It may have only been a small showing of Senepol cattle at this year's Brisbane Exhibition, but judge Andrew Raff said for him there was more to it than the number of cattle parading before him in the show ring.
The Senepol cattle were prepared and shown by students from the Brisbane-based Nudgee College, and Mr Raff, stud principal of the Raff Angus stud based at King Island, said what schools and colleges like Nudgee are doing is a 'wonderful thing'.
"The agricultural experiences provided in a school environment are a great opportunity. Breeds like the Senepol's should be commended for allowing school children to have these opportunities," Mr Raff said.
The students from Nudgee College couldn't agree more. Year 12 student Tristan Anderson from Maryborough began showing cattle with Nudgee in 2012. He said for other students like himself, showing cattle was a great way for the 'bush kids' to feel at home.
"It's also a way for the students from the city to have a go," Tristan said.
"Showing cattle is an educational experience and there seems to be a lot of career opportunities as a result."
At Nudgee, there is a Cattle Club which is open to students from year five and up. From there, the older and more experienced students who have 'earnt their colours' join the show team. The show team attends anywhere from a dozen to 20 shows per year, including Sydney, Rockhampton, Longreach, and all areas in between.
This year students from the Nudgee College exhibited 23 head at the Ekka Across three breeds.
Pictured; Nudgee College students Tristan Anderson, Maryborough, Rhys Galdal, Bourke, NSW, and Wayde O’Sullivan, Collinsville, prepared and paraded the grand champion Senepol exhibit, Wiangaree Park L0005, reserve champion female, Wiangaree Park L0004 and third place-getter, Wiangaree Park L0003.
There may not have been a lot of competition in the Senepol ring at the Brisbane Exhibition this year, but the judges’ comments certainly proved the old saying of 'quality, not quantity'.
Judge Andrew Raff, Raff Angus, King Island, awarded the grand champion female to Wiangaree Park L0005, exhibited by Kurt and Liz Baumgart, Wiangaree Park Senepol, Kyogle, NSW.
He said even though there were only a few examples of the breed on display, the female he put up for grand champion possessed a lot of desirable traits.
"This female has a lot of capacity, she has plenty of width, as well as natural fleshing through her hindquarter and a good hip to pin setting," Mr Raff said.
"All three of the females paraded before me today were all very structurally correct."
The reserve champion female was awarded to Wingaree Park L004, also exhibited by Kurt and Liz Baumgart. The cattle were prepared and paraded by students from Nudgee College, and one of the students leading a Senepol in the show ring this year was Nudgee show team captain Wayde O'Sullivan.
Wayde grew up on a cattle station near Collinsville, and he said recently his family have introduced Belmont Reds bulls into their breeding operation but they are now seriously considering Senepol cattle.
"The temperament of the breed is faultless, which makes it good for the show team. But personally, thinking about my family's business, the likes of the Senepol breed would be very adaptable to our conditions at home," Wayde said.
"We have rough terrain and mountain ranges at home but I believe Senepol's would handle those conditions well."
In his final year at school, Wayde is looking forward to applying his knowledge gained from the school's agricultural section one day in the family's business.
Pictured: Senepol judge Andrew Raff, Raff Angus, King Island, and his wife Anna, sash the grand champion Senepol exhibit which was paraded by Nudgee College student, Tristan Anderson, Maryborough, and exhibited by Kurt and Liz Baumgart, Wiangaree Park Senepol, Kyogle, NSW.
Commencing at 10am
70 Senepol Australia Registered Bulls
Contact Landmark Emerald - Matthew Beard
Mobile: 0427 765 687
VENDORS:
Namoona Trig Senepols - Col & Janelle Godfrey Ph: 0427 524 755
Wiangaree Park Senepols - Kurt & Liz Baumgart Ph: 0417 301 329
Gouron Creek Senepols - Trevor & Sharon Price Ph: 0429 832 228
Silverleigh Senepols - Gary & Leanne Porter Ph: 0411 035 420
Planchonella Hills Senepols - Tony & Sharon Baker Ph: 0427 295 086
Namoona Trig & Silverleigh Senepols have been selling quality Senepol bulls in Emerald since 2011.
In 2015 it was decided to hold a stand alone Senepol sale, to this end 3 other breeders of quality Senepol cattle were invited to join the sale, these vendors are listed above.
The Senepol is a polled Tropical Bos Taurus breed of cattle that combines the adaptation of the Tropical Breeds with the temperament & carcase qualities of the British Breeds.
Add these qualities to a cross breeding commercial operation & significant hybrid vigour is thrown into the equation. All Bulls presented will be fertility tested, guaranteed and will be provided with scan data.
The bulls will also have been injected with a range of vaccines, these include 3 Germ, 3 Day, Vibrio, 7 in 1, Pesti & Botulinum. The bulls will be available for inspection at Emerald Saleyards on the Sunday & Monday prior to the sale.
