Charolais Summer Magazine 2014 by Charolais Society of Australia

SUMMER 2014

CHAROLAIS MAGAZINE

AN OFFICIAL PUBLICATION OF THE CHAROLAIS SOCIETY OF AUSTRALIA LTD.

What Charolais do Best!

www.minnievalecharolais.com.au www.minnievalecharolais.com.au

Minnie -Vale Charolais ESTABLISHED EST TABLISHED A 1972

Why Minnie-Vale are W hy M innie-Vale Bulls ar e an On On offer: offer:

Minnie-Vale Minnie-Vale Char Charolais olais w would ould like tto o underbidders thank all bidders and under bidders for fo or a successful 2013 sale successful

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IBSPMBJT #VMMT t t $$IBSPMBJT #VMMT 15*$ )FJGFST t 15*$ )FJGFST

2014 Sale Sale Friday

July 25 1pm at “Bexley” Narrabri

Important Important Investment! Investment! Semen Semen T Tested est e ted ested PestiVirus T e PestiVirus Tested or 3 day day sickness sickness Vaccinated Vaccinated ffor recorded Performance Performance recorded ven Predictably Even Predictably E Affordable Affordable A, IMFs Scanned EMA, Scanned EM Guaranteed Guaranteed Bulls Over Years Experience Over 40 Y ea e Experienc ears e

Minnie-Vale Charolais Jason, Doug & Sue Salier “Bexley”, Back Creek Road, Narrabri NSW 2390 Phone: 02 6783 4272 or 02 6783 4166 www.minnievalecharolais.com.au Email: info@minnievalecharolais.com.au

CHAROLAIS MAGAZINE

Message from the President

Vale Peter Bondfield

Office Update

BullSELECT Workshop

Upcoming Events

Vale Jack Henry

Australian Genetics Export Review

Benefits of BIN and Results

12-15

Royal Sydney Show 2013

16-17

NSW Youth Stampede

Charolais Carcase Competitions

Charolais Sales 2013 Beef Production in France World Congress France 2014 Ashwood Park Dispersal

20-21 23 24-25 25 26-27

Royal Melbourne Show 2013

Victoria Regional Report

Royal Adelaide Show 2013

Victorian Weaner Winners

WA Youth Camp 2014

Royal Perth Show 2013

Barbaro Brothers Butchers

EKKA Royal Brisbane Show 2013

Queensland Regional Report

Outstanding Regional Service Award

Royal Canberra Show 2013

New England Girls’ School

42-43

Beef Central Advertising Bev Adams - Country Character

Contents

Lachie McKenzie - Securing supply of quality beef

45 46-47

New Horn Poll Test

Sweden Technical Conference

Three Ridges Beef

50-51

St John’s College

52-53

Advertiser’s Index

46 CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

Charolais Society of Australia Limited PO Box 772, Armidale, NSW 2350. Suite 6, 188-196 Beardy Street, Armidale, NSW 2350. T: (02) 6771 1666 F: (02) 6771 1561 International T: (+61) 2 6771 1666 W: www.charolais.com.au Cover: Lachie McKenzie secures quality supply of beef using Charolais bulls.

General Manager: Terence Farrell Registrar:

gm@charolais.com.au office@charolais.com.au

Finance Manager: Hayley Clark accounts@charolais.com.au Member Services Manager: Lucy Main/Kristy Ford admin@charolais.com.au

Councillors:

David Ellis 318 Fishermans Road, Coolup, WA 6208 T: (08) 9530 3225 M: 0427 170 965 E: jade_84@live.com.au Warren Miller 250 Sheepwash Rd, Glenquarry, NSW 2576 M: 0423 396 014 E: warren.miller@mclachlan.com.au Michael Osborne “Ryeview”, Box 387, Millicent, SA 5280 M: 0408 838 568 E: ryeview@bigpond.com Graham Smith 40 Stephensons Lane Yarra Junction, VIC 3797. T: (03) 5967 1320 M: 0412 621 102 E: charolais@langbrook.com.au

Regional Office Bearers NEW SOUTH WALES:

Honorary Life Members

Contacts

Anthony Hordern (deceased) Harry Wadds (deceased) J. Martin Lenthall (deceased) Rick Pisaturo AM David Dixon Bill Hayes John Sullivan (deceased) Harold Seeley AM Trevor Cottee (deceased) Helen Trustum Lesley Millner Rob Millner Michael Hargreaves Alex McLachlan AM Gary Noller David Bondfield

Federal Council President: Keith Glasson “Kialla”, 189 McNally Road Greenmount, QLD 4359 M: 0418 716 476 E: crathescharolais@internode.on.net

Year Letter for

2014 Born Calves:

Opinions expressed in articles in this publication are not necessarily those of the Editor or the Council of the Charolais Society of Australia Ltd. Neither the Editor nor the Charolais Society of Australia Ltd takes any responsibility for the accuracy of the information contained within this publication, nor for the outcome (including consequential loss) of any action taken by readers or other based on information contained therein. The publishers reserve the right to refuse or cancel without notice any advertisement in a publication issued by them. Designed and produced by: Susan Pike Productions Publisher: Charolais Society of Australia Ltd

Vice Presidents: Chris Knox “Borah Station”, Borah Creek Road, Coonabarabran, NSW 2357 T: (02) 6842 9101 M: 0427 600 278 E: dskangusandcharolais@westnet.com.au Heath Dobson 567 Cluan Road, CLUAN, TAS 7303 T: (03) 6393 1330 M: 0409 176 228 E: pineparkcharolais@activ8.net.au Honorary Treasurer: Gary Noller PO Box 4695, Toowoomba East, QLD 4401 M: 0408 700 949 E: noller@bigpond.com

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

Chairman: Gavin O’Brien M: 0427 359 447 E: winchestercharolais@westnet.com.au Secretary: Kristie O’Brien T: (02) 6369 0600 E: winchestercharolais@westnet.com.au QUEENSLAND:

Chairman: Jim Wedge T: (07) 4667 3999 E: jim@ascotcattle.com.au Secretary: Penelope Hindman T: (07) 4627 6398 E: hindmans@activ8.net.au VICTORIA:

Chairman: Chas Armytage T: (03) 5354 1248 E: delamerepastoral@bigpond.com Secretary: Gwen Robinson T: (03) 5156 6397 E: kyra1@wideband.net.au SOUTH AUSTRALIA:

Chairman: Michael Osborne T: (08) 8733 3393 E: ryeview@bigpond.com Secretary: Rob Martin T: (08) 8210 5229 E: rmartin@adelaideshowground.com.au WESTERN AUSTRALIA:

Chairman: Robin Yost T: (08) 9574 2035 E: libertycharolais@harboursat.com.au Secretary: Jan Gaffney T: (08) ) 6263 3100 E: jgaffney@raswa.org.au TASMANIA:

Chairman: Heath Dobson T: (03) 6393 1330 E: pineparkcharolais@activ8.net.au Secretary: Samantha Dobson T: (03) 6393 1330 E: pineparkcharolais@activ8.net.au

SBTS Technical Officer Christian Duff T: (02) 6773 2472 E: christian@sbts.une.edu.au

Message from the President I am sure that most of us would agree that 2013 is another year that we are pleased to see the back of. Unfortunately the widespread drought continues to take its toll on our industry with prices and female numbers down and they are expected to continue falling with no prospect of a turnaround in the near future. These conditions are impacting the financial affairs of many members and also your Society and we are expecting a further reduction in HMF income, registration numbers and transfer activity over the next few years. Council has been working through our 2014/17 budget with a fine tooth comb to not only balance our budget going forward but to also rebuild our finances following the heavy expenses around progeny tests over the last three years. As a result we are implementing some significant adjustments to our budget on both the revenue and expenditure sides to ensure we manage for a balanced outcome and therefore positive (rather than negative) cash flow each year going forward.

Keith Glasson - President Charolais Society of Australia

I am pleased to advise that Council has made a decision not to increase HMF or Membership fees until 2015 when it is expected that both will need to be indexed to inflation from the previous year. However we have decided that the Society can no longer continue to subsidise the cost of BREEDPLAN and provide it free to members. From January 2014 the Society will revert to the previous fee structure for BREEDPLAN so members will need to pay an annual fee of $350 (indexed to inflation) beginning January 1 of 2014 which will cover most service costs with the exception of extracting data for catalogues.

Other cost cutting measures have already taken place with the change to electronic newsletters earlier this year. We understand that this affects members who do not own a computer but this measure saves vital funds for other promotional work. Council will also reduce the number of face to face council meetings held in 2014 (and going forward) from three to two which will further reduce costs. Further a majority of our breed promotional activity will now be channelled through Beef Central. The reason for this move to electronic media is not just financial but also due to the shift in how producers are using technology, including smart phones and iPads to search for information and to receive feeds daily from news websites. Council has also implemented cuts to most general expenditure lines including (but not limited to) Promotional activity (ensuring all trade shows, field days and workshops etc are cost neutral), office equipment and ensuring all magazine costs are cost neutral. The BIN project will be completed by August 2014. The data from this project has enabled the Society to move from a purebred EBV analysis to a crossbreed EBV analysis and has increased the accuracy of all of the carcase traits. The research work itself has also provided the Society with valuable data to show proof of profit from producing Charolais cross progeny.

President’s Report

The expected continuing reduction in Society income will also impact further on staff services at our federal office. Staff services will continue to reduce and have been cut from 2.5 full time employees in 2012 to 1.7 (FTE) from February 2014.

By the end of 2014 all the data from the three years of BIN projects will be aggregated and analysed together and this will enable the Society to use genomic assisted EBV’s (GEBV’s). The move to GEBV’s will assist studs that have struggled with smaller contemporary groups. As this is a Council election year please ensure that you cast your vote in the prescribed manner over the New Year period. 2013 has been another tough year but there is no doubt that we are a year closer to a recovery in the beef industry and therefore better bull prices. We need to continue managing our affairs so that we are in a position for our Charolais brand to gain maximum benefit from that recovery when it comes. I would like to thank my colleagues on Council for their input during the year and to thank the office staff for their work. Congratulations to Hayley and Gavin on the birth of Lexie, and we wish Lucy all the best for the safe arrival of her new addition in February. We were sorry to see Kylie Costello leave the position of Registrar in December. Kylie had been with the Society for 18 months and worked on a number of improvements to the animal search interface and a new Excel sheet to upload animals. Her friendly manner with members will be missed Finally I would like to wish all Members and their Families a very merry Christmas and a prosperous and therefore wet 2014. Keith Glasson President - Charolais Society of Australia CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

Vale Peter Bondfield OAM 4th July 1928 ~ 13th November 2013 Peter Bondfield, the former principal of Palgrove, Dalveen passed away peacefully with family and friends by his side. Our condolences go to the Bondfield family. Peter was amongst the first to import Charolais genetics to Australia and has been instrumental in the breedâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s development since that time. Peter had a passion for cattle and horses and excelled in leather work. Peter was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia for service to Stanthorpe Agricultural Show Society and the Pony Club Association of Queensland in 2011. He served on the Council of the Charolais Society from 1980 to 1985. Former presidents of the Society, David Dixon and Bill Hayes, provide these recollections: Peter's contribution around the Council table between 19801985 was his practical knowledge of cattle breeding; seasonal conditions; markets; and general perception of where the Breed would "fit into" the overall cattle industry. It was always a challenge to keep the theoretical view point of establishing a new breed along side the practical - what will work in the paddock -view. Peter provided that viewpoint. Peter chaired the Newsletter and Promotional Sub Committee whilst on the Council and during his chairmanship the Charolais Promoter of the Year was inaugurated, designed to involve a greater percentage of members in the active promotion of the breed. Also during this time a change in the style and direction of advertising was effected with greater emphasis on the marketing aspects of the Charolais rather than just Show results. Another highlight of Peter's era was the introduction of the very successful Australian Charolais Convention which enabled members to meet annually, attend an AGM and Sale, discuss Charolais business and experience great fellowship with likeminded people.

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

Peter's lighthearted manner and infectious laugh provided much enjoyment at the end of a day of meetings. His ability to lead the singing around the piano at the Wentworth Hotel was always a highlight - Danny Boy being his favourite! Peter and Val engendered a wonderful feeling of hospitality in the Society and opened their home and property on many occasions to promote the breed. Palgrove has continued on to become an icon in the Charolais Breed. Well done Peter! David Dixon and Bill Hayes

Office Update STAFF UPDATE Congratulations to Hayley Clark, our long serving Finance Officer, and her partner Gavin on the birth of their little girl Lexie on the 9th of October 2013. Hayley is now working from home and is best contacted via email accounts@charolais.com.au or call the office to chat with one of the other staff. Lucy Main will be commencing maternity leave in mid January and Kristy Ford will be taking over the reins of member services. Kristy can be contacted via the admin@charolais.com.au email address or via the office number, and will be in the office between 10am and 2.30 pm, Monday to Friday. Kylie Costello has resigned as the registrar after 18 months. The new registrar will be appointed before the end of the year. Members are advised that if they have issues with the service or rules of the Society then you should speak to Terence and not take the issue out on staff. Our staff are required to enforce rules and procedures but they do not make them. We have also cut staff hours to minimise costs to members so your patience with staff availability will be appreciated.

