Farmer launches online livestock auction site without fees

An online livestock auction has been launched allowing farmers to sell stock without paying fees or commission.

Farmer Green Auctions will allow farmers to sell all types of stock including TB restricted stock for approved finishing units as well as embryos.

See also: Online auctions in the UK

Founder Ed Green is a fifth-generation beef and arable farmer and runs a family farm in Somerset. His inspiration for Farmer Green came from his own frustrations with traditional livestock markets and his travels in the US as part of a Nuffield Farming Scholarship.

“I got fed up with having to travel miles to a market, stand around a cold ring for hours on end to find ultimately too few stock to choose from with little or no information about them,” he said.

“Add to this the cost of transport and commission and the gamble of what price will be paid on the day and I decided that I had to do something about it.”

See also: Sell My Livestock online auction

“I got fed up with having to travel miles to a market, stand around a cold ring for hours on end to find ultimately too few stock to choose from with little or no information about them.”
Ed Green, founder Farmer Green Auctions

Farmers selling  through the site can upload photos, videos and details about their stock, providing genetic breeding values, sire names, complete herd health status, and farm assurance details.

Buyers can place bids on a price a head basis with a reserve put in place by the vendor along with a “buy it now” option. Auction length options will last seven, 14 or 21 days and buyers and vendors will receive search and bid alerts.

Buyers can ask questions about the stock or arrange to visit the stock at the farm. Vendor and buyer feedback scores will also be used to self-regulate authentic transactions with accurate descriptions.

Mr Green says: “This is the beginning of something new and a movement towards a different way of trading livestock. We are inviting farmers to join us, at no cost, and be a part of something different.”