The 2024 Thomas Foods International Angus Foundation Supply Chain Tour was concluded in October in Adelaide, where twelve young delegates from across Australia were given an exceptional opportunity to explore the nation’s beef supply chain from pasture to plate. The tour spanned three days, covering key stages of beef production and processing, and showcasing the intricacies and innovations within Australia’s beef industry.

A Journey Across the Beef Supply Chain

Zoe Puls, Annie Edwards, Ashlea Cross, Tom Graham, Matthew Heyward, Chloe Plowman, Hayden McKimmie, Mitchell Smith, Darby McClaren, Liam Sheahan, Declan Martin and Edwina Hall were each been selected to take part in the production tour.

The tour kicked off at Mount Schanck, a high intensity grazing property located in the lush region of Mount Gambier, South Australia. Home to approximately 3,000 Angus females, this pristine property demonstrated the power and potential of southern grazing systems. The delegates were impressed by the consistency, scale, and management of the operation, which serves as an excellent model for high-intensity grazing.

Nathan Reid the Mount Schanck Farm Manager gave a guided tour of 10,000-acre property and provided the participants with an in-depth overview of the Thomas Foods breeding system, with the hope that the group would go away with information that could them with their production systems.

“Everything’s on such a large scale and done so efficiently,” said Chloe Plowman, QLD.

“There are definitely key points that I can take back into my own herd on obviously a smaller scale but really focusing the breeding operation for the feedlot and abattoir markets. Thomas Foods are always looking at performance, they’re looking at marbling and they’re really analysing EBVs.”

Echoing this sentiment was Liam Sheahan, VIC, “The main take home is for me, living not too far from the Mount Schanck property, was that it was a really good experience having a look at their property, how they run things and the similarities and differences that I found through their property and the property at home, and the things that we could take back.

“Such as the intensity that they run their stock at to get the most out of their land and their stock.”

Next, the group moved to Southern Cross Feedlot in Tintinara, a 30,000-head grain-fed operation primarily dedicated to Angus cattle. Owned by Thomas Foods International, Southern Cross Feedlot stands as one of South Australia’s premier grain-fed facilities.

Feedlot Manager James Sage was on hand to provide the overview of the feedlot operation and showed them all facets of the day-to-day operations as well as discussing best practice not only within the feedlot itself, but what producers can be doing on farm to ensure the right cattle make it to the feedlot.

Delegates were captivated by the scale and quality of this feedlot, underscoring Thomas Foods’ commitment to quality and efficiency in beef production.

“I decided to apply because on our station is a breeding and finishing operation,” said Mitchell Smith, NT. “I thought this would be a great opportunity to see the later stages of the beef process, the feedlots, the abattoir, and then even the supermarkets and maybe what the consumer sees when it comes to the beef.”

“The feedlot was an absolute delight,” Declan Martin, SA. “Just on their production, their feed intakes, how they get all their feed in, costs, their weight gain they’re trying to push, the days they’re finishing.”

The final production stop was Thomas Foods International’s new beef processing facility in Murray Bridge, Australia’s most advanced beef processing plant, where Group Manager Beef, Kevin Himmelberg gave the delegates an exclusive behind-the-scenes tour of the state-of-the-art facility. The plant tour offered a unique chance to see the entire processing chain, giving the young beef enthusiasts a hands-on look at the sophisticated operations involved in delivering quality beef to consumers.

“The visit to the processing plant at Murray Bridge was a real eye opener to me,” said Ashlea Cross, VIC. “I’ve never been to a processing plant before, and to see the scale and level of technology inside the plant was certainly a real eye opener.”

Exploring Retail Connections and Meeting Industry Experts
Following the conclusion of touring the production facilities, the group headed to the company headquarters, located in Adelaide.

“We went to the Thomas Foods International headquarters and spoke with Darren Thomas, who’s the Managing Director, as well as his co-workers and other staff members,” Annie Edwards, VIC.

“In Australia, it’s a small portion of what TFI do and their footprint internationally is really impressive.

“I think Darren’s strive to just constantly make the business better and make it grow is impressive and definitely something that I love to have in my own professional life, constantly striving for more and to make the agriculture industry a better place, and especially in the beef world and constantly making the genetics better.”

“I think just observing the attitudes that TFI has as a whole team, their work culture is amazing, and they put their employees first,” said Edwina Hall, TAS.

“Especially, Darren Thomas’s attitudes towards improvement and turning negative situations into positives that benefit the business.”

The delegates also visited Thomas Farms’ retail outlets, including a local butcher shop and a Drake Supermarket in Adelaide. These visits provided insight into the end stages of the supply chain, reinforcing the connection between beef production and the retail market, where quality and consistency truly matter.