• Quick Guide to the Charolais Society - A new document has been created as an easy reference tool for basic Society activities and services. It covers registering calves and AI sires, tattoo format, donor dam application process, transferring animals, HMF and more. You can download a copy from the website or email admin@charolais.com.au for a copy to be sent to you. www.charolais.com.au/aboutus/our-society/ • Online semen catalogue - The Society has launched a new online Semen Catalogue. This is a perfect opportunity to either list your AI sires with semen for sale or search for semen to purchase. The catalogue links through to pedigree and BREEDPLAN information on the ABRI website. You can view the semen catalogue via the Society website or email admin@charolais.com.au for more information. www.charolais.com.au/ai-sires-list/australian-ai-sires/ • Registration spreadsheet - A new Excel document has been created to make calf registrations that little bit easier. It is formatted like the C1 form, but allows you to complete multiple entries in the one document which can then be emailed through to the Registrar. This now means members have 4 options for submitting calf registration details – C1 form, online registration, batch download from your on farm computer program or by the Excel document. A copy can be found on the Society website or email admin@charolais.com.au for a copy to be emailed to you. www.charolais.com.au/member-services/register-cattle/ • Silver Calf Brochures - If you are looking for some Charolais promotional material to distribute at shows or sales, we have the thing for you. The Society’s new brochure entitled “Charolais Silver Calves, Your Golden Opportunity” encourages commercial producers to cross breed with a Charolais sire. A northern and southern version have been produced. The brochure is available to purchase through the Society office or download your copy from the website or email admin@charolais.com.au for a PDF copy to be emailed to you. www.charolais.com.au/charolais-cattle/crossbreeding-for-profit/

• Charolais Express E-Newsletter - The Society is no longer producing hard copy newsletters and has instead launched the Charolais Express E-Newsletter. In 2014 the e-newsletter will be distributed once a month keeping members informed of Society developments, show results, BIN progress, upcoming events and more. If you don’t have your email address registered with the Society you could be missing out on important news, so please email admin@charolais.com.au and ask for your email address to be included. (If you have an activ8 email address you will also need to whitelist the Society so we don’t get blocked by your firewall). Copies of the E-Newsletter will also be posted on the website. www.charolais.com.au/aboutus/newsletters/ In addition, members have the opportunity to advertise in the E-Newsletter. Please email admin@charolais.com.au to find out how. PLEASE NOTE: • Year Letters - It is important to confirm the current year letter before tattooing your calves. Over the next few years, a couple of letters have been left out to help reduce confusion as they could look too similar to a number. They are the letters L and O. Below is a summary of the year letters up to 2017. • 2014 - K • 2016 - N

• 2015 - M • 2017 - P

Office Update

WHAT’S NEW?

• Facebook- The Charolais Society is now on Facebook! We aim to keep you up to date with exciting news and announcements as they happen, for instance show results and news from events such as AgQuip. Search for: Charolais Society of Australia

If you incorrectly tattoo a calf, please contact the Registrar via office@charolais.com.au • ET Calves - To register an ET calf the Society requires a flush sheet and an implant sheet to be submitted with the calf details. A flush date must be recorded, along with an implant date. If you sell an embryo the Society requires a copy of the flush sheet as well as a completed transfer sheet which can be found on the website. The transfer sheet will ask you for buyer details as well as a transfer date. For more details or clarification please contact the Registrar via office@charolais.com.au or call the office. DON’T FORGET! The Society has a range of branded merchandise available to members from clothing and caps to pens and badges. The full range can be viewed on the website. The Society can also help you to produce custom merchandise including advertisements, signs & banners, brochures, postcards, sale catalogues, pens, caps and more. Email admin@charolais.com.au to find out how. CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

Host a BullSELECT Workshop Cattle producers purchase bulls on only one or a few days of the year, but the effect of their bull selection decisions will last for generations within their herd. With an increasing range of technologies and information available on sale day, selecting the right bull may seem a daunting task, but it doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have to be. The BullSELECT workshop educates beef producers about how to use the available tools to select the best bull for their enterprise.

Hosting a BullSELECT Workshop This workshop is available to: 1/

Individual seedstock producers who wish to educate their clients.

Breeder and producer groups who wish to educate their members.

Private consultants and State Government Departments who wish to educate clients or local producers.

SBTS & TBTS will: Provide experienced facilitators to undertake the workshop. Organise the workshop program. Consult with you on the cattle for the exercise sessions.

THE WORKSHOP COVERS: > Understanding the value of genetics > Interpreting and understanding BREEDPLAN EBVs and Selection Indexes > Using online searches and smartphone apps to source the right genetics > Practical bull selection exercises using demonstration cattle, including a Mock Auction

Supply resource material for your clients. Provide all the necessary field day equipment.

The Host is responsible for: Providing the venue including a presenting area and suitable yards for the exerise sessions. Catering including morning tea, lunch and refreshments. Event Promotion. Supplying cattle for the practical demonstration sessions with suitable BREEDPLAN EBVs.

Cost Stakeholder Breed Association Member Rate: $1500 (inc. GST) * Non-Stakeholder Rate: $3500 (inc. GST) ** * The BullSELECT Workshop is subsidised by the Stakeholders of the SBTS & TBTS Projects, being participating Breed Associations, Meat & Livestock Australia and the Agricultural Business Research Institute. This subsidized rate is available to members of Breed Associations that are stakeholders in either the SBTS or TBTS projects. ** The BullSELECT Workshop is also available to organisations that are not current members of a stakeholder Breed Association (eg. private consultants, State Government Departments).

INTERESTED IN HOSTING A WORKSHOP? > Complete an Expression of Interest form available from the SBTS website (under Workshop Information). http://sbts.une.edu.au

For more information contact Southern Beef Technology Services P: 02 6773 3555 E: office@sbts.une.edu.au W: http://sbts.une.edu.au

Upcoming Events 2014 16 - 19 January

NSW Charolais Youth Stampede, Bathurst NSW

17 January

Federal Council Elections – Voting Concludes

28 January - 5 February

Stock & Land Beef Week

21 -23 February

Royal Canberra Show

10 - 23 April

Royal Sydney Show. The Charolais Society AGM will be held during the show. Details TBC.

24 - 26 April

WA Youth Cattle Handlers Camp

1 May

May HMF posted to members

31 May

May HMF paperwork and payment due

8 - 17 August

EKKA

19 - 21 August

AgQuip

26 August - 5 September

Charolais World Congress – France

5 - 13 September

Royal Adelaide Show – Charolais is the feature breed for 2014.

20 September - 1 October

Royal Melbourne Show

23- 25 September

Henty Field Days

27 Sept- 4 October

Royal Perth Show

16 - 18 October

North Coast National

1 November

November HMF posted to members

30 November

November HMF paperwork and payment due

2015 4-9 May

Beef Australia 2015

Don’t forget to keep an eye on the online Sales & Events Calendar for upcoming sales and events. To add your sale details to the online Sales & Events Calendar www.charolais.com.au/sales-events-calendar/sales-events-calendar/ email the details to admin@charolais.com.au We encourage members to send us a report on sales which can be posted the website. There is no cost associated with this service.

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

Vale Justin Angus Henry (Jack) 13th May 1967 ~ 25th July 2013 Jack was the General Manager of the Charolais Society from 13/2/2009 to 3/12/2010. He was a gifted photographer, cattle fitter and judge of cattle. Justin Henry (Jack) was born and raised in an area called Ceres near Geelong in Victoria. After leaving school he took a keen interest in showing cattle. He received the Victorian premiers Award for Excellence in relation to his excellent cattle skills and success in showing. He attended Marcus Oldham College in Geelong in the early 1990’s. In the mid 90’s Jack purchased a small farm called ‘Killarney’ near the Rock in southern NSW and he started a shorthorn stud, CJH Shorthorns with his dad, Colin. Jack and Colin bred some great Shorthorns – ‘the right ones’ Jack would say. While living at Killarney Jack worked at Ashleigh Park feedlot in Culcairn. He later moved to Brisbane. In January 2009 he was offered the role as General Manager for the Charolais Society. Shortly after he accepted the role he had also been diagnosed with bowel cancer and underwent treatment for six months. Jack was in his second term on the boards of Shorthorn Beef and Durham when he accepted the position with the Charolais Society. He was instrumental in establishing the BIN project with MLA during his time with the Society. Jack left the Society in December 2010 and went to work at the Arubial Lillyvale Feedlot at Condamine in Queensland. In January 2012, he received the news that the cancer had returned and he sought treatment in various places including Germany and the United States. Jack Henry passed away peacefully Thursday 25/7/2013 with family and friends by his side. His friends say that Jack kept his renowned humour right to the end. Jack was a devoted family man who adored his wife Heidi Austin and children Rachel, Louis and Thomas and will be sadly missed.

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

Australian Genetics Export Review Australia can dramatically improve its exports of genetic materials according to an industry review by Don Nicol which was released in June 2013. The report says that Australia could earn as much as $326 million from exports. During 2012 the United States exported bovine genetics to the value of $142 million and Canada’s export value for genetics was $88.7 million. Australia’s estimated export value was only $1.5 million. Exports of bovine genetics are dominated by the trade in dairy genetics. The majority of the countries that export large volumes of bovine genetics have large scale dairy industries and these industries provide the critical infrastructure and know-how required to produce and market large volumes of genetic materials. The trade in beef breed genetics is much smaller and fragmented. The study points out that Australia has no major exporter or group to promote the multitude of beef breeds to overseas markets. Beef cattle breeds in Australia do not traditionally tend to work together and this has been identified as an impediment to export growth. The US has a well funded notfor-profit association called US Livestock Genetic Export Inc which brings together livestock industry participants dedicated to exports. Canada has a similar group called the Canadian Livestock Genetics Association. The majority of the bovine genetic marketers in Australia represent companies that are owned in either the United States, Canada or Europe. The major four companies are ABS Global/Genus, CRV/CRI, ALTA and SEMEX. Given that the existing companies operating in Australia are owned and operated by overseas exporters then there is little incentive for these companies to push Australian genetics in their home markets.

Other impediments to trade include the DAFF export certification process and the variation around the paper work that exporters faces when using the different centres. An advisory group was established with AQIS and Biosecurity Australia in 2009 but this group has been more focused on live animal exports since its inception. The paper also argues that the Federal Government has not provided enough financial support to develop the sector. MLA does not have a strong mandate to focus on genetic exports and there are very few industry associations that have pushed for funding for this sector. Australia has been measuring performance on beef cattle for many years; however, some breeds including Charolais, have only recently collected phenotypic data on top ranking international sires and top Australian sires to provide comparative data for marketing purposes. The study’s author recommends that the Australian industry establish an export hub in Melbourne and capitalise on the dairy industry infrastructure that is already in place. This action would reduce overhead costs and reduce certification issues and streamline export processes. The major markets for Australia are likely to be North America, South America, Europe and Asia (particularly China). Some Australian studs are already working in these markets and more work needs to be done to consolidate and focus resources to promote Australian beef genetics in general. Don Nicol plans to hold a meeting in the next few months to discuss options to develop the beef genetics export industry and to get participants who are already working in overseas markets together. It will most likely be held in Brisbane. The date of this meeting will be made available to members via the Society’s website. CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

Benefits of BIN Research Project The Beef Information Nucleus (BIN) project has already had a significant positive influence on the genetic gains made within the Charolais breed. Benefits are measured by changes in the three market indices over time. Over the past 20 years the breed average dollar increase per breeding female has been 48 cents. During the past five years this has increased to 88 cents and the increase in the first year of the BIN project was $1.43 which is 54 cents more than the previous 5 â&#x20AC;&#x201C;year average. The BIN project will provide an industry benefit of $2.10 for every one dollar invested. Another major benefit of the BIN project is the increase in accuracy of meat quality EBV traits. The addition of this crossbred data has enabled the Society to switch to a crossbreed EBV which it did in October of this year. The data will enable the Society to move to a genomic assisted EBV or GEBV which will assist with the estimation of EBV predictions for animals in small contemporary groups. The BIN data has been useful for proving the information that is used in breed marketing. The largest benefit is that we can now confidently state that Charolais do not have a calving ease issue. We know that Charolais progeny reach target weights at and younger age and this reduces ossification and meat toughness. We have dispelled the myth that animals need a lot of marbling and fat to each well. Very few other breed can match the meat quality and retail yield produced by a Charolais cross animal.

