back up his words in Rural Press two weeks ago about the need for a better forward trading system for lamb, by putting a figure on the table.

The forward contract has been released at a time of year when lamb supply is more than plentiful.

Its existence is perhaps more interesting than its price.

Mr Cameron is keen to see a better forward selling system throughout the year for lamb and longer term contracts may well be a part of that.

“We’ve decided to put it out there now to show a bit of activity and it confirms a position in the market for us.

"We wanted a backstop even if it doesn’t create a lot of excitement,” he said.

The October contract TMC released has now been shut but the November contract for 340 cents a kilogram for 20-30 kilogram lambs may get producers thinking about their options.

Mr Cameron said Tasman Meats had issued an October contract of 380 cents but was unsure if it still existed.

Tasman Meats did not return phone calls made this week.

The move to a better forward selling system by some processors comes after a massive boom-bust cycle for lamb over the last 12 months where prices have been as high as 550 cents and as low as 250 cents.

Sheepmeat Council president Chris Groves welcomed the current forward contracts and said the development gave some certainty to a market that is now seeing major sales across New South Wales and northern Victoria.

Mr Groves said, “340 cents in November is not a bad price given the big drops we have seen in this market over the last couple of weeks.

"There are so many unknowns about this market right now given drought and the supply of lamb.

"Everyone must work together right through this industry so I am happy to see this development.

"As a producer I would like to see some contracts out there for February-March delivery to encourage those opportunity feedlotters to supply lamb throughout the quieter months.”

Other forward selling opportunities are now expected to be made by processors.