A DECISION to support a great cause has also given first-time entrants Granite Ridge Angus, Avenue Range, bragging rights in Australia's largest annual beef carcase competition.
Their consignment of 26 steers and heifers delivered in late October last year included the highest scoring carcase in the 2021-2022 Southern Grassfed Carcase Classic, outscoring 1516 head from SA and Vic processed at Teys Australia's Naracoorte abattoir over a five-month period.
The winner of class two (single steer or heifer 260.1-340kg) scored 94.44 points from a possible 100 for market specifications, saleable meat yield and eating quality.
This also gave them the prestigious tri-coloured ribbon at the presentation dinner last Friday night.
Granite Ridge stud principal Scott Finlay and stud manager Jamie Kunze said they were thrilled to know their breeding program was on the right track.
"We were looking to get them ready to go to Teys and it came about the competition was on as well so we thought we would give it a crack," Mr Kunze said.
They also thanked their agent, Elders livestock sales manager Laryn Gogel for encouraging them to enter.
The 312.6kg carcase had a 94 square centimetre eye muscle area with a rib and rump fat of 10mm on both sites and exceptional MSA marble score of 590.
"To get results like that in what we are trying to achieve, especially in carcase quality and weight which our clients get paid on, is fantastic," Mr Finlay said.
"The sire of the steer was one of our AI back up bulls that we have heavily used, we have about 130 progeny from him including a couple of high priced sale bulls."
Three years ago, Mr Finlay and his family who have decades of experience in poultry diversified into beef buying the Granite Ridge stud from Colin Flanagan and Pat Ebert.
They have not looked back.
Mr Finlay said he was "having a ball" breeding Angus cattle and while there were many differences to poultry production there were also similarities with both about maximising carcase quality, understanding feed conversion and prime cuts.
"It is something in the poultry that we are absolutely hammered on and it is something that we have taken to in what we are doing now- it looks like it is paying off," he said.
Less than a point behind was the reserve champion carcase, entered by Chris, Maris and Darcy Bateman and Alexis Heim, Furner.
The 19 month old steer- which won class three- was sired by a Woonallee Black Simmental bull and out of a Angus-Simmental-Hereford female.
It was among 22 steers CI&MK Bateman selected to enter in the competition from their truck load of 62 head delivered to Teys in late November.
The 397.6kg carcase had an outstanding EMA of 107cm2 with 12mm rib and 8mm rump fat ensuring full marks for saleable meat yield. It also had a MSA index of 66.68.
Chris said they were hopeful from the processor feedback that they had a good one but were "rapt" to win reserve champion.
"Euros (European breed cattle) generally don't fare that well in carcase competitions whereas this one rated pretty well, especially for eating quality," he said.
"We have tried really hard to put the intramuscular fat, EMA and fat cover together and get the weight at an early age into the cattle to keep the ossification down".
He said they had been fortunate to have some good success over the years including winning back to back grand champion carcases in 2015 and 2016.
"These days it is to support the flying doctor (RFDS) as much as anything but we also enter from year to year to make sure our cattle aren't slipping against other producers," he said.
"There are a few people who do a lot of work for it so it is good to support it."
Meningie Angus breeder, Rhys Fischer, Yarli Pastoral, dominated the awards with both the winning team of 10 and team of three, as well as the Alan Kranz Memorial Trophy for the highest MSA Eating Quality Index.
SGCC chairman Ben Glatz said it was really satisfying to see the competition continue to go from strength to strength, attracting new entrants each year as well as raising the bar in quality, with 23 carcases scoring 90 points or more.
"It is great to see the continued growth and improvement of our long-time exhibitors improving their scores whether they are lifting up from the bottom end or continuing to push the top end," he said.
"Producing a really high end product in such buoyant times gives producers the opportunity to capitalise on the buoyancy of the market and also endorses the management and genetic inputs that they may have been making over a longer period of time."
Mr Glatz said the committee were very proud to present the biggest cheque yet- $50,000 to the Royal Flying Doctor Service, representing 1pc of the proceeds of all the cattle processed.
This brings the total raised in the past 14 years by the SGCC for the great cause to more than $350,000.
"It is clear that a large proportion of our competition support is due to the flow-on benefits to the RFDS, it was impressive to hear that our support matches the financial contribution of some of their large corporate partners," he said.
