LANDMARK is set to take more of an active role when it comes to ensuring its employees are not put at risk working in rundown saleyards.

According to Landmark national livestock and wool business manager Richard Norton, this is one of the main reasons the company recently secured a 50 per cent shareholding in business development and asset management company Regional Infrastructure.

"Most of our livestock business is still conducted through saleyards," Mr Norton said.

"Saleyards remain a major part of Australia's livestock industry, with 52 per cent of sheep and 40 per cent of cattle sold through them.

"We looked at it, and saleyards are such a core part of our business, and we saw that a lot of people get hurt, or even killed, working there."

So, instead of being passive about the issue, Landmark decided to become engaged in a role to help create modern, safer saleyards where soft flooring, electronic tag drafting, and the use of horses to move stock around was the norm.

Regional Infrastructure operates the Carcoar facility in central NSW, and will operate the new Wodonga yards and one at Tamworth in northern NSW.

They are also the preferred tenderer for the proposed Ballarat saleyards redevelopment.

And while there has been a trend towards more direct selling, Mr Norton said saleyards came to the fore during drought when producers needed such a selling option.

"I'd think it is going to equal out (direct and saleyard selling) in future," he said.

"People like saleyards because they are transparent and liveweight is liveweight - some people can be disappointed with their yield payments over-the-hooks."

Mr Norton said regional centres brought in a greater volume of stock and extra buyers.

The Carcoar selling centre also has spelling areas for stock, and supermarkets now buy stock and agist them on irrigated paddocks.

"This is a sustainable model to me," Mr Norton said.

Landmark also intends to introduce more technologically-advanced marketing into their saleyard selling, via webcasts, to encourage processors to buy through the system, he said.