Finally the BIN results are providing us with information on the performance of Australian sires versus leading international sires and this will assist us to promote Australian sires to the rest of the world. The BIN project is clearly providing the breed with opportunities that would not have been possible without the project. Members can benefit from these gains by using semen from one of the BIN sires in your herd. You will need at least 8 calves to a BIN sire to achieve a strong link. This link sire will improve the accuracy of animals in your herd.

BIN Results 2011 Drop, Charolais x Brahman Progeny The results below are for Charolais Brahman cross progeny that were run at Ashvale Station in Queensland. These progeny were slaughtered in 2013 and the carcase results are attached. The animals were fed at two different feedlots and slaughtered at one of two abattoirs. The final weight prior to feedlot entry is represented in the 584 day graph and the final weight after feed lotting is represented in the 740 day graph. The 470 animals were all fed on grain for 100 days.

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

BIN Results 2012 Drop, Charolais x Angus Progeny The results below show the results for the progeny of pure Angus and Charolais Angus cross. The first six sires are Angus and following 11 are Charolais. Baroola D903D is the link sire between the 2nd and 3rd year projects. The steer progeny have entered the Tallimba Feedlot for feed efficiency research and methane measurement. The names for Booroomooka Warwick W245 and Winchester Davey Crockett have been truncated in the graphs.

Graig Price of Kilcoy Pastoral Company and Jake Phillips of MSA with BIN carcases

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

Ashvale Charolais Brahman Calves

BIN Results 2012 Drop, Charolais x Brahman Progeny The results below show the results for the progeny of pure Angus and Charolais Angus cross. The first six sires are Angus and following 11 are Charolais. Baroola D903D is the link sire between the 2nd and 3rd year projects. The steer progeny have entered the Tallimba Feedlot for feed efficiency research and methane measurement. The names for Booroomooka Warwick W245 and Winchester Davey Crockett have been truncated in the graphs.

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

Royal Sydney Feature Show 2013

Charolais features at Sydney 2013 Show! Charolais was the feature breed at the 2013 Sydney Royal Show and the NSW Region put on a fantastic week-long event. Throughout the week a large and informative Charolais display was set up in the cattle pavilion that invited passersby to learn more about Charolais, in particular, the benefits of Charolais Silver calves. Two DSK silver calves were on display as part of the Charolais stand and they attracted a lot of attention.

The Society’s Charolais Silver Calf promotion was launched during the week, which included a new range of targeted materials, including a brochure and posters, which encourage commercial producers to cross breed with Charolais. A copy of the brochure entitled “Charolais Silver Calves, Your Golden Opportunity” was posted to all members and approximately 3000 commercial producers after the show. Copies are also available to members via the Charolais office for a small fee to cover printing and postage. Also at the Charolais display, a ‘Guess the Weight’ competition was run and required entrants to guess the average weight of the two silver calves on display. The winning weight was 610kg with 3 people correctly guessing this weight. As there can only be one winner, a name was drawn out of a hat and that was Youth Member Kate Loudon who won a $250 RM Williams gift voucher. All proceeds from ticket sales went to the McGrath Foundation. Prior to the commencement of the show, members were asked to nominate heifers being entered in show competitions as a McGrath Heifer. During the Charolais female judging, onlookers were asked to select their favourite McGrath Heifer, with the winner being auctioned off during the McGrath Foundation auction that night. Monument Valley Hope was selected and sold for $12,000 to a syndicate comprising of Moongool, DSK and Kindara Charolais. All proceeds from the auction went to the McGrath Foundation. The Charolais Topline Helmsman Sale was held after the Charolais bull judging with 38 animals going under the hammer. Of the 19 bulls on offer, 6 were sold and averaged $5,125. The

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

top priced bull was lot 1, Airlie Fiable (A1S F726E) which sold for $9,500. Of the 19 females on offer, 10 were sold and averaged $3,272. Two lots received the top price of $5,000, which were Lot 25B Elgin Park Californian Girl 2 (EP7 H2E) and Lot 27 Airlie Stonehut (A1S H1E). During the week various youth events were also held, including a judging competition, paraders competition, State of Origin and the Calf Classic. Approximately 45 Charolais Youth members participated in these activities. Congratulations to the NSW Region for putting on a fantastic event, in particular to chairman Chris Knox, Helen Alexander and Mark Ickinger for their tireless work prior to and during the week. A big thank you also to the many sponsors who helped made the Charolais Feature Show a success. PLATINUM - Ascot Cattle Company GOLD - McLachlan Group SILVER - Bayer, DSK Charolais, Elders, The Land and Waterford Charolais BRONZE - 4 Ways Charolais, Ashlin Charolais, Bentley Downs Charolais, Better Value Bulls, Blaweary Charolais, Bovine Scanning Services, Caloona Charolais, Crathes Charolais, Elgin Park Charolais, Elstow Charolais, Gunnadoo Charolais, Herdlink, Kenmere Charolais, Minnie-Vale Charolais, Moongool Charolais, New England Girls’ School, Palgrove Charolais, Practical Systems, Quicksilver Charolais, Rangan Charolais, Semex, Venturon Charolais, Wakefield Charolais and Whitestone Charolais.

Royal Sydney Feature Show 2013

The Urquhart Perpetual Trophy (Supreme Beef Breed Animal), Palgrove Gallivant, D & P Bondfield, Palgrove Charolais

Champion Charolais Steer, Hurlstone Agricultural College

Champion School Parader, Abbie Robertson

Champion Trade Steer, Charolais x Angus by Greg and Leonie Ball

ROYAL SYDNEY SHOW 2013 CHAMPIONS: The Urquart Perpetual Trophy Supreme Beef Breed Most Successful Beef Exhibitor (Overall winner all breeds) Premier Beef Breeder Award (All breeds)

Palgrove Gallivant

D & P Bondfield, Palgrove Charolais

DSK Charolais

C Knox & H Alexander, DSK Charolais

DSK Charolais

C Knox & H Alexander, DSK Charolais

Best Charolais Exhibit

Palgrove Gallivant

D & P Bondfield, Palgrove Charolais

Most Successful Charolais Exhibitor

DSK Charolais

Grand Champion Bull

Palgrove Gallivant

D & P Bondfield, Palgrove Charolais

Senior Champion Bull

DSK AC F33E (P)

C Knox & H Alexander, DSK Charolais

Intermediate Champion Bull

Palgrove Gallivant

D & P Bondfield, Palgrove Charolais

Calf Champion Bull

DSK BD Goldstrike G102E (P) (R/F)

C Knox & H Alexander, DSK Charolais

Grand Champion Female

DSK DK Wendy F30E (AI) (P) (R/F)

C Knox & H Alexander, DSK Charolais

Senior Champion Female

DSK DK Wendy F30E (AI) (P) (R/F)

C Knox & H Alexander, DSK Charolais

Junior & Intermediate Champion Female Palgrove Felicity 92 (AI) (ET) Calf Champion Female

D & P Bondfield, Palgrove Charolais

Monument Valley Honey (AI) (ET) (P) (R/F)

Grand Champion Carcase & The Coghlan Pure Bred Carcase Perpetual Trophy

D Conte, Monument Valley Charolais C Knox & H Alexander, DSK Charolais

Champion Charolais Steer Champion Trade Steer & Champion Virtual Taste Test Trade Carcase

Hurlstone Agricultural College

Champion School Parader

Abbie Robertson

Youth Member

Heifer Fitting Challenge Winner

Chloe Ickinger

Youth Member

St Joseph’s High School, Aberdeen

Bred by: D, K & S Jenkins, Violet Hills Charolais Bred by: G & L Ball, Grenell Charolais

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

NSW YOUTH STAMPEDE - JAN 2013

Australia Day Weekend 2013 saw 39 Charolais Youth converge on the Bathurst Showgrounds for another NSW Youth Stampede. Competitors came from various states and this year also included a visitor from Canada spending time in Australia during her Gap Year This Stampede had the theme of breeding and breeding selection. Discussions were held on breeding selection and types of joining, heat detection, etc. The practical side of heat detection was discussed and the participants had remained focus on the heifers and cow that were synchronised to cycle while at the Stampede. When heat was detected the animal was artificially inseminated and the participants were shown the procedure and the equipment. Breeding Betsy (the AI practice unit) was also on hand for all the Youth Participants to have a go at the AI procedure. Breeding Betsy was made available to us by Hurlstone Ag High School. A very big thank you. Show ring preparation demonstrations were held, and parading practice with experienced support, gave the participants the opportunity to gain confidence, fine tune their skills and prepare for their Junior Parading Competition. The two major events included the Junior Judging Competition and the Herdsman Competition. The formal dinner was held on the Saturday night with an auction. Money raised went to assist in running this event. We would like to gratefully thank our generous sponsors, as without these sponsors our youth would not have an event from which to learn, gain experience, meet industry experts and also to have fun & build friendships.

The Stampede organisers would encourage all members to support our sponsors and show our thanks for their assistance in running our Stampede. The major awards for the event went to: CHAMPION JUNIOR JUDGE Keiley O’Brien RESERVE CHAMPION JUNIOR JUDGE Hannah Powe CHAMPION JUNIOR PARADER Hannah Powe RESERVE CHAMPION JUNIOR PARADER Troy Kylstra CHAMPION HERDSMAN Kieran Martin RESERVE CHAMPION HERDSMAN Georgina Murdoch NSW YOUTH AMBASSADOR Tom Noonan ENCOURAGEMENT AWARD Angus Allitt BREEDERS ENCOURAGEMENT Chris Ickinger, Chloe Ickinger, Duane Wilson, Tom Noonan The next Stampede will be held again in Bathurst 16th-19th of January 2014. We look forward to seeing you there.

WHITESTONE CHAROLAIS

Bronze Sponsors: • Elstow Charolais • Landmark • Peter Doyle – TNN Products Special Sponsor: • Governor Macquarie Motor Inn

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

Charolais prove their quality in carcase competitions Charolais and Charolais cross cattle have again dominated the major 2013 carcase competitions.

Jenny & James Millner, Rosedale Charolais with the 2013 Paddock to Palate Trophy

James Dockrill, Calmview Charolais and Allan Trustum of Bently Downs Charolais won 'Champion team of 3 steers'

Rosedale started the year in good form by winning the NSW Beef Spectacular Feedback Trial in January. The Milner family’s champion pen of Charolais Angus steers won by 1.5 points. The Rosedale team beat 76 teams from across NSW, Victoria and Queensland. The team won with a total of 801.5 points from 1000, and was $489 more profitable than the average of all trial teams.

There were a total of 69 teams representing all the major cattle breeds in this competition. David and Penny Sullivan from Riverglen Pastoral Co won second place overall. Their pen gained an impressive 2.72 kg/day in the feedlot section. Rosedale won the MSA Eating Quality section with Charolais Angus cross steers.

Rosedale also won the 2013 Sydney Royal Beef Challenge. The Charolais-Shorthorn export pen of six received 790/1000 points topping the live assessment and profitability sections to win the champion pen. The individual animal class was won by Peter and Rob Vickery, Dobikin Pastoral, with their Charolais Santa cross. Rosedale also did well topping the live assessment scores in the domestic competition with a Charolais Angus cross and came second in the domestic pen of six live assessment section. Chris Knox and Helen Alexander, DSK won the heavy weight grand champion steer and the Gold Medal at the Sydney Royal. They also won the purebred hoof and hook competition and the reserve champion middle weight carcase. The Queensland RNA Paddock to Palate Competition was won by Acton Land and Cattle Co with a pen of Charolais Santa cross. To win this competition the animals need to do well in all 4 phases of the competition including feedlot, carcase, MSA and the beef taste off.

Peter Stacy, Alicia Kemp, Chyvana Wright and Roger Evans with the Supreme Led Steer

Ashwood Park won first place with 90.5 points in the Victorian Show Steer Bonanza with a Charolais Angus cross and came in second with 89.9 points with a pure Charolais. In Western Australia, Bruce Campbell of Cooara, won the champion heavyweight and supreme steer of the Perth Royal. The steer sold for $3750.00 to Harvey beef and Coles. Fred Grantham of Coolup, won the champion steer on the hoof at the Waroona show in October with a silver Charolais yearling which sold for $2,800.00 to Harvey Beef. Mark O’Dwyer, Bentley Downs and Calmview won the champion team of 3 steers in the North Coast National hoof and hook competition. Mark’s steer won the Champion Carcase with 87.6/100 points and Bentley Downs won the Champion Charolais carcase with 87.41/100 points. Calmview Hussy won the Jackpot at the inaugural Landmark Beef Championship that was held at Tamworth this year. Hussy, who was fed by James Dockrill, won second place in the carcase competition. n

Peter and Rob Vickery, Dobikin Pastoral, Bellata, won with their Charolais Santa cross at Sydney Royal Beef Challenge CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

Charolais Bulls used to secure supply of quality beef One of Victoria's specialist suppliers of grainfed European-cross calves to the domestic market has now begun a breeding program using Charolais bulls. By Jenny Kelly Lachie McKenzie, who farms with wife Maryanne and children Lauren, Hugh and Patrick, said the move was designed to streamline their operation and give them greater flexibility of supply and better control to pre-condition weaners for lotfeeding.

