Strong support from commercial sheep farmers contributed to a relatively high average price for South African Meat Merino (SAMM) rams at the 12th annual production auction of the Hilltop stud of Faans Pretorius near Heilbron.
By Johan Norval
Jan Vosloo, breed director of the South African Meat Merino Breeders’ Society, attributed the average price of R18 620 for the 50 rams on offer to the optimism surrounding the good prices currently being realised for lamb and wool. Young rams, most of them ram lambs born between April and July 2025, proved particularly popular with buyers.
“Commercial buyers want to improve the reproductive potential and profitability of their ewe flocks by acquiring genetics with good breeding values that come from highly productive mothers,” he says.
A total of 91% of the rams on offer were born as multiples from mothers that have already produced 19 lambs, whilst about 84% of the stud ewes were also born as multiples from mothers that have already produced 22 lambs.
A SAMM ram (1038 TOP) achieved a record price of R255 000 at the 2023 production auction when it was sold to Koos and Kobus Engelbrecht of Heilbron. The average price of the rams at that auction was R19 480.
At this year’s production auction, held on 23 June, the highest price paid for a ram was R45 000 for the ram lamb 5011 EJR. The buyer was Ben Kotzé of Belfast.
The highest price for a stud ewe with her ewe lamb was R12 000 for the two-star ewe 1307 TOP. The buyers were Rolf and Sven Hendrikson of Mooirivier. The average price of the 58 stud ewes was R6 431.
The auction was conducted by BKB Frankfort on Hilltop farm, with Jan Mostert as auctioneer.
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