WINE and beef can make a good pairing at the dinner table but for the Howard family at Penneshaw, they also make up the two complementary sides to their business.
The family, which includes winemaker Brodie Howard, his sisters Kasha Fredericks and Tam Bailey, and his wife Kate Howard, operate Dudley Wines and its cellar door near Penneshaw.
And while Brodie already has plenty on his plate, he has also increasingly taken on a larger role, "in his spare time", in managing the family's 600-strong South Devon breeding herd now under the Porky Flat Pastoral name, formerly trading as JTVF&BT Howard.
Brodie and his sisters are the fifth generation on the property, with the Howards not afraid of trying new ideas.
In the 1990s, while running a sheep and cattle farm, they began planting vines as an experiment, with their first commercial wine made in 1998, while Brodie took on the role of winemaker in 2000.
As the winery grew, they ended up dropping the sheep from their operation, instead lifting the cattle numbers.
Brodie said they are still gradually increasing the cattle numbers further as they work to improve their land, which includes some rocky terrain.
But while they embrace innovation, the Howards are also prepared to stick with what works, having run South Devons for about 40 years, with most of that time using Lines Gum Hill bloodlines.
The Howards say South Devons fit well with their operation and country.
Brodie's father Jeff said the cows were very hardy, suited their sometimes rough terrain, and were good milkers.
"They don't mature exceptionally quickly but they do make a very big animal eventually," he said.
Brodie said the cattle also had a good temperament and were good calvers.
In the spirit of experimentation, they have occasionally ventured into cross-breeding, joining other British breeds with the South Devons.
Once in the market, they have compared the results and say there is no premium for the crossbred cattle against their straight South Devons, which helps confirm their decision to stick with the breed.
Bulls run out alongside the cows year-round.
"In a good year we gain a bit and in a bad season, we don't have cows not calving," Brodie said.
This year-round calving also offers flexibility with marketing, with cattle ready at different times to meet demand in the market.
Brodie says there is no hard and fast rule for when they sell their stock, based on the market and feed availability.
In recent weeks, they have sold a load of 500 kilogram steers, while next week they will have 300kg weaners available at the Strathalbyn store market.
Brodie says in an average year they would keep the best heifers for breeding, while of the remaining heifers and steers, half would be sold as weaners, with the others retained to grow out.
But this year, with the high availability of on-farm feed, they plan to keep more cattle for longer.
Jeff said it made sense to make the most of the resources available.
"You might as well turn grass into beef if you've got the grass," he said.
They also vary selling methods.
They often put cattle through Strathalbyn, while also selling direct to restockers and feedlots, with freight a major consideration when selling from Kangaroo Island.
"(Direct) works well as you get a per kilogram price and weigh them on the property and know what you're going to get, rather than chance it," Brodie said.
In the past year they have also sold a number of lots on AuctionsPlus, something Jeff considers a good way to market stock.
"You give a reserve of what you're prepared to accept and the buyer pays what they're prepared to and if the twain don't meet, they (the cattle) don't go anywhere," he said.
They are continually working to innovate and improve the pastures on the property, which was bought as scrubland in the 1960s on the south coast of Kangaroo Island in the region known as Porky Flat.
They grow their own hay to supplement them through the summer and early autumn before they have green feed again, with 500 tonnes baled this season.
"I personally can't remember a season as good as what we've had in the past six months," Brodie said.
"We are currently producing about one bottle of wine to 2kg of beef, so we might have our ratio back to front."
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Elizabeth Anderson
Editor of Stock Journal.
Editor of Stock Journal.