It really can be a feast or famine with grain finishing livestock, and we had our good times and we were happy enough to ride out some of the tough years but by 2011 the fundamentals just weren't adding up and we had to re-evaluate,'' he said.

The overall aim being to improve performance and profitability of the feedlot arm of their business which is based at Birregurra in the south-west of Victoria.

Today Lachie is CEO of the Ballarat Racing Club, one of the busiest turf racing venues in the state.

In the late 1990â&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Lachie, who has an Ag degree majoring in ruminant nutrition, began grain finishing cattle and over the next decade became a major player in the market for Charolais, Limousin, Simmental and Belgian Blue-cross calves. At its peak the feedlot operation was turning off up to 50,000 cattle a year, buying from all the major store sales as well as weekly prime markets. Lachie said it was an interesting run, and like all other feedlots, they experienced the highs and lows associated with an industry that rides on a fine balance of cattle and grain input costs compared to slaughter beef returns.

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

It's a demanding hands-on job which takes priority, however he still has a passion for the beef industry and grain feeding The way my work life is now structured, it is no longer feasible to be buying small mobs of cattle week-in and week-out and dealing with all the administrative, transport logistics and animal health issues that involves,'' he said. Instead Lachie said they would now concentrate on supplying a core client basis with grain-fed European-cross carcasses between the months of March and September when supplies of milk vealers and grass finished cattle traditionally decline.

Lachie McKenzie (centre) talks to Victorian Charolais beef producers at a field day held on his property in May 2013.

With his business experience, Lachie is keen to try some different strategies with his cattle program and monitor the results.

Lachie said they were in the midst of putting together a herd of 500 Angus cows, which will be joined to Charolais bulls. They recently purchased 8 young sires from the Delamere stud.

He said they would look at weaning calves early at about 250kg liveweight, and then backgrounding them on a light ration to train and prepare them for a feedlot environment. It would also give them the ability to run more breeding cows.

He said practical experience from a decade of feeding European calves had shown them the Charolais offered the best package of carcass performance and temperament. “They are good cattle to handle, they perform consistently, the performance of heifers is very close to steers, and you can get enough fat cover on them,'' he said. Lachie said their clients, meat wholesalers and butcher shops, wanted lean and high yielding carcasses, milk teeth 220-260kg carcass weight, with 4-8mm of fat cover.

Weaning at a younger age and supplementary feeding is an exercise we are keen to try, and if it works the way we think it will, we would then be prepared to offer a premium to Charolais breeders who could prepare lines of calves in a similar way,'' he said. He said it came down to performance on grain, and if they could avoid the setbacks from having animals take up to 2-weeks to become accustomed to a new diet and eating out of bunkers it represented a big saving.

He said they would have spring and autumn calving cows at Coleraine, to help give them a continual supply of suitable weight and age Charolais-cross calves for feeding. They will also continue to buy lines of European-cross calves from the major weaner sales with the aim of feeding about 3000 head over the autumn and winter period.

“If we could achieve a conversion rate of 6:1 (6kg of feed for 1kg of weight gain) by having calves whose rumen's have already been adjusted to a high starch diet and are happy to put their head in a feed bunker straight away, compared to an average conversion rate of 6.5:1 for cattle coming out of saleyards it represents a significant saving,'' he said. n

From left: Chris Tuck, Anne Abbott & Chas Armytage

From left: Ken Manton & Vern Wilson CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

Cross into Profit

Earlier this year they bought a 485ha property called “Bruanlea” near Coleraine in the Western District, and it will be the supply base for calves into the feedlot at Birregurra.

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Charolais Sales 2013 2,026 bulls were offered through auctions in 2013 and 1518 head or 75 per cent were sold for a total of $6.36 million. The clearance rate was down from the higher 93 per cent rate of last year. The average price of bulls sold at auction was $4195 in 2013 versus $5210 in 2012 which was a decrease of 19.5 per cent. The top price bull was Palgrove Gusto (PK G609E) which was sold by Palgrove at their Dalveen on-property sale in August for $40,000. The five highest sale averages went to Palgrove at Dalveen ($6724), Palgrove at Scone ($5600), Ascot at Warwick ($5346), Minnie-Vale at Narrabri ($5330) and Moongool at Yuleba ($5120). Despite the season Queensland studs still produced the highest clearance rate at 78 per cent. This was followed by Victoria at 74 per cent, NSW at 72 per cent, Western Australia at 63 per cent, and South Australia at 55 per cent. OUTLOOK FOR 2014 The female slaughter number has increased by 23 .7 per cent to September 2013 and that means that the female breeding herd will be down by approximately 761,000 head on last year. During 2014 the female numbers are expected to be similar to the levels in the years 2007 and 2009. This reduction in breeding females will mean that total bull demand will be down approximately 19,000 head. The lower female numbers alone will therefore decrease bull demand by 5.6 per cent next year. But we need to consider the fact that stock prices are likely to remain low as most of the western districts of VIC, NSW and QLD are still dry. Therefore we are anticipating at least a further 7-10 per cent reduction in bull sales in 2014 in most states and possibly a 12-15 per cent reduction in QLD if western grazing regions do not get significant volumes of rain in the next three months.

MARKET GRAPHS The slaughter graph shows the steer and bull (S&B) and heifer and cow (H&C) numbers slaughtered annually to September 2013. The period 2006 to 2007 produced a 12 per cent decrease in the female herd. During extended dry periods we also see a reduction in the female herd through a higher level of mortality in the paddock which need to be added to the slaughter numbers. The results indicate the number of females available to be joined in 2014 will be down by at least 20 per cent on 2013 numbers. The Eastern Market Indicator Price reflects the inverse of the female slaughter graph and both indicators point to similar conditions to the market in 2007. n

Source for data: ABS Livestock and Meat, Sept 2013 No. 7218.0.55.001 and Meat & Livestock Australia, Weekly Cattle Market Indicators Prices.

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

Beef Production in France France has the largest population of Cattle in Europe with approximately 19 million head. This includes dairy and beef cattle. Germany is the next largest producer at 12.5 million, then the UK at 9.7 million and Italy at 6 million head.

Figure 1. The French cattle population has been decreasing since 2008.

Figure 2. Beef production in France has been decreasing over the past decade but there were higher slaughter numbers in 2010 and 2011 which pushed beef production up.

Source: Arfa, Rodriguez, Daniel and Shonkwiler 2006 (http://www.oecd.org/agriculture/44740353.pdf)

Figure 3. Agricultural Regions in France

Figure 4. Beef producing regions in France

The regions of Auvergne and Limousin are predominately beef cattle production regions. The Western regions of Pays de la Loire, Basse-Normandie produce beef cattle along with other agricultural enterprises including dairy and cereal cropping. The Central region of Bourgogne specialises Beef cattle, wine and cereal while the Southern region of Midi Pyrenees produces cereals, beef cattle and fruit. France is the fourth largest beef producer within the European Community. The majority of the income from beef product comes from coupled payments. In 2009 French producers were paid 382 Euros per head. This level was higher than the support to most EU countries.

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

Figure 5. Cattle number by region in France 2012

Beef cattle gross margins have been decreasing in France for the past 9 years which has been due to a rise in costs and a lowering of coupled payments. Beef output has been increasing but expenses have been rising at a faster rate and therefore the gross margins have been decreasing.

French Genetics France like most other countries in Europe is facing numerous environmental and animal welfare restrictions on its production system and it will not be long before de-horning is no longer permitted. The French Society has commenced a research project to identify homozygous polled animals within its herd book. The Society is also structurally scoring animals more carefully to select animals that exhibit easy care features including skin, foot and hoof health.

Markets Charolais is the dominant beef breed in France and the breed supplies meat to most European markets. In 2011 McDonalds in France introduced a Charolais beef mini-burger to provide local content in its burgers. The burger also features cheese and other locally produced products. Beef from pure Charolais is preferred in France because the animals are younger at slaughter weights relative to other breeds and the fat cover is minimal which increases carcase yield. France also imports beef from Ireland and other parts of Europe. It is expected that as coupled payments for beef and milk production are phased out then beef imports to France will increase. n

Charolais World CongreSS

FRANCE 2014 26 aug6 sep 2014

Source: The Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN) Report 2012, Page 10. http://ec.europa.eu/agriculture/rica/pdf/beef_report_2012.pdf

Figure 6. EU Beef producer returns from 2000-2011

PrograMMe AUGUST 26 Delegates welcome and overnight in Chantilly area. 27

Visit Chantilly Castle then drive to Burgundy. Overnight in Nevers-Magny Cours area.

28 & 29

Morning: Farm visits and tourist activities in Nevers area. Afternoon: National Charolais Adult Show in Magny Cours.

30 & 31

Vichy, its race course and Vulcano Park.

SEPTEMBER 1 Farm visit in Morvan. Discover several tourist assets in the heart of Burgundy, including Sully Castle in Autun. Overnight in Beaune, one of the most beautiful vineyard areas. 2

Once the booking forms become available members will be able to book their congress registrations and travel through the Society.

Meeting in Conference Hall of Beaune around the theme of “Food Efficiency of the Charolais Breed”. Guided tour of Beaune then dinner and overnight in Beaune.

The Society’s travel agent is Jacqui L’hostis from New England Travel. Jacqui can be contacted on (02) 6772 1722 or email jacqui@netc.com.au

Auction market in Saint Christophe en Brionnais then visit L’Institut Charolais, whose principal objectives are to promote Charolais meat, to undertake research and development, and to encourage innovation in the industry.

Visit Jalogny experimental farm. Overnight in Nevers.

National Charolais Calf Show and Gala Dinner at Le Ferme du Marault, both in Magny Cours.

Delegates depart.

The Charolais Society will be providing a tour fleece jacket to members that book their travel and registrations through the Society. The Society benefits from Federal Government grants for members who book their registrations and travel through the Society.

THERE IS ALSO A PRE CONGRESS TOUR IN PARIS FROM SUNDAY AUGUST 24TH TO TUESDAY AUGUST 26TH.

Tim Hayes from Ruffy in Victoria, bought seven cows and calves to start a new stud pictured with Ashwood Park principal, Harold Seeley AM.

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Buyers from five states paid to $10,000 for foundation cows and herd improvers in a fitting end to one of southern Australia's most noted and long-standing Charolais studs, Ashwood Park Charolais at Flowerdale in Victoria. By Jenny Kelly Ashwood Park Charolais, founded by Harold Seeley AM in 1967, was dispersed at the Yea saleyards in Victoria in November 2013. A passionate supporter of the breed, Harold told the crowd in a pre-auction speech that while his heart was still in the stud his body wasn't co-operating. â&#x20AC;&#x153;This is a sad day in some ways, but life goes on and there is no point in hiding physical disadvantage or old age,'' he said. Ashwood Park was a serious player in the stud game, with the Seeley's prepared to invest money in sourcing genetics not only from Australia but from the UK, Canada, the USA and France.

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

Just three years ago at the Brisbane Royal they paid a then record price of $24,000 for a young bull at the Elite Charolais Sale. Harold said his aim had always been to produce practical cattle for the southern beef industry that could calve unassisted, finish on grass, and produce a top eating carcass. The stud was prepared to back its breeding program by regularly entering cattle in carcass competitions, and its record of multiple wins at the prestigious and fiercely contested Royal Melbourne Show is unlikely to ever be repeated.

THE DISPERSAL A field of 75 buyers from five states - Queensland, NSW, Victoria, South Australia and Tasmania registered to bid for the catalogue of 162 lots. The cattle were penned in the under-cover Yea saleyards, and the auction was held indoors with video footage of each animal shown as it was being sold. The top price of $10,000 was paid by Graeme Cook, Rangan Park Charolais, for lot 15 - an eight-year-old daughter of LHD Cigar with an impressive bull calf by Ashwood Park Rio. A large crowd attended the Ashwood Park Female Dispersal Sale held at the Yea Showgrounds.

But rather than a top price, it was the consistency of the sale which was impressive.

Ashwood Park was also a leader in promoting Charolais-cross cattle through saleyards, and by regularly topping the noted Yea weaner sales in January with Charolais Red Angus-cross calves they were able to showcase the weight gain ability of the breed.

Overall the dispersal grossed $538,000 from the following results:

Duncan Newcomen, who managed Ashwood Park for 30-years, said the property's commercial focus and work in promoting the breed to stock agents and farmers was one of the things he was most proud of.

• 45 heifers averaged $2733

“I honestly don't believe the breed would be where it is today if stud's like Ashwood Park hadn't stuck with the cattle through the difficult 1980's and 90's and then really worked to promote their weight gain and crossbreeding ability,'' Duncan said.

• 6 embryos averaged $1241

• 92 cows and calves aged 6-8 months av: $4073 • 4 stud bulls sold averaged $5750 • 15 semen packages averaged $671

“We went from selling Charolais-cross weaners over the hooks to putting them in saleyards to get the message out there, and it was one of the best marketing things we ever done.