The sale will be conducted by Matthew Beard of Landmark, Emerald, Ph 0427 765 687.
Please contact the selling agents or the vendors listed above if you have any enquiries.
There will be between 65 & 70 bulls catalogued, catering for the needs of both the small & larger operators.
Catalogues will be supplied on request. More details, including an E-Catalogue and photos of the entries will be available closer to the sale date.
Visit www.tropicalinvitationalsenepolsale.com
John operates Boomerang Park Senepol’s at Yangan, near Warwick, and has been exhibiting at Farm Fest since 1978.
He remembers it being ‘little humpies and wooden yards’ in the early days, and as it has grown into the event it is today, so has his client base.
“We’ve always had strong inquiries about our cattle at Farm Fest, and good follow up for bulls afterwards,” John said.
“One of the best things about Farm Fest though is the friends you meet and catch up with. It’s worth going to hear stories about how someone purchased a bull several years ago and now they’ve got a line of calves on the ground that they’re over the moon with. “
John had several cattle on display at Farm Fest, including one of his favourite Senepol sires, Solomon.
“Solomon is a 10 year old bull but he is still in great condition. His feet are perfect, and he is one of the most mobile bulls I’ve owned even though he would weigh a tonne,” John said.
“With bulls like this, it’s not hard to understand why demand is increasing for the Senepol breed. I’ve been lucky enough to have had inquiries at Farm Fest from areas all over the Downs, and as far out as Morven and Mitchell in Central Queensland.
“Senepol’s dehorn people’s calves for them. Dehorning is one of the worst jobs on the farm, so if you can dehorn with parents, then you’re in front.
“One of the other great things about Senepol’s is the low birth weight. You don’t have to worry about your females, whether they are maiden heifers or cows. They have small calves every time which makes the job easier.”
For Clifton producer Tim Johnson, he was interested in what John had to say about the Senepol breed. Tim runs a small Droughtmaster breeder herd, and was at Farm Fest to try and decide which breed would provide him with the best crossbreeding benefits.
“I like the Senepol’s for their meat content. These cattle are nice and thick, they’re polled, and their sleek red coat makes them very desirable,” Tim said.
“I think they could work well in my operation, to get that hybrid vigour I’m looking for.”
President of the Australian Senepol Cattle Breeder’s Association Kurt Baumgart said the Ekka is a highlight for both stud and commercial livestock representatives, and he couldn’t think of a better place than the RNA grounds to promote the breed.
“From a breed point of view, we feel the Ekka is an excellent opportunity to showcase Senepol’s to many people within the agricultural industry,” Mr Baumgart said.
“To make the show ring even more attractive to exhibitors, the association is offering a rebate of $100 per head for any Senepol animal entered into the Ekka’s stud, led steer or prime cattle competitions.
“We hope this encourages exhibitors to enter the stud or commercial competitions, because the Ekka is such a wonderful opportunity for the breed to promote the many attributes it has.”
The Senepol stud judging is yet to be confirmed, but it looks likely to be held on the morning of Friday, 5 August. Led steers and prime cattle will both be judged on Wednesday, 3 August.
Spectators and exhibitors were treated to a most educational and entertaining display of judging thanks to Terry Nolan, who operates Nolan Meats at Gympie. Terry took the microphone into the ring and commentated ‘on the run’, giving an analysis of each animal as he went. It was a wonderful insight into the mental processes of comparing each animal, with the relative pro’s and con’s of each animal for a particular market or environment.
I believe as a society, we should look at engaging Terry with other Senepol events. Terry has an interest in the breed and uses it in his commercial programme. After the conclusion of judging at Beef Australia 2015, Terry actually purchased the bull he put up for grand champion.
Results:
Judge: Terry Nolan, Nolan Meats, Gympie. No. of exhibits: 10.
Grand Champion Bull: Veejay Downs Jigsaw, Henry Pisaturo, Veejay Downs Senepols, Mendooran, NSW.
Grand Champion Female: Five Star Katness, Geoff and Alison Maynard, Five Star Senepols, Jambin.
Calf Champion Female: Five Star Share And Like, Geoff and Alison Maynard, Five Star Senepols, Jambin.
Junior Champion Bull: Veejay Downs Jigsaw, Henry Pisaturo, Veejay Downs Senepols, Mendooran, NSW.
Reserve Junior Champion Bull: Five Star Big Kahuna, Geoff and Alison Maynard, Five Star Senepols, Jambin.
Junior Champion Female: Five Star Serena, Geoff and Alison Maynard, Five Star Senepols, Jambin.
Senior champion bull: Five Star Dirty Deeds, Geoff and Alison Maynard, Five Star Senepols, Jambin.
