Boyd Curran tells me he has entered into a partnership with Landmark in the Greater Western Queensland area with branches in Blackall, Longreach and Winton.
“Our goal is to build lasting business relationships with people that strengthen their businesses, their families and strengthen our western communities,” he said.
“The character of Queensland has been built on the character of people who live in western areas, where we have experienced adversity many times and always come back stronger. What we are experiencing at present with the ongoing drought is unprecedented, but it is important to remember that the Blackall, Longreach and Winton communities have always been very strong and productive areas and contributed greatly to the economic success of Queensland and Australia. We want to contribute as Landmark Western Queensland Partnership in making our communities strong again through integrity, trust and superior service. I came across a will that had been given to the Longreach New Zealand Loan branch for safe keeping and it is this type of trust with our clients that I want our business to be known for.
“What attracted our family to the business was the range of services that we can offer and whilst livestock and merchandise are our core business I want to build the real estate, wool, insurance and financial services business units to provide a comprehensive service to our clients. Landmark has a global presence, has great networks and the opportunity to partner in creating a local business was compelling for us. We have ourselves built great friendships and have extensive contacts within the industry and will utilise these for the benefit of our clients.
“Our heritage also attracted us to the business when in 1949 my grandfather drew a block at Blackall in a returned servicemen's ballot after WWII and named the property Maree Downs after my grandmother. He did all his business with New Zealand Loan which later merged with Dalgetys on the way to becoming Landmark.”(This strikes a personal cord with me as my fist position was with New Zealand Loan and later Dalgety and fortunately I knew the Curran family).
“My father Denis drew a block at Capella; Bluegrass Plains when he was 19 and every week for about 15 weeks of the year my brother Charles and I enjoyed a day off primary school to muster fat cattle and send to Dalgetys at Cannon Hill for sale. After trucking the cattle in Capella the men would head straight to the Capella Hotel for a social meeting. Being on a school day the local policeman spotted me in the bar and waited until I wandered outside and questioned me as to why I was not at school. I replied that every Monday we had to muster, to which he told me that if he received a complaint from my teacher I would be sent to a facility for wayward children. Dad had a better idea and sent us to boarding school. My mother's father was a well known and successful cattle and sheep dealer named Boogie Rushbrook who owned a number of properties at different stages including Bardlomey at Wallumbilla, Rosalie Plains at Oakey and Tiaro Station. Boogie's real name was Sydney but his older siblings christened him 'Boogie' due to him calling their family pet dog the boogie dog, which was in fact a bulldog. Boogie was known to assist many people in giving very favorable terms to people on mobs of sheep or cattle, particularly if they were newly married or getting started.”
New steering group to talk beef industry sustainability
The development of a framework that enables Australia’s $18 billion beef industry to clearly show the community and stakeholders what sustainable beef production is, and how it is being achieved, is underway.
In its first meeting, the steering group comprising representatives from across the red meat supply chain, focused on defining sustainability in the Australian context and prioritising the issues that are relevant to the community and industry. The group’s attention is now directed towards developing relevant indicators to measure progress in these areas against the framework, which will be presented for broad consultation.
From April to July 2016 the group will work with producers, lot-feeders, processors and live exporters to review the key issues and undertake a process of determining the most relevant performance indicators to include in a framework.
Industry Steering Group Chair Prue Bondfield said the group would consult with industry stakeholders about sustainability broadly, covering environmental, ethical, social and financial aspects of operations in the beef industry.
“It’s critical the Australian beef industry leads the discussion about exactly what sustainable production means and how we can measure it successfully to reinforce our industry’s world class credentials,” Ms Bondfield said. “We want to ensure we get the process right and take the necessary time for quality consultation to ensure the framework sets the foundation for Australian livestock sustainability progress in the future.”
The views of stakeholders from outside the beef industry, including consumers, retailers, regulators andspecial interest groups, about the content of a draft framework will be sought during August to October 2016.
The publication of the beef industry’s first sustainability report, based on the framework, is proposed for March 2017. This report will enable communication of the Australian beef industry’s performance across areas of stakeholder interest in line with the objectives of the Meat Industry Strategic Plan 2020 (MISP 2020).
Red Meat Advisory Council Chairman Ross Keane said the framework would support priorities in the MISP 2020 for improving transparency, aligning production practices with community expectations and building trust in the red meat sector.
Industry organisations that wish to be consulted during the development of the framework can contact the Secretariat assisting the Steering Group, Mrs Pip Band, at Meat & Livestock Australia on pband@mla.com.au.
Grainfed beef exports buck grassfed trend
Australia exported almost 96,697 tonnes swt of beef and veal in March, taking the first quarter total to 245,775 tonnes swt – 17pc below the same period last year (DAWR) However, the makeup of Australian exports has changed over the past twelve months. At 62,282 tonnes swt, grainfed beef exports over the first quarter were up 3% year-on-year and were reflective of the record number of cattle on feed at the end of 2015. In fact, first quarter grainfed beef exports were only slightly below the 62,640 tonnes swt recorded in 2007. The difference between current levels and 2007 is the greater proportion of grainfed cattle on shortfed programs destined for the domestic market.
Where did the grainfed beef go in the first quarter? Two growth markets stood out.
Firstly, grainfed beef exports to South Korea increased 63pc year-on-year, to a record 13,188 tonnes swt. Korea imported large volumes of grainfed blade, chuck roll and shin shank during the first three months of 2016. South Korea also remained a strong market for grassfed beef, with shipments up 6pc during the first quarter, at 27,914 tonnes swt.
Secondly, grainfed beef exports to China in the March quarter were up 70pc year-on-year, at 5,154 tonnes swt – however, it should be noted this is still 11pc below the 2014 volume. While Australian grainfed beef exports to China appear to be unaffected by the increasing volume of beef into the market from Brazil, Australia’s grassfed trade has declined. During the first quarter, Australian frozen grassfed beef shipments – the bulk of what Brazil exports – into China declined 27pc year-on-year, to 17,223 tonnes swt. However, given the reduced volume of grassfed cattle coming through to slaughter so far this year, this trend is not surprising nor vastly different from many other markets. In the first quarter of 2016, Brazil exported 35,599 tonnes swt of beef to China (Global Trade Atlas).
Grainfed exports to Japan during the first quarter were back 18pc year-on-year, at 29,209 tonnes swt. However, this volume is not far below the five-year average and it still represents 47pc of Australian grainfed beef exports.
After the very strong trade in 2015, beef exports to the US over the first quarter were back 34pc year-on-year, at 69,611 tonnes swt. However, this decline is off a record high base and is still 10pc above the five-year average.
Wool report
Jason Thomson, Schute Bell reported the wool market obviously enjoyed its one week break opening strongly. Once again the Northern region auction was on a road show. This time at the IWTO conference in Sydney, where almost 500 delegates from various sectors of the wool industry around the world were able to watch a live wool auction. The larger offering by today’s standards was absorbed by the trade as exporters appear to have an eye on an expected reduction in the national offering over the next few months. The National Wool Production Forecasting Committee reaffirmed their expected 7pc decline in the Australian woolclip this season and they are expecting a further slight decline for the 2016/17 season. 46,128 bales were sold nationally for the week with 5.6pc passed in. Major buyers included Chinatex, Techwool, and Lempriere. Prices did ease back by around 10 cents on the final selling day in the Southern region and it should probably be expected that the Northern region will mirror these falls when it opens on Wednesday next week. Forward market activity was strong early in the week with short term contracts trading just under this week’s auction close.
