The Australian mutton market has see a dramatic nosedive year-on-year albeit with a pick up in the indicator of 36 cents last week to land at 515 cents per kilogram.
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And according to industry specialists the downturn is nationwide with prices sitting 22 per cent lower year-on-year.
Nutrien Ag Solutions southeast regional wool and livestock lead Adam Mountjoy said the geographical spread of lower mutton prices indicated there is little difference in prices between northern NSW and Tasmania
"There is no advantage from one point of the globe to another, it's a real downturn in commodity pricing and the mutton market is sitting at around 470 to 540 cents per kilogram," Mr Mountjoy said.
"It's back a long way to where industry have been accustomed to and that in turn may hinder the upcoming breeder selling season and will have a flow on effect on feature sales."
He said the residual of having a ewe traded out at $200 and to go back in and buy a young ewe, those sights will be re-adjusted this year when the heavy end of mutton is struggling at $150 rather than $200.
Nutrien Ag Solutions Wagga Wagga livestock manager Peter Cabot said the store sheep job has come back a lot.
"Especially on the basis of where lambs have come back to and where the old sheep price was," Mr Cabot said.
"The sheep price last year was $6 a kilo and now it is about $4.
"There are plenty of people's sheep that are making $60 to $70 less than last year."
"But on the flip side, they represents terrific value."
Already sales across the eastern states have been revealing lower than normal averages.
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But Mr Mountjoy said there are opportunities for producers, especially those who want to increase the the number of sheep on their enterprise.
"The market is a lot softer, but opportunities are being created by letting some producers who want to build their sheep numbers up, get some more stock around them now," Mr Mountjoy said.
"There are most likely a few empty ewes coming through the system now that farmers are clearing out.
"Some of the early sales have already shown exceptional value for a young ewe to be able to provide an income for generations.
"And some of the older breeding females to put back out into the paddock, not much above slaughter value, represents terrific value."
At South Australia's Jamestown feature ewe sale last week a yarding of 22,000 saw one and a half ewes reach a top of $336, four and a half year old ewes made $238 and wethers made a top of $156.
Action has also been quieter at the off-shears sales.
At the Keith Merino Breeders Associations' annual offshears sale, the best of the breeding ewes made $278 for 215 2018-drop.
A dispersal line of 1.5 year olds from the Mid North produced the $396 sale high.
