Progeny produced from Telpara Hills’ Brangus bulls will soon dominate Chris Greenwood’s Atherton Tablelands-based paddock to plate branded beef operation, Morganbury Meats.
Across 60,298 acres of northern country Chris is running 75 Telpara bulls purchased from the Pearce family with 3500 females.
“The Pearces are on the Atherton Tablelands, so once we got in a position to be able to breed and select the genetics required to get the operation going we were fortunate to have access to some of the best Brangus genetics in Australia right on our doorstep,” he said.
Chris purchased Amara, north-west of Charters Towers in March this year to ramp up the breeding side of the operation.
“We’re aiming to produce 60 head of slaughter-weight cattle per week, which will be infused with 90 per cent Telpara genetics.
To reach this goal, Gainsford, north of Charters Towers, is used as a weaner fattening block, while Sandalwood, south of Hughenden (currently running at a quarter of its carrying capacity due to the drought) is destined to be used for the same purpose.
When the cattle at Gainsford reach feedlot weights they’re transferred to Chris’s home property and feedlot on the Atherton Tablelands where they’re finished, slaughtered and processed at nearby Rocky Creek Abattoir from where the meat is to close to 70 retail outlets up and down the Qld coast.
“We also have a cutting room in Mareeba from which we supply high end hotels, restaurants, and institutions such as hospitals.”
Chris said the appeal of using the Brangus breed lies in their marketability.
“The Brangus has a direct association with the Angus, and companies like McDonalds and Hungry Jacks have done a great job promoting that breed, so we feel using Brangus is as close as we can get to being identified with a breed that is easily recognised by our future beef consumers, considering we operate in a tropical/sub-tropical environment.”
He said saleable meat yield, intramuscular fat, feed efficiency, and fertility, where taken into account when deciding on the best bulls to use within the operation.
“We were looking for an animal that performs on the plate, to keep customers coming back, and from an agricultural perspective, an article that performs well in the paddock, and Telpara genetics tick off all of these requirements.”
Chris bought 12 more bulls from Telpara during a paddock sale earlier this year, which will be joined with close to 600 heifers at Amara later this year.
“We’re stoked with the line of bulls we put together and look forward to seeing the calves when they drop.”
