Dear Members
It is hard to believe it is March already and there is a lot that has been happening and a lot of planning going into what is ahead of us this year.
Early in February I spent time in central and southern Queensland working with a videographer to collect footage for BEEF Australia which is being held from the 5th to the 11th of May in Rockhampton. It is the largest industry event and one we are keen to captialise on positioning the breed as a modern choice in cross and straight breeding operations. We have taken out space on the Queensland Country Life big screen which is located across from the main bar at the event. We collected footage of straight bred Herefords, Hereford cows with Santa cross calves at foot and Santa cows with Hereford cross calves at foot. Collecting this footage of Hereford cattle in Queensland conditions – and thriving, positions us very well to demonstrate Hereford cattle performing in a range of environments. During filming I had time to talk to our hosts about the benefits of Hereford cattle and they consistently provided positive feedback on fertility, longevity, docility, weight for age, ability to finish at younger ages and performance on MSA grids. These are key points we should all be repeating wherever the opportunity arises as these are key profit divers in any business and Herefords are delivering.
It was fantastic to see the support from within the membership for the Tummel dispersal held in Tamworth last week. Most studs there purchased 2 or 3 lots which led to over 90% clearance and a healthy average for the family. There is little doubt that we have a strong membership. I would really like to build on that strength to take this breed forward. There was further success with a Hereford bull taking out the interbreed at Canberra Royal following a successful Hereford feature show with over 80 head of cattle being exhibited.
I am on the BREEDPLAN advisory committee which is an industry committee providing direction to AGBU, ABRI and MLA on their investments in genetics that impact on BREEDPLAN. I attended their February quarterly meeting which was a great opportunity to provide feedback on the commercial aspects of BREEDPLAN and we can be part of ensuring the developments and investments directly connect with where we need to go as an industry and as a breed. If we are aligned with where the industry and our customers are going, we can deliver the outcomes they need with Hereford cattle.
At HAL, we are focused on developing commercial opportunities for members. We will continue to highlight these opportunities with cross breeding programs, focusing on case studies in the north and the south. We have been highlighting the performance of Hereford and Hereford cross cattle over the hooks through MSA grading outcomes. We have been highlighting the success of Hereford and Hereford cross cattle in carcase competitions, feeding trials and grass fed competitions.
When I am talking to processors, brand owners, feedlotters and backgrounders, there is no shortage of opportunities, however we still have some work to do to connect the commercial opportunities in order for them to lead to pull through demand for Hereford cattle. That is not an easy task however something we need to continue to work on relentlessly together.
When we do stories on larger operations, it is to highlight that there are businesses using Hereford cattle at scale demonstrating what Hereford cattle deliver using data and evidence. These productivity benefits include reducing cost of production and delivering profitability to their enterprises through fertility, longevity, weight for age, finishing ability at younger ages and improving MSA grading outcomes. I encourage you to use the information provided to create stronger relationships with existing clients and build relationships with new clients. If we are all on the same page with our messaging, we will be more connected to create and capitalise on opportunities for the breed.
Best regards,
Michael