National Retail Manager, Mathew Divine presented the last step in the Angus supply chain and gave insight into the minds of the consumers they deal with and how sustainability and consistent meat quality play a huge role.

“I haven’t really experienced the retail side of things, so the visit to Drakes was extremely interesting to see the retail and the products on offer and also talk with the guys from TFI about pricing and strategy,” said Ashlea.

Supporting the Beef Supply Chain

Beyond the facilities, the tour emphasized the importance of people in the beef industry. Delegates had the opportunity to meet the skilled and dedicated professionals at each stage of the supply chain, who shared their expertise and passion for quality beef production.

This included a visit to Van Schaik’s Bio Gro, who operate organic receival facilities in South Australia and Victoria to support diversion of organic waste product from landfill. This waste is utilised to create products for the horticulture, viticulture, agriculture and landscape market.

Liam Van Schaik Agricultural Sales Manager and third generation family member of Bio Gro gave a tour of their primary composting facility and spoke to the group about the management of on farm waste and how it can be turned in to products thayt can go back to being used by the industry.

Joining the group from Achmea Australia were Luke Foster, General Manager – Commercial West and Southern Australia, and Kaydee Rogers, local Farm Insurance Specialist in South Australia.

“The presentation from Achmea and the quiz were really good,” said Zoe Puls. “It also connected for me a bit to my agricultural degree, which was really nice to use, and talk about components of risk, not only for Angus producers.

“I come off a sheep property, so I also able to correlate that together and just get a better understanding for insurance.”

Jake Bourne from Zoetis gave a presentation on the use of genomics and more specifically Angus HeiferSELECT. Recognising that this generation are the next decision makers, Jake was able to show them what genomics can do for the beef supply chain and how it can help in the decisionmaking prcoess, especially from a commercial breeder perspective.

“The boys spoke quite a lot about genomics, and I hadn’t heard much about the HeiferSELECT product with Zoetis and Angus Australia.

“Learning about this was pretty cool, particularly selecting the heifers that aren’t good in your mob compared to the good ones and the bad to promote the good.”

While Vaughan Johnston from Semex spoke about genetic innovation from a dairy perspective and how the advantages could be applied to a beef operation.

“We talked about sexed semen and the beef on dairy, which was pretty interesting to hear about how the dairy industry has advanced over the last 50 years from Canada and the United States over to Australia,” said Tom Graham, VIC.

“They spoke how many beef bulls they’re using in the dairy industry as well and how they can minimise having too much inventory in the dairy industry when they calve and are raising their heifers.”

Along with Thomas Foods Angus Australia must thank each of these businesses for their support of the tour.

Attendee Reflections and Key Takeaways

For the attendees, the experience was transformative. One attendee highlighted the significance of the Mount Schanck visit, noting how it illustrated the future direction of beef production in Australia and the challenges and innovations that will help the industry meet evolving domestic and international market demands. Others expressed gratitude for the chance to visit such high-profile facilities and learn directly from leaders in the field.

The tour was also an opportunity to make lasting connections with like-minded individuals passionate about beef production.

“One of my biggest take homes from the tour was getting to see just how much everyone’s business decisions along the way affect one another, whether it be the breeder, the seedstock producer, the abattoir, the feedlot, or even the semen company and insurance,” said Matthew Heyward.

“Each one of those decisions made inside of those businesses can really affect everyone all across the supply chain right through the process of the meat industry.”

He continued, “Another great part of the tour was getting to meet so many industry experts and lifelong friends in my peers that I was with on the tour.

“We had many conversations through into the early hours of the morning about challenges we face in the industry and issues that we all come up against. It turns out there’s a lot of issues that we all face.”

“I think the biggest thing of the tour is also getting to know other young people with the same passion for Angus cattle,” said Chloe.

“It was really great to be able to talk to others and see what they’re doing, get ideas, and then they ask what you’re doing, and you can explain, going backwards and forwards.”

Looking Forward to Future Tours
The Thomas Foods International Angus Foundation Supply Chain Tour has once again proven to be a valuable educational opportunity for young people interested in the beef industry. After concluding the tour with a 200-day grain-fed Angus steak dinner at the Adelaide Oval, delegates and hosts alike expressed excitement about the possibility of a 2025 Angus Foundation production tour.

Darby McClaren, VIC encouraged other people with an interest an interest in broadening their knowledge set to apply for production tour opportunities in the future.

“You definitely should apply,” he said. “It’s just a big eye-opener into some of the big players of the industry and seeing how they run and do their job. It’s just a complete eye-opener and a very knowledgeable experience to embark on.”

With the industry’s continued support, these tours will continue to inspire and equip the next generation of beef producers with the skills and insights needed to shape Australia’s beef industry in the years to come. If you want to ensure Angus Australia can continue to offer programs like this, make sure you get involved and support the Angus Foundation.

– By Cheyne Twist

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