Most in demand were proven bloodlines, particularly females which traced back to one of the stud's grand dams Miss Universe, while on the sire side LHD Cigar, Dbar Synergy and Gaugin were particularly sought after.

And I think it is one of the reason we have seen so much buyer competition at this dispersal as people recognise the commercial credentials of these stud cows and calves.'' n

Buyers such as Russel Menzies, Manogplah in NSW, said the dispersal had offered a rare chance to secure genuine stud cattle with a long history. A lifetime's work has gone into these cattle and you are buying genuine females, so from that perspective there is a fair bit of value,'' he said after paying $4000 and $3250 for two cows and calves for the family's Wirra Park stud. A volume buyer was Ron Johnstone, Beaudesert in Queensland, who paid to $6000 for 14 cows and calves. The north was a buying hot spot with two semi-loads of Ashwood Park cattle sent to Queensland. Victoria was also well represented, with Michael Turra, Dimontee Charolais at Buchan, buying eight females to a top of $8000; while JNP Charolais, Health Hill, bought five lots at up to $4000. Staying close to home in Yea were eight females at up to $8500 selected by Duncan Newcoman for his Tambo River Charolais stud.

Russel Menzies, Wirra Park Charolais at Mangoplah in NSW, bought two cows and calves for $4000 and $3250 CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

Royal Melbourne Show 2013

The Anna McCarthy Memorial Supreme Exhibit Winchester Net, Winchester Charolais.

Waterford Gibraltar, Senior Champion Bull

Rosedale Hero, Junior & Grand Champion Bull

Rosedale Golden Girl Junior Champion Heifer

Photo courtesy of Wayne Jenkins.

ROYAL MELBOURNE SHOW 2013 CHAMPIONS: Supreme Charolais Exhibit The Anna McCarthy Memorial Trophy Winchester Net F22E (AI) (ET) (P) (R/F)

G.O’Brien, Winchester Charolais

Grand Champion Bull

Rosedale Hero (P)

Senior Champion Bull

Waterford Gibraltar G82E (P)

Reserve Senior Champion Bull

Airlie Gallic (AI) (ET) (P)

Junior Champion Bull

Rosedale Hero (P)

Reserve Junior Champion Bull

Rosedale Harry (AI) (P)

Grand Champion Female

Winchester Net F22E (AI) (ET) (P) (R/F)

G. O’Brien, Winchester Charolais

Senior Champion Cow

Winchester Net F22E (AI) (ET) (P) (R/F)

G. O’Brien, Winchester Charolais

Reserve Senior Champion Cow

Airlie Rebecca G10F (AI)

Junior Champion Heifer

Rosedale Golden Girl H410 (AI) (ET)

Reserve Junior Champ Heifer

Waterford Harmony H7E (P)

Best Three Head

Rosedale Charolais

Sire’s Progeny

Waterford Charolais

Best Two Bulls under 20mths

Rosedale Charolais

Best Two Females under 20mths

Waterford Charolais

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

JM, MJ & JL Millner, Rosedale Charolais D & S Halliday, Waterford Charolais McLachlan Group, Airlie Charolais JM, MJ & JL Millner, Rosedale Charolais MJ & JL Millner, Rosedale Charolais

McLachlan Group, Airlie Charolais JM, MJ & JL Millner, Rosedale Charolais D & S Halliday, Waterford Charolais JM, MJ & JL Millner, Rosedale Charolais D & S Halliday, Waterford Charolais JM, MJ & JL Millner, Rosedale Charolais D & S Halliday, Waterford Charolais

VICTORIA REGIONAL REPORT Despite a tough year with a very dry summer and autumn, a severe drought in Queensland and the Top End, dismal cattle prices and tough bull sales, the outlook in Victoria is positive. We continue to see constant demand for lines of Charolais cross cattle, while the numbers go on increasing. The North East, around Yea's new covered saleyards, continue to yard quality Charolais cross cattle throughout the year. Plenty has happened during the year, and in no real order; January Weaner Sales - The Victorian Region once again conducted the Stock & Land Merial Weaner Competition at selected weaner sales throughout the state. Judges selected a winning pen at each sale based on a set criteria. Wodonga, Yea and Hamilton were the venues and it creates enormous interest. The promotion of the breed is fantastic. We thank Merial and Stock & Land for their ongoing support. Victorian Region AGM - 26th May saw the Victorian Region conduct their AGM at Bunninyong (near Ballarat). The meeting was preceded by a visit to Lachie McKenzie's property to see his Charolais cross cattle on feed. It was a most informative morning with Lachie explaining his entire operation and why Charolais cross cattle suited his enterprise. The AGM saw many new younger members elected to our committee. We welcomed Sapphire Halliday, James Waddell, Colin Pickering, Edwina Wiltshire , Ken Manton and had Noelene King re-elected after an absence. Already Sapphire has been elected a joint Vice President and Youth Representative, and James is set to take over from Chris Tuck as Treasurer next year. It is most pleasing to have these younger energetic people involved. Sue Pike retired from the committee in December 2012, and Bernie Lamers did not seek re-election. We thank them sincerely for their outstanding contribution over many years. Lastly, I will definitely be stepping down as Chairman before our next AGM. Celebration Dinner - The 7th Annual Charolais Celebration Dinner, held on the 13th of July at Hilton on the Park, was again a great success. Bob Katter made the trip from QLD, Bryan Dawe entertained brilliantly and Australia's six time Junior Whip Cracking Champion wowed guests with his skills. Our guest Auctioneer, Anthony Delaney of Rodwells & Co., conducted a great auction and raised over $7,000. The dinner organiser and principal sponsor, Sue Pike, was presented with an award for “Outstanding Service to the Region” presented by President Keith Glasson, on behalf of the Federal Council, for her outstanding contribution to promoting Charolais in the Victorian region. It was the first time the Federal Council has presented such an award and it could not have gone to a more deserving servant of the Charolais breed. Well done Sue!! Melbourne Show 2013 - A good lineup of cattle were judged at the Royal Melbourne Show in September when we welcomed back interstate studs Winchester, Airlie and Rosedale alongside our Victorian exhibitors including the final showing of Ashwood Park cattle. In a year where entries in the cattle classes were down considerably our entries of 36 head were most credible. Michael Ireland from Buln Buln officiated as judge and we welcomed to the ring Associate Judge Kane Sparks. The Grand Champion awards were won by interstate exhibitors – the Milner’s Rosedale Charolais stud won Grand Champion Bull with Rosedale Hero, and Gavin O’Brien of Winchester Charolais won Grand Champion Female and Supreme Charolais Exhibit with Winchester Net. Whilst we had a good lineup of cattle, unfortunately Charolais did not feature in the Interbreed, but it was good to see sales being made during the Show. The judging was followed by trophy presentations and a social get together for exhibitors, Charolais members and friends. A very big thank you to all our trophy donors for their generosity in supporting this show yet again. Graham Smith - Many thanks to our Federal Councilor Graham Smith. Graham has not enjoyed great health of recent times and we thank him for performing this arduous task and acknowledge his contribution to Federal Council over many years and his years as Chairman. Brien Bourke and Peter Green - Sadly during the year we recorded the passing of two great former members of the Victorian Region and supporters of Charolais. They were both wonderful characters and will be sadly missed. H.A.Seeley AM. - It would be remiss of me not to mention Harold Seeley's retirement from farming and breeding Charolais cattle. As I write, the Ashwood Park Herd is set to be dispersed at auction in the covered yards at Yea. No doubt this sale will be reported before this but on behalf of all Members, thank you Harold, for a lifetime contribution to Charolais. You have been there from day one and ridden the highs and lows, but have remained always dedicated to how this breed performs. It is wonderful to see your dedication vindicated by how well Charolais cross are sought after, with a reputation of great performance under any conditions. I have forgotten how many times your calves have topped the Yea Weaner sales, but your record of 13 Grand Champion Carcasses at the Royal Melbourne Show sits right alongside Bart's twelve Melbourne Cups! We wish you and Annie a long and wonderful retirement. Chas Armytage VIC Region Chairman CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

M O U N T

W I L L I A M

S T A T I O N ,

W I L L A U R A ,

V I C T O R I A

INSPECT CATTLE AT BEEF WEEK FIELD DAY TUESDAY 4TH FEBRUARY 2014.

15TH ANNUAL ON PROPERTY PRODUCTION

BULL & FEMALE SALE FRIDAY 14TH FEBRUARY 2014 AT 1PM • 50 rising 2 year old Bulls • 25 PTIC Heifers For further details contact: Rob Abbott Tel: (03) 5354 1265 or 0417 502 692 Email: rob@mtwilliamcharolais.com.au

Royal Adelaide Show 2013

From left: Chenu Kelly 2, Reserve Junior Champion Heifer, led by Lisa Kirk, and Chenu Rebecca 3, Supreme Champion, led by Beck Keeley with judge Hayden Green

Chenu Rebecca 3, Grand Champion Female

From left: Boulview Hudson, Junior Champion Bull with Thomas Fogden, and Boulview Gardiner, Grand Champion Bull with Alizah Fogden Photo courtesy of Wayne Jenkins.

ROYAL ADELAIDE SHOW 2013 CHAMPIONS: Supreme Champion Charolais Exhibit

Chenu Rebecca 3 (AI) (ET) (P)

Chenu Holdings

Most Successful Charolais Exhibitor

Chenu Holdings

Grand Champion Charolais Bull

Boulview Gardiner (P)

A J, T R & E J Fogden

Senior Champion Charolais Bull

Boulview Gardiner (P)

A J, T R & E J Fogden

Junior Champion Charolais Bull

Boulview Hudson (P)

A J, T R & E J Fogden

Reserve Junior Champion Charolais Bull

Chenu Harley (AI) (P)

Chenu Holdings

Grand Champion Charolais Female

Chenu Rebecca 3 (AI) (ET) (P)

Chenu Holdings

Senior Champion Charolais Cow

Chenu Pussycat 18 (AI) (ET) (P)

Chenu Holdings

Reserve Senior Champion Charolais Cow

Blaweary Emogene (ET) (P)

Junior Champion Charolais Cow or Heifer

Chenu Rebecca 3 (AI) (ET) (P)

Chenu Holdings

Reserve Junior Champion Charolais Cow or heifer

Chenu Kelly 2 (AI) (P)

Chenu Holdings

Elgin Park Charolais

Charolais will be the feature breed at the 2014 Royal Adelaide Show. The dates for the show will be 5th and 6th of September. Final dates and times have not yet been determined for events as yet. Rob Martin, the SA Society Breed Advisor, may be able to prove more information in early 2014. Contact Rob on 08 8210 5229 or email rmartin@adelaideshowground.com.au CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

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Charolais weaners are winners in Victoria! The Victorian Region held for the fourth year their very successful Charolais Weaner Competition. The competition is aimed at promoting the excellent prices Charolais and Charolais cross calves achieve at weaner calf sales throughout the state. Calves are judged on suitable weight range, information supplied by vendor at point of sale, type, butt shape, length, condition, temperament and muscle pattern of calves, and presentation and evenness of the pen. The competition is sponsored by Merial Australia and Stock & Land. Each sale winner receives a 2.5 litre pack of Eprinex Drench from Merial and two tickets to the Celebration Beef Dinner. A quarter page ad appears in the Stock & Land the following week with a photo of the winner and listing the top Charolais results from each sale.

The Weaner Competition for 2014 is going to be BIG, with a huge drop of Charolais calves listed for sale across the state!

13 - 9th January 20 ton il m a H rs ne in W milton ge, “Glenayre”, Ha a P rd ha ic R & ie Jod us steers 30 Charolais/Ang for $708 each. 192¢/kg averaged 369kg @

Winners Wodonga Cook Family, Rang 11 th January 2013 an Charolais, Sand y Creek 18 Charolais/Ang u s stee rs averaged 437 kg so ld for $780 each.

Winners Yea - 9th January 2013 Tarrawarra Abbey , Yarra Glen. 18 Charolais/Red Angu sold for $670 each.s steers

Winners Yea - 11th January 2013 Peter & Gerard Hauser, Yea 20 Charolais/Angus steers averaged for $740 each.

WA YOUTH CAMP 2014 The WA Youth Cattle Handlers Camp would like to welcome Charolais Society youth members to attend our 10th annual camp to be held on the 24th, 25th and 26th April 2014 at the Brunswick Show Grounds. The purpose of this camp is to educate young people from all ages of 8 -25 years in various aspects of the cattle industry. The aim of the camp is to ensure cattle handling skills are not lost within the industry. Under direction of the committee who has extensive experience in the cattle industry, the participantâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s will gain knowledge and hands on experience in: 1. Handling skills in and out of the show ring 2. Safety 3. Cattle health and nutrition 4. Public speaking With having nine successful camps under the belt, the committee is pleased to see previous participants grow into the agricultural industry by being employed within livestock firms, stud breeders, a rural newspaper firm and being Western Australiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s first female livestock auctioneer.

