Tim O’Donnell, Wellards, said the shipment brings the number of cattle Wellards has exported from Townsville to around 160,000 for the 2009 calendar year – around 60 percent of the 275,000 cattle the company has exported so far this year from northern Australia.

“The quality of the stock was almost unbelievable and possibly the best we have ever shipped,” Mr O’Donnell said.

Shane Stafford, Stafford Stock and Property, Richmond, was instrumental in securing a big percentage of the cattle for the Ocean Shearer shipment, and said the numbers will continue to grow, with another shipment of around 14,000 scheduled for the end of October.

He said the numbers were filled within two days of graziers being notified of the impending shipment.

Numbers have been extremely consistent throughout the year, with graziers receiving similar prices to last year.

The continuity of demand has given security to the graziers during a time when slaughter activity has been under pressure due to the global financial crisis.

“There has also been a reduction in demand from Australian Country Choice (ACC), which is now requiring less Brahman content in the beef they purchase,” Mr Stafford said.

He said that during this time, the demand from Indonesia has remained strong and the reduced demand from ACC has allowed Wellards to access some very high-quality cattle.

This has allowed the live export trade to soak up any excess in numbers.

The expected high level of restocker activity after the great wet season did not eventuate because of the lack of available finance. There was also a lack of any meaningful government assistance in the form of low interest loans for those graziers who had been seriously affected by the long drought.

The number of live cattle shipped out of Townsville so far this year is already double the number in the entire 2008 calendar year, when just 80,000 head left the port compared to a total of 360,000 from Darwin in 2008.

The numbers out of Darwin so far this year have struggled to keep pace with Townsville, and beg the question whether or not the Northern Territory herd has been depleted to a level that it may take a few years to recover.