The May/June drop sucker lambs were out of Border Leicester- Merino cross ewes and by a Charollais ram, and dressed at 50 per cent.

The lambs were consigned by Doug, Irene and Scott Mitchell, of Culcairn, to build chiller feedback data on the French terminal sheep breed, and processed by Junee Abattoir.

With just a handful of Charollais studs Australia wide, the breed is still relatively new to the Riverina, but producer demand has been strong with flock rams selling well this season.

A display of Charollais rams and crossbred progeny at this year’s Henty Machinery Field Days also stimulated interest.

Agents and producers have praised the Charollais for adding carcass shape and shaving six to eight weeks finishing time off lambs out of larger framed Merino ewes.

Doug Mitchell, of Rene Charollais stud, said prime lamb producers were using the easylambing breed over maiden Merino and first-cross ewes to produce quick maturing, high yielding lambs for the supermarket and export trade.

He said producers were hungry for chiller feedback on carcass weight, dressing percentage, eye muscle area and fat depth in the crossbred progeny.

Mr Mitchell is refining the breed to suit Australian conditions using Poll Dorset and White Suffolk ewes as a base, and is confident the Charollais has a place in the nation’s sheep meat markets.

Doug and son Scott drafted off 80 Charollais cross lambs from their first-cross ewes, and split them into two weight categories of heavy and light trade lambs.

The group of 40 heavy trade lambs averaged 47.6kg liveweight and 23.8kg carcass weight, dressing at 50 per cent.

The second group of lighter trade lambs averaged 43.6kg liveweight and 22.1kg carcass weight, dressing at 50.7 per cent.

All lambs sold for 480c/kg and returned a skin value of $9.18 with the heavy lambs making $123.42 per head and the lighter lambs $115.26/head.

Prime lamb producers from throughout southern NSW inspected the carcasses on the hooks at the Junee abattoir on November 5.

Junee Abattoir general manager Heath Newton said the Charollais cross lambs had an impressive eye muscle area, carcass conformation and adequate fat cover.

Mr Newton said the lambs would fit in the premium end of Junee’s weekly 17,000 head lamb kill.

“They were outstanding for either a domestic or export market with beautiful meat colour and marbling for the export market, and no excessive trim,’’ he said.

“The whole carcass looked good – the leg, loin, rack and forequarter.

The cutlets and loin are destined for the US market.’’

Mr Mitchell said for sucker lambs to express marbling off grass was surprising.

“Marbling relates to tenderness,’’ he said.

“The width across the loin and hips was impressive, and there was no problem with fat distribution.

Mr Mitchell said the Charollais was the ideal “meat machine’’ for Merino ewes.

Lamb finisher Tim Boyd, of ‘Mangoplah’, uses Charollais rams over maiden first-cross ewes.

Mr Boyd is pleased with the lambing ease, quick growth rates and lambing percentages of 140.

He said 13-week-old Charollais cross lambs had averaged 58kg liveweight and 29kg carcass weight off phalaris and clover pastures.

He aims to have all June drop lambs either sold over-the-hooks or shorn and finished on lucerne for a December turn-off.

A recent consignment sold over the hooks to Coles yielded at 48 per cent with a skin value of $14.30, and average carcass weight of 22.8kg to return 470c/kg or $120/head.

“They are a little shorter in the skin, so look fresher and present well,’’ Mr Boyd said.

“As a lamb finisher, I will be looking for lambs with a Charollais influence.’’

Kyle Sturgess, Landmark West Wyalong stock and station agent, uses Charollais rams over Poll Dorset ewe lambs at a body weight of 60kg to lamb at 14 months of age.

He also evaluated the progeny of 400 first-cross maiden ewes joined to Charollais-Poll Dorset rams.

“There was no lambing trouble in a pretty average season amongst these maidens – we sold the entire drop of lambs at 16-weeks of age at 35.5kg as stores on AuctionsPlus to return $92,’’ Mr Sturgess said.

He described the shape, yield and skin value of the Charollais cross carcasses at Junee as “exceptional’’.

“Skin value can be up to 10 per cent of the lamb value – for those lambs to present well at the yards they’ve got to be wrapped in a nice dense downs type wool the Charollais has,’’ Mr Sturgess said.

He said the Charollais would add carcass shape and improve turn off rates by six to eight weeks from bigger framed Merino or Dohne ewes in the sheep-wheat zone.

Mr Sturgess said the potential for retaining Charollais cross lambs as a first-cross ewe was exceptional with moderate body weights, good feed conversion rates and high lambing percentages.

Prime lamb producer Chris Sellars, Brungle, NSW, plans to join Charollais rams to older Merino ewes in the autumn and first-cross ewes in the spring.

He has sown high performance pastures of lucerne, chicory and clover to finish the lambs.

“I like the early maturity pattern so we can get the lambs off quickly,’’ Mr Sellars said.

“The carcasses at Junee had a nice meat colour, a touch of marbling and a lighter fat cover with a lot less trimming.’’