Senior champion female: Five Star Katness, Geoff and Alison Maynard, Five Star Senepols, Jambin.
Reserve Champion Female: Boomerang Park Sheeba H2, John Brandon, Boomerang Park Senepols, Yangan.
The year has passed quickly, and generally everyone I speak to is very busy going about their business, farm or otherwise.
We have seen cattle prices at very good levels and the outlook remains strong. Widespread drought continues to be a significant issue for many; however we have recently seen some areas receive good rain, but not enough to be drought breaking. The El-Nino is officially over and the weather outlook is improving significantly.
I am firmly of the view that the outlook for the beef industry is strong and this provides an opportunity to further promote the Senepol breed and their commercial benefits to the Industry.
Over the past 12 months the Committee has met regularly with the focus being the following three areas, as outlined last year:
- Promotion and marketing
- Performance recording
- Value for money for members
The committee has engaged Empress Enterprises for a new website, and Coulton’s Country Photography to assist with the following:
- Website update- review the Senepol website and advise of changes to refresh and increase marketing and promotional opportunities.
- Facebook page- develop a Senepol Association Facebook page inclusive of a minimum two updates per week.
- Newsletter- prepare and co-ordinate two association newsletters per year that can be distributed to members and potential /existing clients. There could also be some information that could be distributed to mainstream media outlets.
- EKKA Promotion- the Senepol association has decided that the EKKA will be our main promotional event each year. To this end we would be looking at Senepol promotion prior, during and after the event. The Senepol association will provide a rebate of $100/head for each animal entered into the EKKA.
- Callide Dawson Carcase Competition- the Senepol association has decided to use the Callide Dawson Carcase Competition to market and promote the breed to commercial cattlemen. The association will provide prize money for any Senepol or Senepol infused entry that wins either grand champion ($1000) or wins champion in a class ($500). We would look to your assistance to promote this competition both before and after to commercial cattlemen with the aim of encouraging the maximum number of entrants and promoting Senepol results.
- News items- minimum of four feel good news items distributed through various media outlets per year.
- Starter pack- develop a starter pack of relevant information to assist new members to promote and market their product.
This is a work in progress. We are in discussions with ABRI to attain a quote to implement performance recording. In order to get more data points we are investigating the following:
- Can we access AACO data?
- US data
- Tropical composite data and it’s feasibility
Value for money
As we undertake the above two initiatives, this will go a long way to delivering value for money. We have also previously advised of a discount structure for inventory fees. We are a small breed society, and need to spend what financial resources we have wisely.
Obviously the more paid up female inventory fees we have will dictate how much more we can do in the promotion and marketing space.
Beef Australian 2015 in Rockhampton was a huge success with large through traffic and very positive interest in the breed. Forums like Beef Australia are a great opportunity for members to showcase the breed and promote their operations. A number of the committee will have a site at AGGrow this year where there will be a couple of bulls on display and some local F1 heifers. We would love to see you there!
Last but not least, a warm welcome to Henry Pisaturo who has joined the committee this year. We still have a vacancy on the committee and would like to hear from anyone who would like to contribute to the breed.
Kind regards,
Kurt Baumgart
When the committee held their progressive weigh-in day on April 1, it was a purebred Senepol steer account of Geoff and Alison Maynard from the 5 Star Senepol Stud at Jambin, who led the charge with an impressive average daily gain of 3.52kg/day.
Geoff Maynard was extremely pleased with the performance of his steer, which was bred from his commercial Senepol herd.
He said traditionally Senepol’s perform well on feed because of their docile temperament; one of the Senepol breeds greatest attributes.
“The quiet nature and disposition of the breed generally means Senepol or Senepol infused cattle seem to adapt better to a feedlot situation,” Mr Maynard said.
“They settle into a pen of mixed animals a lot quicker than other breeds, and it means they can start gaining weight from day one. “
The Maynard’s steer which recorded an average daily weight gain of 3.52kg/day is part of a pen of three steers in the competition. Those three Senepol exhibits had an average entry weight of 386kg and a mid-weight average of 529kg, to give them a combined average daily gain of 3.1kg/day.
In 2015, the Maynard family won the champion grain fed steer carcase with a three-quarter Senepol, one-quart Belmont Red entry. They also won the 2015 champion grain fed heifer with a three-quarter Senepol, one-quarter Charolais exhibit.
My Maynard said there were some exceptional cattle on feed this year, and the final results would be close.
“With a total of 114 head in the two classes, it makes this particular competition one of the largest of its kind in Northern Australia,” Mr Maynard.
The competition cattle are fed at Theodore’s Warnoah Feedlot every year. In the middle of May, the Callide Dawson Carcase Competition committee held an open day at the feedlot so exhibitors and the general public could view the cattle on feed before they were tricked for slaughter.
The competition winners will be announced at a presentation dinner on June 24 in Biloela.
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