Welcome

Welcome to The Grove Shorthorns 40th On-Property Bull Sale.

We really do appreciate you making the time to come and assess the genetics we have presented. We are incredibly happy with the bulls on offer across the board. We feel this years’ bulls are an extremely even line that will all play a role in creating genetic gain for the Australian Beef Industry. We really encourage everyone to come and inspect this years’ draft of bulls which are a direct result of our breeding goals.

At The Grove we have not wavered from our breeding goal of “Quality Beef – More of It”, by breeding fertile cattle that have the ability to be turned off at numerous points along the supply chain with the inherent ability to produce a quality carcase at whichever point suits your management program. We believe the consumer is definitely heading more down the HGP free path, and whether this is right or wrong in our eyes, we feel we must produce an animal with the genetic traits to allow this production type. Where this differs to an animal that needs HGP’s to meet target markets, is the ability for the non-HGP animal to continue to gain kgs on grass or grain without hitting a brick wall and stop converting at a profitable level. The more difficult part this scenario is to maintain yield and carcase weight whilst increasing the eat-ability traits of that very same carcase.

At this time of year bull sale catalogues are a plenty with each one claiming they can fix every problem in your herd and show you the way to the profitability. This may be true in some cases and some it may not. At The Grove we can only claim that we run our entire herd as a commercial program that must be as profitable as possible for us to survive and grow. We run large contemporary groups, we collect as much data is possible and we endeavour to take the guess work out of our program.

To back this up we have always been keen to Benchmark our genetics in the public arena. The vehicle we have chosen to allow us this benchmarking to occur is the annual Ekka Paddock to Palate competition. This trial is a great one because it takes away feeding bias as all cattle are “fed together & dead together”. Since its inception more than 20 years ago, NO other herd has had the success The Grove has managed over a broad range of feeding regimes.

In 2022 The Grove dominated. In the HGP Free Section – Champion and Reserve Champion Pens Overall.

Finishing 3rd place in the Weight Gain on Feed, we then had the Champion Pen of Carcases on the Hook and then managed to also have the Champion Eating Quality Pen (MSA).

To add to this, we also entered a pen in the 100 Day HGP treated section and managed to win Champion Pen of Carcases in this field. Pretty hard to achieve with pure British animals up against the country’s leading Euro and Euro cross cattle operations!

To further this benchmarking in the public arena, great friends and clients, the Quinn Family from Middlemount/ Charters Towers had an incredible result in the Central Queensland Carcase Classic recently. They won every section bar one in the Grass-fed portion of a very well supported competition. Fantastic reward for a very astutely run quality beef production operation. We are extremely pleased and humbled that our genetics could help play a role in this outcome.

The Australian Beef industry and the vast environmental diversity encountered calls for every producer to assess their own individual programs and the situation that they are presented with. We must also be aware that we are only a cog in the Beef Industry chain which is aiming to supply a clean green protein source to the worlds ever increasing population. For us all to stay relevant and profitable we must be maximising the weights of our progeny at the youngest possible age. We are paid on WEIGHT and GRADE. So, while everyone talks about $/kg received which is a huge profit driver, we must all make sure we are not losing valuable kgs just to obtain the top dollar. The coat colour may not always be the only answer!!!!

The cattle market has seen a big price correction from last year’s historic highs. Whilst for a time a bottom did not seem to be apparent, the future seems to have plenty of upside. America has its lowest herd numbers in more than 50 years. With their average kill weights dropping on a weekly basis, this is creating big shortfalls in their annual production. According to data on kills here in Australia, our herd rebuild has paused with weekly female kills suggesting that we are not growing the herd, in fact quite the opposite. While there are some numbers about the works here in Queensland at present, fats are in short supply in the South which means greater competition from Southern processors up here - resulting in steady grid rises which look set to continue.

This year’s draft of bulls is a very commercially focused set of young sires. They represent our breeding philosophy very well and we have full confidence in them helping you produce cattle which will add to your bottom line. They have all been inoculated for Ephemeral Fever (3 Day), Vibriosis, Lepto (7 in 1), Pestivirus, Botulism and been Blooded with 3 Germ (Tick fever). They have been crush-side examined by Dr Kim Kelly with Morphology testing performed as well.

This year we have GDL and Nutrien acting on our behalf as selling agents and. We are pleased to be working closely with their teams and highly recommend you contacting your local representative to assist you in any way to attend or purchase your bull requirements.

The Morgan families on “Myall Grove” would like to thank you sincerely for your support during 2023 and wish you all the absolute best with your future purchases.