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

In 2008 a junior WA Charolais member, Mathew Fairbrass participated in the camp and was awarded Highest Beef Achiever which was a sponsored trip to attend the Queensland Charolais Muster by Downunder Charolais Stud. Since then Mathew has gone on to win Interbreed Senior female and Junior Champion female at recent Perth Royal Shows with his Charolais stud, Fairbrass Park. Entries to the WA Youth Cattle Handlers Camp open in early March 2014 with forms and entry conditions posted on the website, www.wacattlecamp.com. Entry fee to attend the camp is $160 along with a $30 fee to loan an animal if required. If you require any additional information about the WA Youth Cattle Handlers Camp please contact Aimee Court on 08 9755 9038 or truleecharolais@hotmail.com.

Royal Perth Show 2013

Supreme Champion, Downunder Aqua Regent (P), L.I. Millner, Downunder Charolais with from left judges Donald Patch & Annette Walker, Lesley Millner, judge Roger Evans, handlers Nikki Ford & Crystal Hansen, judge Peter Collins, Landmark WA Livestock Manager Leon Giglia (Landmark sponsored the class)

Liberty Hawkeye (AI) (P), Junior & Grand Champion Bull

Venturon Hannah (P), Junior Champion Female

Interbreed Group of Three Purebreed Bulls, Downunder Charolais Photos courtesy of Farm Weekly

ROYAL PERTH SHOW 2013 CHAMPIONS: Supreme Champion

Downunder Aqua Regent (P)

L.I. Millner, Downunder Charolais

Most Successful Exhibitor

Liberty Charolais

Kevin Yost, Liberty Charolais

Grand Champion Bull

Liberty Hawkeye (AI) (P)

Kevin Yost, Liberty Charolais

Junior Champion Bull

Liberty Hawkeye (AI) (P)

Kevin Yost, Liberty Charolais

Reserve Junior Champion Bull

Sinagra Mac (AI) (ET) (P)

LM & KE Giglia, Sinagra Charolais

Grand Champion Female

Downunder Aqua Regent (P)

L.I. Millner, Downunder Charolais

Senior Champion Female

Downunder Aqua Regent (P)

L.I. Millner, Downunder Charolais

Reserve Senior Champion Female

Blaweary Emogene (AI) (ET) (P)

J & B Quilty, Elgin Park Charolais

Junior Champion Female

Venturon Hannah (P)

Reserve Junior Champ Heifer

Liberty Herseys Kisses (P) (R/F)

Kevin Yost, Liberty Charolais

Progeny Group Of Three

Liberty Charolais

Kevin Yost, Liberty Charolais

Breeders Group of Three

Liberty Charolais

Kevin Yost, Liberty Charolais

M. Fairbrass & A. Court, Fairbrass Charolais

Landmark All Breeds Supreme Senior Champion Interbreed Beef Female

L.I. Millner, Downunder Charolais

Breeders Group of Three Bulls Interbreed Competition

L.I. Millner, Downunder Charolais

Landmark Breeders Group of three Heifers Interbreed Competition - 3rd place All Breeds Supreme Junior Champion Beef Bull - 2nd place All Breeds Supreme Junior Champion Beef Female - Equal 4th place

DA & AE Thompson, Venturon Charolais Kevin Yost, Liberty Charolais M. Fairbrass & A. Court, Fairbrass Charolais CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

DOWNUNDER CHAROLAIS STUD STU

Downunder Aqua Regent: Grand Champion Charolais Female & Senior Interbreed Champion Female at Perth Royal Show 2013

HOME SIRED BULLS AND FEMALES FOR SALE Le Lesley sley a and nd Rob Rob Millne Millner r Robley Park Grazing Woorloo WA 3205 Bailup Road, Woorloo WA 6558 Phone: 08 9573 1018 Fax: 08 9573 1508 Downunder Charolais Team at the Brunswick Sale 2007

Email: downundercharolais@bigpond.com

Barbaro Brothers strike silver in WA! By Caitlyn West Charolais is the order of the day for Barbaro Brothers Quality Butchers owner Ralph Barbaro. It’s the breed with the right speed for laying down muscle mass and producing a tender and tasty steak with the ideal proportion of fat. And for a butcher, that’s what it’s all about. “If a steak eats well, that’s the most important part for a butcher,” Ralph said. “You want your customer to enjoy that experience and have confidence in returning the next week and receiving the same product. The Charolais has given us that consistency and confidence. Since using beef with a Charolais infusion, I have seen a noticeable difference in the end result. The meat is just magnificent.” Situated in the suburb of Greenwood, northern Perth, Western Australia, the Barbaro brothers have been synonymous with quality since they opened their doors in 1987. Ralph said both he and his older brother Dominic had both completed their butcher apprenticeships and wanted a bit of a break, but their father insisted they start their own business.

The combination of the ‘silver calf’, the result of using Charolais bulls over Angus or Murray Grey cows, was producing some outstanding progeny with the balance of traits every butcher wants in their cabinets. “You’re getting tenderness and muscle mass together in one product, it’s a winwin combination,” Ralph said. “From what I can tell, if you’ve got that cross then they’ll just keep putting on muscle in the feedlot, rather than excess fat. And I can’t sell fat, I sell the meat.”

Thankfully for the meat lovers of Perth, they took their father’s advice and purchased the Greenwood premises they are still operating out of today.

The higher yield and quality of meat produced by an animal with Charolais breeding also made way for better quality trim that can usually be used in mince, rather than sausages, giving butchers better returns.

In the years they have been butchering, the Barbaro’s have seen a huge shift from the standard steaks and sausages to a more gourmet approach.

This year Ralph said he will be targeting the Charolais cross animals to purchase for the feedlot, hoping to get his hands on as many of the ‘silver calves’ as possible.

“It’s not just steaks and sausages anymore, even though they are still a large part of our business,” Ralph said. “There’s been a big shift toward gourmet products and people wanting to know more about their meat. It got to the point where you had to get creative or get out, because you had to find a way to keep your clientele interested. So we refined what we did.” Part of that process was taking a more active role in the selection of the animals they used through the shop and Ralph decided he needed to learn from those in the know. He started taking notice of what breeds other butchers were buying and regularly chatting to people in the saleyards, with one person in particular outlining the benefits of buying cattle bred with a European influence. It was The Beef Shop’s Kevin Armstrong, who now buys all the livestock used by the Barbaro family to be put through a Mogumber feedlot. “I wanted to become more knowledgeable about cattle, so a few years ago I set out to have a bit more control over our product,” Ralph said. “Kevin is a strong supporter of the Euro-cross cattle and he recommended we buy the Charolais-cross animals. And now we prefer that Charolais cross because we’re getting a better end result every time.” Most of the cattle Kevin now purchases for the Barbaro brothers has a Charolais influence, usually combined with the English breeds such as Angus or Murray Grey.

The silver calf initiative had been gathering momentum even before the Charolais Society of Australia began to conduct trials a couple of years ago. They wanted to quantify the hybrid vigour, retail beef yield and benefits achieved by using Charolais bulls over other breeds such as Angus, Hereford or Shorthorn females. General manager Terence Farrell said so far they have found the Charolais cross calves were reaching their target weights up to three months earlier than a pure British calf, with an extra 10 per cent carcase weight as well. By using a Charolais bull over other breeds, they also reported calving difficulties to be less than one per cent. “Surprisingly, a lot of people were already doing the cross with a Charolais bull and had experienced the weight gains and calving ease that came with it,” Terence said. “Butchers have also caught on quickly, as animals with a Charolais influence produce higher meat yields and they make more money out of it. Not only does it yield higher, the meat eating quality is much better.” This is why Ralph Barbaro will be searching the saleyards across WA this season, in order to get his hands on as many calves that contained the Charolais component as he can. “The meat is so tender, it’s beautiful,” Ralph said. “When you’re cutting a steak for a customer and know you can sell it with confidence, that’s when you know you’re on the right track.” n Story compliments of Farm Weekly.

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

Royal Brisbane Show 2013

Champion of Champions Bull Moongool Gunsmoke (P), IB Price, Moongool Charolais.

Junior Champion Heifer, Palgrove Cherry Ripe 57, D & P Bondfield, Palgrove Charolais

Supreme Matron of Australia, Airlee Rebecca G10F (AI), McLachlan Group, Airlie Charolais

Champion Junior Led Heifer, St. Joseph’s High School Aberdeen

ROYAL BRISBANE SHOW 2013 CHAMPIONS: The Bassingthwaighte Trophy Champion of Champions Bull

Moongool Gunsmoke (P)

IB Price, Moongool Charolais

The Warby Trophy Champion of Champions Breed Pair

Moongool Gunsmoke (P) Airlee Rebecca G10F (AI)

IB Price, Moongool Charolais McLachlan Group, Airlie Charolais

Supreme Matron of Australia

Airlee Rebecca G10F (AI)

McLachlan Group, Airlie Charolais

Reserve Supreme Matron of Australia Advance Treasure E98 (R/F)

SB Hayward, Advance Charolais

Grand Champion Bull

Moongool Gunsmoke (P)

IB Price, Moongool Charolais

Senior Champion Bull

Moongool Gunsmoke (P)

IB Price, Moongool Charolais

Reserve Senior Champion Bull

Moongool Fairfax (P)

IB Price, Moongool Charolais

Junior Champion Bull

Advance Hercules H1

SB Hayward, Advance Charolais

Reserve Junior Champion Bull

DSK BD Goldstrike G102E (P) (R/F)

Grand Champion Cow/Heifer

Airlee Rebecca G10F (AI)

McLachlan Group, Airlie Charolais

Senior Champion Cow/Heifer

Airlee Rebecca G10F (AI)

McLachlan Group, Airlie Charolais

CR Knox &HD Alexander, DSK Charolais

Reserve Senior Champion Cow/Heifer Advance Treasure E98 (R/F) Junior Champion Heifer

Palgrove Cherry Ripe 57

Reserve Junior Champion Heifer

Monument Valley Hope (AI) (ET) (P) (R/F)

Champion Junior Led Steer

Holy Trinity School, Inverell

Champion Junior Led Heifer

St Joseph’s High School, Aberdeen

SB Hayward, Advance Charolais D & P Bondfield, Palgrove Charolais G Waldron, Elite Charolais Led by Tom O’Brien Led by Lauren Parkinson

Champion Junior Heifer Hook & Hook St Joseph’s High School, Aberdeen Bred by Greg & Leonie Ball, Grenell Charolais

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

QUEENSLAND REGIONAL REPORT The extreme drought conditions throughout Western & Northern Queensland are taking a severe toll on the cattle market & cattlemen. Cattle prices are generally down but only because of the flood of cattle from drought stricken areas in Qld & NT. Having said this there are still tremendous opportunities in the industry once the drought breaks with exports and export demand at all time highs. The sale prices for Charolais bulls have been generally down on last year but clearance rates have been reasonable. I feel there will be great demand for Charolais bulls in the new year and years to come when the weather breaks. There is a definite lift in the profile of Charolais in Qld with many commercial sales having Charolais cross cattle topping the markets. I think this has come about by the Society & individual breeders promoting the breed strongly. The Charolais commercial magazine I think lifted the breeds profile well. The Brisbane Royal show was a great success for the breed in tough times with the Charolais winning the interbreed competition. There was a good roll up for drinks at the show from Charolais members. Jim Wedge, QLD Region Chairman

Holly Pender, QLD Youth Ambassador 2013 My time as Charolais Youth Ambassador has offered me numerous opportunities within the cattle industry and has opened my eyes to the direction in which the Charolais breed is headed. I have enjoyed opportunities such as stewarding at the Sydney Royal Easter Show where the Charolais feature show was held this year and attending a judging clinic held at Rosevale Santa Gertrudis Stud. At the Sydney Royal this year a number of events were put on for the Charolais Youth including junior judges and paraders competitions. The opportunities of stewarding and judging have given me insight into the effort and expertise that goes into the shows that I attend throughout the year. I would like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank everyone who has assisted me during this time. Through seeing the different campaigns by the Charolais Society to promote cross breeding with Charolais Cattle I am confident that this is a breed I will continue to be involved with in the future.

