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The Skene family, Meldon Park Simmentals, will be returning to Beef Australia this year with the aim of defending their title in the interbreeds judging after they took home grand champion bull honours in 2018 with Meldon Park Major Player.
Rodney and Elisabeth (Lis) Skene, have been running their highly successful stud program for 30 years on their property in Cecil Plains, in the Toowoomba region, with their their children Rebecca and William.
Mrs Skene said for Beef 2021 they've entered 10 head in the stud cattle section, from a selection of sires that showcase the consistency of their female herd.
"Among these sires, Meldon Park Hugo placed as runner-up in the 2015 Beef interbreeds, and has been extensively used throughout the herd since then. Beef 2018 interbreed champion Meldon Park Major Player was later purchased by Billa Park Simmentals, and Meldon Park Matador has won grand champion Simmental bull at the Ekka in 2018 and 2019," she said.
The family has been showing at Beef since 2000.
"The sheer amount of commercial producers who've taken a look at our bulls at Beef over the years has been a great way to raise awareness for our stud."
PATH TO SUCCESS
It was through Mrs Skene's father Robert Clark that the family first got into Simmental production.
"Dad had a small stud at nearby Mount Tyson. He retired in the early 1990's at around the same time Rodney and I got married. We bought Simmental cows from him and we've continued on breeding commercially orientated bulls from there."
She said the Simmental female consistently produce good milk and a good calf for them.
"When we were establishing the stud we were lucky enough to purchase females from the Langton Gate stud (among others) who were dispersing at the time.
"Our overall program objective is to produce a consistent female herd, while utilising bulls (many of which are bought from other studs) with excellent walkability, good scans, muscle and plenty of fleshiness - so we know they can grow."
Mrs Skene said their poll genetics originated from a home-bred bull Achilles (out of a Myall Park cow) who has provided Meldon Park with a lot of good females. Annually, for the last five years, the Skenes have also been conducting ET programs with solid results.
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"Our most successful bull to date has been Lucrana General. Our other current resident sires are KBV Prosecutor (PP), Meldon Park Noble (P) (a Bandeeka Jamaica son), Lucrana Philadelphia (P), Meldon Park Queenslander (P) (a son of Meldon Park Matador), Country Style Powerade (P), and Meldon Park Hugo."
SALE-O! SALE-O!
The last sons of General will be offered at the seventh annual Meldon Park Simmental Bull Sale, being held on Tuesday, September 28, from 11am at the Rolleston Livestock and Grain Selling Complex.
"Most of our 80 bulls are from General, and Woonallee Lampoon, whose last progeny are also catalogued. Drafts will also be offered by our invited vendors KBV Simmentals, and Navillus Park Simmentals.
"The bulls we'll be offering are consistent, correct, softer types."
Mrs Skene said buyers for the sale, which until this year had been held at Moura, hail from as far north as Charters Towers, west to Cloncurry and down to Cowra, New South Wales.
"It has been a successful sale for us and our invited vendors. We always achieve close to a complete clearance, and last year our average was close to $9000 which was up $2000 per head on our 2019 result."
More recently, the Skenes enjoyed solid success in Blackall at the Black Stump Invitational Bull Sale in March, with all seven Simmental bulls they offered, selling to average $13,357.
"Buyers were looking for heifer bulls there, and our Lampoon and Hugo sons sold very well. We sell there every year."
EXPANSION
With sufficient herd numbers to expand their operations, the Skenes purchased a property to the south of the region in Millmerran, earlier this year, where they also agist cattle on another block.
Mrs Skene said while they've had a late start to the wet season, they've received good falls over both properties in March.
"We didn't get rain until March last year as well, but that was a much drier year overall.
The Cecil Plains property lies on hilly grassed country which leads down to river frontage, where the family have cultivated 500ha for forage production.
"With this recent rain we'll hopefully also be able to plant oats now."
With the purchase of the property in Millmerran, the Skenes will also be looking to increase their breeder herd numbers from 300 to 400 head.
The Meldon Park Simmental Bull Sale proceedings will also be live streamed with online bidding available through the Elite Livestock Auctions platform. The online catalogue will be available from August.
Inspections of the sale draft can be made via appointment with the sale vendors or when the lots are yarded at Rolleston prior to the sale.
- For pre-sale enquiries contact GDL sale agent Mark Duthie on 0448 016 950 or Lis Skene on 0428 717 847