FOR Tasmanian cattle producers Philip and Gaylene Hughes, the secret to producing high quality Meat Standards Australia graded beef is in keeping their cattle calm and quiet.

By minimising stress to their stock, not overstocking their Kindred property near Devonport, and always having plenty of silage available throughout the drier months, the couple has found a formula that last night delivered them the title of Tasmania’s best MSA beef cattle producers for the year.

“Don’t stress your cattle, give them plenty of tucker and don’t overstock,” was Mr Hughes’s simple three points of advice.

“Genetics also play a big part in MSA, because it’s important to have the temperament right, and deliver muscling and growth potential.

“I want something that looks like they’ll grow out to 600 or 650kg liveweight, with plenty of muscle about them.”

These carcase weights are unusually high by southern Australian standards, but it’s because the Hughes’s target market is HW Greenham’s highly successful Cape Grim grassfed brand program, which utilises heavier carcases with a minimum target marbling score of 2. Processing takes place at Greenham’s Smithton plant in the state’s northwest.

Because of cut size and marbling performance, much of the Cape Grim production finds its way into higher-end hotel and restaurant style food service outlets, both within Australia and overseas.

Click the link to below to view a short video about Philip Hughes’s approach to MSA production

The Hughes’s 65ha property sits on the undulating agricultural landscape of Kindred, near the northern coastal town of Devonport.

An annual rainfall of 900-1200mm allows their cattle to run on pastures year-round. The diet consists of permanent pastures, clover and occasional silage. However, in tougher climatic conditions, silage can become a main dietary constituent for their cattle.

Mr Hughes said it was important to keep the cattle well-fed through the harder times of year, with a constant plane of nutrition a key factor in producing tender beef. This focus on nutrition played an important role in Mr Hughes delivering such a high-quality end product.

His cattle recorded low ossification scores – a measure which has a significant impact on tenderness – and desirable marbling scores, corresponding to better juiciness, and flavour.

The quiet handling of the stock also contributed to ensuring the cattle met the MSA minimum requirements of having desirable meat colour and pH.

MSA is an MLA-supported program where the eating quality of every beef cut is determined using a grading system that measures key attributes such as carcase weight, ossification, marbling, rib fat, tropical breed content, meat pH and temperature, hanging method, hormonal growth promotants and meat colour.

Each carcase receives an MSA Index value that represents its potential eating quality based on the measurements collected.

To be eligible for the MLA MSA awards, a producer’s annual MSA-graded volume had to be equal or above the average for the State they were produced in during 2014-15.

Each producer that met the eligibility criteria received a score out of 100 weighted on two factors: the compliance to MSA minimum requirements, and eating quality performance as determined by the MSA Index for cattle consigned to MSA in 2014-15.

“To be named the best MSA producer is great. There’s a bit of prestige with it and I feel like the king of Kindred,” Mr Hughes said.

“It’s just great to be part of the beef industry… it makes me feel good to be selling good cattle.”

Click here to view this morning’s report on the Hughes’s win as Tasmanian MSA Suppliers of the Year last night

Includes content provided by MLA.