AYR

The Beefy Charolais

Thank you to everyone that supported our Annual Sale

$18,000 Top Price 1045 kg EMA of 148 sq cm P8 9mm

Rib 6mm

Sold To

Ian & Del Price

Moongool Yuleba

Annual Sale

15 Sept 2014

106 Bulls Av $3933

Paddock Bulls & Females For Sale George , Ruth & David Cass . Mungabunda Moura Qld

Ph/ Fax

07 49963127

Est 1972

Email grcass@bigpond.com CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

Outstanding Regional Service Award to Sue Pike Sue Pike was presented with the inaugural Outstanding Regional Service Award at the Victorian Regional Dinner held on Saturday 13th July 2013 by the Society’s President, Mr Keith Glasson. The Victorian Region Chairman, Mr Chas Armytage, provided the following recommendation: Sue Pike was employed at Harold Seeley’s ‘Woodlands’ Charolais stud in 1988. She worked in the advertising industry and later set up her own business, ‘Susan Pike Productions’ in East Melbourne. Sue started helping the Victorian Region with advertising prior to joining the committee in 1998. Since that time she has directed the advertising and promotion for the region. She took the region’s advertising from virtually none and only done on an ad hoc basis, to become the envy of other breeds with clearly focussed and targeted, professional advertising. Sue has also organised the Victorian Region Celebration Dinner. It was entirely her idea and she has personally organised all of the sponsors. This annual dinner has been so successful over the past years with fundraising (auction) that Victoria has been able to spend in excess of $10,000 annually on breed promotion.

When we think of Sue’s contribution we think of: her drive for success, outstanding vision of a promotional strategy; ability to execute all aspects of the vision, which includes raising the funds; favourable negotiations with suppliers; carrying out the design and supply of artwork to suppliers on time; and the outstanding quality of the finished promotional articles. When Sue announced her resignation from the Victorian Region Committee last December due to her heavy business and personal commitments, she indicated that she was prepared, if required, although she is no longer on the Victorian Region Committee to continue to organise our advertising and the Celebration Dinner.

Sue has been responsible for providing members with banners and promotional material which has provided extra income for the Victorian Region. Her flair for design and efficient organisation was evident in the displays she has done for our cattle on show at the Royal Melbourne Show. Charolais are now recognised as one of the leading breeds for cross breeding cattle in Victoria and this position has been achieved in part, or more because of, excellent promotional work. She has travelled extensively throughout the state attending Weaner Sales, Field Days, sponsorship meetings, liaising with commercial cattle producers and assisting stud producers with catalogues.

Sue Pike being presented with the inaugural award by Federal President Keith Glasson, with introduction to guests at the 2013 Celebration Beef Dinner by Chas Armytage.

Royal Canberra Show 2013

Supreme Champion Charolais, Airlie Fiable (P) (R/F), McLachlan Group, Airlie Charolais

Senior & Grand Champion Female, Crathes Desire 701 (AI) (P), MC & C Ickinger, Herlo Park

Junior Champion Female, Airlie Stonehut H1E (AI) (P), McLachlan Group, Airlie Charolais

Junior Champion Bull, Rangan Park Homer H24 with Claire Cook

Champion Led Purebred Steer Rosedale Bandit, St. John’s College Dubbo

ROYAL CANBERRA SHOW 2013 CHAMPIONS: Supreme Champion

Airlie Fiable (P) (R/F)

McLachlan Group, Airlie Charolais

Grand Champion Bull

Airlie Fiable (P) (R/F)

McLachlan Group, Airlie Charolais

Senior Champion Bull

Airlie Fiable (P) (R/F)

McLachlan Group, Airlie Charolais

Junior Champion Bull

Rangan Park Homer H24 (AI (ET) (P)

Reserve Junior Champion Bull

Rosedale Grisham (P)

Grand Champion Female

Crathes Desire 701 (AI) (P)

MC & C Ickinger, Herlo Park

Senior Champion Female

Crathes Desire 701 (AI) (P)

MC & C Ickinger, Herlo Park

Reserve Senior Champion Female

Rosedale Beatrix E83 (AI) (P)

Junior Champion Female

Airlie Stonehut H1E (AI) (P)

Reserve Junior Champion Female

Rosedale Candy G304E (AI) (ET) (P) (R/F)

Champion Led Purebred Steer

Rosedale Bandit

Cook Family, Rangan Charolais Rosedale Charolais

Rosedale Charolais McLachlan Group, Airlie Charolais Rosedale Charolais St. John’s College, Dubbo CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

New England Girls’ School Livestock Team Mark Fisher is the new agriculture teacher at NEGS and is working to develop the cattle club. Lyall Cameron (agriculture assistant) started the cattle club in 1994. The Charolais stud has been very kindly supported by the Clonan family – Cobrabald Charolais and more recently Rob and Kylie Costello – Moona Plains Charolais. Cattle club (now Livestock Team) provides students with the opportunity to enhance self-confidence and personal development by working with young stock, which are prepared and presented at shows and competitions. The team also provides an excellent basis for students to develop their knowledge of science through the study of animal psychology and behaviour, the implications of feeding and housing strategies, the impact of pest and weed management and the use of technology. Cattle handling skills, cattle and meat judging and assessment, nutrition and breeding is taught with the intention to utilise and teach more innovations such as EBV's alongside AI and ET. This will all contribute to excellent beef industry education for our students. The team has provided a strong social network for members and a support base for the junior students as they move into the Senior School. The future plan for our school stud is to breed quality commercially viable stud bulls and females for our very keen student base to compete with at various livestock competitions.

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

Where possible, the aim is to sell a handful of quality bulls. Those cattle that don't meet our selection criteria will be destined for 'hoof and hook'/carcase competitions. Our aim is to breed smaller framed, earlier maturing, easy doing cattle and still try and hold on to that muscle and weight gain that the breed is renowned for. The great thing we find with well muscled Charolais is that our heifers are also competitive in carcase competitions. With small cattle numbers, we need to be 'keeping up with the breed' so artificial breeding programs will be of great importance. We would like to source competitive Charolais and Charolais cross steers for next year's Sydney Royal Show and would be happy to promote breeders with our school. If you think you could be of assistance in any way, this would be greatly appreciated. Please contact me at mark.fisher@negs.nsw.edu.au or phone 0408 952 644. We have a very successful Livestock Team at NEGS with very capable students, staff and parents involved in the beef industry.

HIGHLIGHTS OF THE PAST 12 MONTHS INCLUDE: Sydney Show 2013 Three NEGS students and Charolais Youth members competed in the junior judging and parading competitions held as part of the Charolais breeds feature show activities. Emma Costello placed first in both the junior judging and parading competitions in her age group. Isobel Robertson placed second in the parading competition for her age group. Abbie Robertson placed in both junior judging and parading in her age group. Abbie Robertson led a purebred Charolais steer named Fluffy, bred by Chris Knox and Helen Alexander of DSK Charolais to win the Champion School Parader competition. Armidale Show 2013 Emma Costello - 1st place intermediate and overall Champion judge out of 170 students. NEGS was 1st place out of 7 schools in the herdsman award which they have now won 3 year's in a row. Steer competition - 1st and 2nd in light weight class, 1st and 3rd in heavy weight class, out of 22 steers, and Champion steer. Wingham Beef Week 2013 Amelia Ghiggioli, Emma Costello and Abbie Robertson all 1st place junior judging classes. Emma Costello went on to win the overall Champion junior judge, Champion cattle handler and overall most successful competitor out of 260 students.

Emma Costello, a member of the NEGS Livestock Team.

Tamworth Beef Championships 2013 In the 12 - 14 years Junior Judging Competition, Olivia Carter was Highly Commended, Kathleen McPhie received third place and Olivia Fenwicke second place. In the 15-16 years Junior Judging Competition, Kate Cannington was Highly Commended.

Abbie Robertson – 1st place senior cattle paraders.

In the 15-16 Years Junior Cattle Handling, Kate Cannington and Isabella Ghiggioli were both finalist.

Two out of our 3 steers won their class, and Grand Champion steer of show.

In the 12-14 years Junior Cattle Handling, Amelia Ghiggioli was awarded the overall winner. n

The UQ Animal Genetics Laboratory has been providing diagnostic genotyping services to Australia’s livestock industries since 1993. An agreement between The University of Queensland and Neogen’s GeneSeek subsidiary in 2012 has delivered cutting edge agrigenomic solutions to the forefront of Australia’s beef breeding industry. Our success story is simple: – High quality results – Fast and reliable turn-around time – Excellence in customer service What can the AGL do for you? 1. DNA typing and parentage veriﬁcation for cattle 2. Genetic disease testing for cattle 3. Whole genome SNP proﬁling For more information please telephone (07) 5460 1960 or visit uq.edu.au/vetschool/agl

CRICOS Provider Number 00025B

UQ ANIMAL GENETICS LABORATORY

uq.edu.au

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

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Charolais Beef Central Advertising 2014 During the 2014 season the Society will be moving toward connecting the Charolais breed with more commercial producers. Research indicates that over 60 per cent of producers now go on-line to seek information on topics of interest. BeefCentral.com is a beef cattle news information site that provides fresh new content daily. The site sends out a news feed to over 7000 subscribers daily and this feed carries the advertisements that are on the siteâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s home page.

The site records 650,000 hits per month with the market distribution matching commercial cattle production percentage across Australia. The Society has booked advertising space during the autumn and spring peak selling periods and we will be tracking response hit rates on our website to measure the effectiveness of the promotion.

Members are encouraged to advertise on this site as well to increase your market exposure. A media kit is available from the Charolais Society office or members can contact Beef Central directly via their contacts page on the website. The dates for the Societyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s campaign are below. Autumn Sales 1. Home Page 2. Home Page 3. Production Page 4. Home Page 5. Home Page 6. Production Page

13 - 19 Jan 2014 20 - 26 Jan 2014 27 Jan - 2 Feb 2014 3 - 9 Feb 2014 10 - 16 Feb 2014 17 - 24 Feb 2014

Spring Sales 7. Home Page Production Page 8. 9. Home Page 10. Production Page 11. Home Page 12. Home Page 13. Production Page 14. Home Page

7 - 13 Jul 2014 14 - 20 Jul 2014 21 - 27 Jul 2014 28 Jul - 3 Aug 2014 4 - 10 Aug 2014 11 - 17 Aug 2014 18 - 24 Aug 2014 25 - 31 Aug 2014

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

Reprinted courtesy of Country Living magazine

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

On Property Dispersal Sale: Feb-March 2014 100 Reg Cows & Calves, 30 Reg H Heifers (70%Poll), 20 Reg G Hfrs, 30 Yrlng Bulls (70%Poll)

Calves at foot by Palgrove Florida (P) $19,000 (2011 Sale), Branch View Eldorado (P) $12,500 (2011 Sale), Ascot Governor (P) $9,000 (2012 Sale) & Ascot Gold Rush (P) $9,000 (2012 Sale). 90% of CAF are Polled! (P), Branch View Eldorado(P), Ascot Gold Rush(P) & Ayr Stern(RF) Also selling: 150 Quality Charbray cows with calves at foot & running with Cordelia and Granville Charbray Bulls.

FURTHER DETAILS OF DISPERSAL SALE LATER IN THE YEAR OR CONTACT: Gavin and Diane Arneil, Granville, Baralaba, Queensland Phone (07) 4998 1285 or 0427 981 285.

www.granvillecharolais.com

New Horn Poll Test available A new test is available to record the horn-poll status of animals. This new test is a refinement of the one that was first introduced via the BEEF CRC in 2010. The test can now predict a â&#x20AC;&#x153;trueâ&#x20AC;? poll (or homozygous poll) with greater accuracy (89 % in Charolais). Demand for polled cattle has increased substantially during the past three years. Large scale commercial cattle producers in western and northern regions claim that the expense and time associated with dehorning cattle which miss marking musters is high. If horns are not removed then bruising can be a substantial cost to these producers and the processors who purchases the animals. Similarly commercial producers with smaller operations find it difficult and inconvenient to remove horns and there are also occupational health and safety issues that arise from handling horned animals. The test works by counting the number of alleles that are associated with horn or poll markers. In some breeds these markers were very distinct with strong poll or horn associations; however, in Charolais the markers did not clearly indicate a horn or poll result and therefore the test was less accurate relative to some other breeds. The new test counts more marker points and provides a more accurate prediction relative to the previous test. The Society now has a record field to indicate that the animal has been poll tested. The field records the percentage result for the probability of homozygous polled (PP), heterozygous polled (PH) or homozygous horned (HH). The Society still accepts a visual poll or poll/scur recording and this is shown separately to the test results and is still entered via the C1 form. The poll test can be done in conjunction with standard DNA tests (recommended) or independently analysed. Hair, blood or semen samples are sent to the Societyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s office in the same manner as a DNA sample and the test results are then returned to the Society and uploaded into the herd book. The test can be done via Australian Animal Genetics at the University of Queensland or Zoetis Animal Genetics. The cost of the test varies according to the provider and any other traits measured in conjunction with the poll test. n

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

Sweden Technical Conference 2013 The 2013 Charolais technical conference was held in Sweden. This yearâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s conference was focused on environmental regulations, animal welfare, genomic measurements and international collaboration to share genomic data. Sweden, Denmark and Norway combine resources to run an annual Nordic Bull testing program. Members of dairy and beef breeds offer bulls to be tested in the program. The bulls are inspected and 75 bulls from all breeds are selected by a committee. The bulls are fed a standard ration for six months and evaluated for their performance. At the end of the trial period the top two or three performing bulls are retained by the research group and are sent to Viking Genetics where semen is collected. The Viking Genetics Bull Testing Station near Skara in central Sweden collect semen on leading dairy and beef bulls and sell the semen worldwide. They sell over 4 million straws to over 50 countries. Viking Genetics is owned by cattle producers in three countries with the dividends are reinvested into research. Approximately 1000 straws from the top sires are put into dairy cattle to test calving ease. Performance data is made available to members throughout the trial period and the top 10 bulls are highly sought after at an auction held at the end of the trial. This system of promoting the top bull ensures that the best bulls are available for AI use across the three countries and this has led the Swedish industry to make high rates of genetic gain. International bulls from the United States and Canada have been used in the program to evaluate their performance against the Nordic bulls. The research team has developed a 10 point foot scoring system to improve the longevity of bulls in the challenging Swedish environment. Cattle in Sweden spend up to six months in barns over winter and on soft wet pastures in summer and this requires excellent leg strength and structure. Correct foot and toe structure lead to improved foot health outcomes which is very important in the wet mushy conditions. Some of the top performing 2013 bulls in Sweden were Fleetwood, Django, Ferb and Best. Swedish bulls go into both Charolais and crossbred female herds and therefore calving ease in also very important.

