A Limousin steer and heifer are bound for South Australia after participants from the state won two of the breed's prestigious awards over the weekend at the 2022 Keajura Park Limousin Junior Show, Canberra.
Despite only establishing his Sapphire Limousin stud in January, Tate Purdue of Balaklava, SA, received the Most Potential Breeder Award which included the 11-month-old heifer Summit Magic S33 donated by Summit Livestock, Uranquinty.
The 18-year-old began his stud through the purchase of a Raven Limousin heifer, and he has quickly grown numbers to now have eight registered females which also include Aruma bloodlines.
Operating the stud along with his girlfriend Bianca Wood who competed at the show, Mr Purdue said he was "extremely lucky" to win the cherry red Magic S33 who "will fit well" into his herd offering great type and genetics.
"At this stage we will let her grow out, but we would love to really put that Summit print on our herd," he said. "If she turns out to be the cow we think she will be, she will probably go into the donor program."
Also in the process of establishing a White Suffolk stud, Mr Purdue first purchased Limousins as a commercial beef cattle base, saying they out performed everything else.
"We kept buying stud registered cows without a stud to build our breeding program, and someone said 'well you're that delved into genetics why don't you start a stud?' So we did," he said.
"The aim and plan for the stud is to keep up with being commercially viable. We want to grow the stud, run embryo transfer programs, and establish a name especially back home.
"Bianca and I are first generation - we are self-made. I started in cattle when I was 15 leasing land, and I would love to get some land of my own."
Mr Purdue and his partner Miss Wood also teamed up with Phoebe Eckermann of Aruma Limousins, Korunye, SA - who also received the Val Littleton Domestic Travel Award - to receive the Brentvale Limousin Team of Three Steer Award.
They received an apricot Limousin steer - which won grand champion steer during the show - donated by Jason Foot of Brentvale stud, Echunga, SA.
"We know Jason fairly well and we were quite happy to take him back to South Australia, and to be the first team out of SA to win the award," Mr Purdue said. "He will be prepared for Melbourne Royal (September)."
Travelling a bit over 1200 kilometres - or 14 hours - to attend the show, the duo said the results were unexpected and they are extremely thankful to the sponsors.
"It was our first trip across to a Limo youth show, and it was a big shock to us to have the success we did and to be welcomed as much as we were to our first junior show," Mr Purdue said.
"We will definitely be back next year, and we would love to give back in the future.
"(Attending the event) it has allowed us to grow and build, not only winning by the heifer but from the people we met and the advice we have received from being there."
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