ONE of Australia's highest performance Shorthorn herds, the Broughton Park stud at Spalding has been sold to Yamburgan stud at Narrabri, New South Wales.
Glen, Lindley, Sam and Tom Trengove and new owners John and Liz Manchee negotiated the sale of the nucleus of the BP herd which includes 82 cows with calves and 35 joined heifers last month after Liz judged at the Royal Adelaide Show.
In its 44-year history, Broughton Park has risen to prominence within the Shorthorn breed enjoying considerable show and sale ring success, and its genetics have influenced many herds throughout Australia.
Among its long list of achievements are the current $15,500 record at the Rabobank Naracoorte Shorthorn Show & Sale and both top price and top average at the sale over many years.
The current $75,000 Australasian record priced Shorthorn bull, Nero Y2K Zee Top, was sired by a Broughton Park bred bull and the stud has bred many trait leading and elite indexing sires on Breedplan.
Broughton Park also won many broad ribbons in nearly four decades exhibiting at the Royal Adelaide Show including Stock Journal's most successful beef cattle exhibitor award.
Mr Trengove said the hard decision to divest of the stud came about for a number of reasons including the growing specialisation of stud cattle breeding and competition between other enterprises on the property.
"The cattle stud has always played second fiddle to the cropping enterprise, competing with the Merino breeding flock for spare pasture paddocks," he said.
"The Broughton Park property has been in the family for close to 100 years. Each generation has added enhancement and value. It's now time for the next generation to takes up the reins and with all options considered, the boys' preference is to concentrate on the cropping and sheep enterprises and they do so with my blessing."
* Full report in Stock Journal, October 14 issue.