Cattle, which helped a Benalla farmer win this year’s Victorian Meat Standards Australia (MSA) Producer of the Year award, would have been among entries that had the furthest to travel.
Gary Coventry sent the consignment, which won the inaugural Excellence in Eating Quality Awards, to Greenhams, Smithton, Tasmania.
He said he was quite surprised his cattle took out the MSA awards, as he didn’t set out to enter.
“I’d sent over a few different loads and half loads – one of their buyers is up in Wodonga, anyway, he had the price, he had orders and was giving me a better price than the saleyards,” Mr Coventry said. It cost only another $25 to transport the animals to Tasmania, than up the road to Wodonga.
Mr Coventry said fellow producers expressed surprise that he didn’t get “dark cutting” in the animals, given they were being transported across Victoria, then Bass Strait. “I was surprised; I didn’t think I was doing anything special, I was just trying to get the best price for what I was producing.”
Mr Coventry, Ballentubba, Benalla and Flowing Vale, Lima East, said he used one property to grow out steers and the other for finishing.
Steers were usually purchased at the saleyards, early in the year, before being turned off in October to November. Mr Coventry said he turned off between 250 to 300 steers a year
He won the MSA title from a field comprising over 1,400 registered producers in Victoria, who consigned cattle during the 2014-15 financial year. At the time, Mr Coventry said the secret was using high quality feed.
The animals were pasture fed, on clover, rye and phalaris, supplemented with hay.
MSA Producer Engagement Officer Jarrod Lees said Mr Coventry’s beef was high quality, primarily due to the way he optimis the weight for maturity of his cattle.
That was reflected in low ossification scores.
“Gary has been very effective in buying in good quality young cattle and feeding them out very quickly, ensuring optimal growth for maturity,” Mr Lees said.
Ossification is a measure of the physiological maturity of the beef carcase, and eating quality declines as ossification increases. While ossification increases as the animal ages, it can also increase with nutritional or health stress.
Mr Lees said Mr Coventry’s beef had exceptional marbling scores, corresponding to excellent flavor and high levels of juiciness.
“High marbling scores can be attributed to managing high quality nutrition, as Gary only buys in cattle when quality feed is available,” Mr Lees said. “The quality of the beef from these animals is very good - Gary should be really proud of himself.”
