Delegates mingle in BeefEx’s trade exhibition area this morning

LIVESTOCK finance service provider StockCo has launched a new specialised feedlot cattle product at the grainfed industry’s BeefEx conference in Brisbane this week.

The biennial conference has seen a number of new product and service launches targetted at the lotfeeding industry, including this DNA-based feeder steer selection and management tool launched yesterday by Angus Australia, Neogen and Zoetis Genetics.

Unlike a traditional bailment product, StockCo’s new Feedlot Finance product is a loan which enables gradual drawdowns on the equity in livestock on feed to assist with feeding expenses. As a loan, feedlot operators have the advantage of greater clarity with the ability to leverage the values or asset base of their cattle on feed against future cash-flows, the company said in  statement.

StockCo’s general manager of livestock finance, Ciaran O’Gorman, said his company had been assisting clients feeding cattle for over a decade.

“We wanted to specifically design a finance option to support the continued growth of the feedlot sector, which has its complexities and challenges,” he said.

The product has been developed in conjunction with agribusiness technology provider Sentinel Ag, which gathers and organises farm data helping agribusinesses communicate with their bankers, and allowing their bankers to better understand and manage the risks associated with extending finance.

In 2020 Sentinel Ag launched its second technology platform focused on increasing the flow of funding to companies that are selling feedlot finished cattle over-the-hooks to grainfed processors.

Companies using the platform can simultaneously access funding for their backgrounding activities.

“Sentinel Ag’s technology allows us to obtain direct access to the information required to easily understand the borrower’s finance needs and associated risks,” Mr O’Gorman said.

“We believe that the Feedlot Finance loan provides an effective finance solution for grainfed producers who are looking for a sustainable option to grow their business,” he said.

StockCo, part of Heartland Bank Australia,  has offered livestock financing solutions in Australia and New Zealand since 1995. It was the first company in Australia to provide 100pc livestock finance solutions, working with 3000 clients to fund more than $3.15 billion worth of livestock trading finance, breeder finance, stock advance and the new feedlot finance product.

Source: StockCo