The cattle in Sweden are predominantly from Canadian lines with other lines from the United States, France, Ireland and small number from Australia. Some of the well known sires in use include High Bluff Hank, Sparrowsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Canadian Made and Durango, and Rosedale Willie. The cattle are predominately polled, with moderate frame and muscle, and the females have very good udder structure and capacity due to the strong dairy industry background of many farmers. The shoulders are generally smooth. The black lines were very sound. There was variation in the depth of the back end with mostly moderate depth. Biting flies cause a lot of irritation to the cattle over summer so white cattle are preferred as they repel the flies better. Lars Bjornberg from Mellby Charolais had used Rosedale Willy last year but the calf was a little too young at that stage to compare its performance with the other progeny. One interesting fact about the European industry is that cattle are recorded from joining on-farm right through to slaughter which provides a large pool of slaughter performance data. The system works well for small farms with single sire mating. Unfortunately the practice of multiple mating in Australia precludes us developing a similar recording system to collect abattoir grading data on progeny from bulls. International Collaboration on Data Sharing The representatives of the countries attending the conference have agreed to work on a joint database to store Charolais 3, 10, 50 and 700 k genomic profiles to minimise the cost of profiling international animals. The initial stage is to identify a list of the top international sires for the past decade. This project will be developed in the next twelve months with the eventual aim to produce a Charolais chip for trait analysis. n CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

Three Ridges beef has customer wanting more! Susan Banks and Franco Santucci sell their customers a vision of Victoria’s Gippsland rolling hills and a concept of clean and green through their biodynamic practices. By Stephen Cooke Yet it’s the taste that brings those customers back for more the taste of 30-month-old Charolais and Charolais-Angus cross grassfed beef. Their brand, Three Ridges Bio Dynamic Farm, has proven an instant hit in select supermarkets in Melbourne, featured on the Park Hyatt showcase menu and is being chosen by specialty food stores in Melbourne renowned for stocking the best. Restaurants and smaller grocery stores want to differentiate themselves from the “cheap is best” mantra pushed by the supermarket duopoly. Superlatives for the Three Ridges beef products flow from those whose reputation and livelihood depends on it. “I’m very impressed with the scotch fillet, it was tender and had really good flavour,” says Jonathan Stobbs, founder of Skinner & Hackett, a high-end butcher and food store in Melbourne. “The more people try the meat, the more it will sell,” says Jason Blake, the manager of Leo’s Fine Food and Wine stores in Melbourne. Grand Hyatt head chef Dane Clouston was so impressed with the flavour of the beef, he used it for a steak tartare dish in his quarterly Harvest dinner in September. It will now be added to the Park Hyatt a la carte menu.

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

From their kitchen overlooking their property, Franco says all producers and farmers should be compensated properly for their product. Establishing their brand and sourcing outlets has enabled them to do that. The couple purchased their 400 acre (160 hectare) property at Crossover in West Gippsland in 2007, and a few months earlier visited the Melbourne Show where they spent an hour talking to Paul and Helen Hildebrand, Falls View Charolais, Yea, about the Charolais breed, meat quality and its health benefits. Further research convinced them to crossbreed and they now run 240 head, including 80 breeders – crossbred and purebred Charolais. The steers are grown out on pasture to 30 months, turned off at 700kg for a carcase weight of 340kg and generally have a fat score of 5 mm. “We spoke to a lot of people in the restaurant trade, including those with European and Argentinian backgrounds, who kill all their animals at three years in our own country, because that’s when the meat flavour is at its best,” Franco said. “A lot of top end restaurants also source three-year old animals for their prime dishes because it’s full of flavour.” The entire property is run on bio-dynamic principals, and is accredited under the Australian Demeter Bio-Dynamic system.

“It’s not simply replacing synthetic chemicals and fertilizers with ‘organic’ substitutes,” Franco says. “We use highly energised natural preparations in spring and autumn, which have immense power to increase biological activity in the soil. “This creates good soil structure, humus content and moisture holding capacity.” These farming practices are communicated through their social media to provide their customers with further insight on how their beef was raised. “Consumers are more interested in where their food comes from – and so we need to help them understand what we are doing differently and where the product comes from. “Provenance is becoming a more important buying decision for the consumer and the farmer needs to cater to that and work out how to deliver that economically – we’re learning how to do that.” The animals are killed at Radfords in Warragul before being delivered to the processor where they are cut and packaged. Three Ridges began selling 15kg and 25kg packs of different beef cuts through their website direct to the customer. “That’s all hard work and we realised the way to go was to get it out to a wider market,” Franco says.

Susan and Franco used to shop at one of the Leo’s stores. The manager, Jason Blake, supports buying direct from the producer, part of a move away from the dominance and price manipulation of the bigger stores and paying the farmer fair price for a quality product. They joked when talking about their property purchase in 2007 that he would buy their beef one day – now it has come to fruition. It was stocked in October and 70% sold in the first week. Franco credits the popularity to the combination of the breed, the age, a growing market for biodynamic product and the fact consumers know where the product comes from. “The Charolais name helps, it is a French breed and has mystique, but the leanness of the meat is sought after by those that know it.” They are still at the start of their journey, both as beef producers and beef marketers, but are excited to continue the giant steps already taken. “We know there are big producers out there with scale, but we’re not part of that. We are providing a healthy product choice to a niche market, whilst building a connection between consumer and farm.” n

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

A big year for St John’s College! 2013 has been a very exciting and rewarding year for the Agriculture and Primary Industries students of St John’s College Dubbo. As in previous years, students studying Agriculture and Primary Industries were offered the opportunity to represent St John’s College at several major agriculture shows across Australia including the Canberra Royal Show, the Sydney Royal Show and the Queensland Royal Show the EKKA. Students also competed in many local shows including the Dubbo Show, the Warren Show, Trangie Junior Judging Day, The Beef Spectacular in Parkes and the Northern Schools Steer Competition in Warialda. From humble beginnings in 1999 the St John’s College Livestock Exhibition Team has grown and earned a place as a highly regarded very successful team. Starting out with only eight students and two steers, the team has expanded over the years in both talent and numbers, having up to 85 students, teachers and parents travelling to various shows across the country proudly representing their school. In a very competitive, high standard industry, the St John’s College Show Teams have much to be proud of. Not many can claim witnessing history in the making but on several occasions the Team has done just that. In 2009, nine students from the School’s Livestock Exhibition Team travelled to the Sydney Royal Easter Show. There they became

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

the first exhibitor to win all four champion awards in the Purebred section of the show’s Led Steer Competition. The team took out the Champion and Reserve Champion Light-weight Purebred Steer, Champion Middle-weight Purebred Steer, overall Champion and Reserve Champion. 2009 also saw the team achieving an Australian record auction result when their Grand Champion Steer was sold for $20,252.60 at the Brisbane Royal Show. This year has been a rewarding one in terms of achievements, seeing the Rosedale Charolais Stud combine with St John's to exhibit the champion pure bred Charolais steer at the Canberra Royal Show. The team then went on to The Sydney Royal Show in April where St John’s College was named champions in the Purebred Steer, Trade Hoof & Carcase division, the Champion Lightweight Steer, and also taking out the Reserve Champion Trade Steer/Heifer with a Charolais infused heifer bred by Laura and Cody Kirk of Wilworrill Stud, Rylstone. One of Australia’s largest Agricultural Shows is the Queensland EKKA and this year the School results were highly commendable. As well as being awarded with the impressive placement of Reserve Champion Heifer, with a Charolais infused heifer bred by Jonathon Toll, the team also exhibited steers which placed third in the School Steers, Heavy Weight Class and seventh in the Open Steers, Heavy Weight Class. Further, congratulations must be extended to the many students who ranked as finalists in the Schools Led Steer Parading and Junior Judging Competitions.

At The Northern Schools Steer Competition the team took 2nd place in the Class 5 Heavy Weight Steers with a Charolais Infused Steer bred by the Kirk Family of Rylestone, as well as 1st on the Hook with a Charolais Poldale bred by Kim Williams. Smaller shows like this allow younger team members an avenue to step up and take a front line role and the team also excelled in the arenas of Junior Judging and Parading. The opportunity to attend agricultural shows as part of their Agriculture and Primary Industries Studies provides students with invaluable practical life skills which they would not normally attain through classroom studies alone. Further, the participation in Agricultural shows including cattle showing, junior judging and led steer competitions, by students at St John’s College and other schools, has heightened student awareness of the Beef Cattle Industry. Often this has led to greater employment opportunities in many tiers of the Agriculture Sector including, but not limited to, such fields as Veterinary Sciences, Animal Nutrition, Stock and Station Agent positions, Feed Lot Management, AgriBusinesses, Farm Hand & Abattoir employment.

Even more impressive, a significant number of students have proceeded to establish their own Agri-Businesses in the form of small mixed breed cattle herds, leading to promising long term economic entities, which in time, may develop into successful Breeding Studs. One former St John’s College student who has done just that is Mathew Singh who now proudly runs his own Charolais Stud, Southern Cross Charolais. Of course these fundamental opportunities would not be possible without the invaluable support, sponsorship and guidance of our Breeders, Transport providers, parents and industry members. n

FO LE

shown at 21 months grass feed only

Douglasdale Supreme Born: 3 Jan 2013

Sire: Douglasdale Deputy 1

Shiroi Ulysses R/F Rosedale Rebecca

Dam: Douglasdale Lily’s Girl

Dale Uranus Boongatti Water Lily

Three weeks of age

a few hours old

Progeny

Nicole Edwards mobile: 0409305195 e-mail: cjcs@tpg.com.au

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE

Advertisers Index Agri-Gene

Warren Miller 0423 396 014

warren.miller@mclachlan.com.au

Ashwood Park Charolais

Duncan Newcomen 0408 579 784

admin@ashwoodparkcharolais.com.au

George, Ruth & David Cass 07 4996 3127

grcass@bigpond.com

Nicole Edwards 0409 305 195

cjcs@tpg.com.au

Graham Blanch 07 5462 7705

charnellecharolais@bigpond.com.au

Lesley & Rob Millner 08 9573 1018

downundercharolais@bigpond.com

Ben Maunder 07 3831 2801

service@drivencreative.com.au

Gavin & Diane Arneil 07 4998 1285

www.granvillecharolais.com

www.herdlink.com.au

Belle Terre Charolais

Charnelle Charolais

Downunder Charolais

Advertisers Index

info@agrigene.com.au Airlie Charolais / McLachlan Group

AYR Charolais

Driven Creative

Granville Charolais

Herdlink

Minnie-Vale Charolais

Mount William Charolais

Nargoon Cattle Co

Palgrove Charolais

Paringa Livestock

Practical Systems

Rangan Charolais

Rosedale Charolais

Semex

03 5722 2666

02 4654 5975

Jason, Doug & Sue Salier 02 6783 4272

info@minnievalecharolais.com.au

Rob Abbott 0417 502 692

rob@mtwilliamcharolais.com.au

Bob & Sheree McGill 07 5484 1629

nargooncattle@bigpond.com

David Bondfield 0419 665 971

bondfield@palgrove.com.au

Tom Lawson 0434 146 795

info@paringalivestock.com.au

sales@practicalsystems.com.au

Graeme Cook 0419 429 696

gsc41@harboursat.com.au

Michael & James Millner 02 6368 2735

millner@rosedalecharolais.com.au

Jim Conroy 0418 107 863

jimconroy@semex.com.au

www.uq.edu.au/vetschool/agl

libertycharolais@harboursat.com.au

1800 624 688

UQ Animal Genetics Laboratory

07 5460 1960

WA Charolais Bull Sale

Robin Yost 08 9574 2035

CHAROLAIS SUMMER 2014 MAGAZINE