COMMERCIAL trade displays at Beef 2021 will cover every conceivable aspect of the meat and livestock supply chain in Australia.

While there will be a heavy emphasis on agtech in many exhibits in Rockhampton this year, commercial displays will cover everything from animal health and nutrition to genetics, stock handling and fencing, animal ID and traceability, finance, trade, infrastructure, farm vehicles and more.

The following briefs are part of Beef Central’s ongoing preview of next week’s Beef 2021 expo in Rockhampton. Information has been drawn from a wide range of sources, including companies that have advertised in Beef Central’s event preview.

• World first launch for Ceres Tag
• BOQ hosts info sessions
• Seminar to explore opportunities for Angus in the north
• Elders seminar to focus on navigating innovation in the beef industry
• Bumper season of innovation for Clipex
• Win a portable fridge-freezer with Nutrien
• Entegra’s major Darwin livex shed project
• Win 5 tonnes of ruminant pellets with PBA Feeds
• Daily livestock management software demo’s from Elynx
• Grow your red meat business with the Casino Food Co-op
• TopX looks forward to engaging with producers

World first launch for Ceres Tag

Ceres Tag, the world’s first animal monitoring information platform with direct-to-satellite capability, will launch its first commercially available product during Beef 2021.

Ceres Tag technology is a next generation livestock information platform that provides GPS location, provenance traceability and animal health & welfare information to improve data driven decisions for all stakeholders in the supply chain from paddock to processor and beyond.

Following five years of R&D, the commercial launch on 3 May will release a product which will drive automation and democratisation of data, assist on-farm decision making, de-risking the animal assets and driving productivity uplift of the red meat industry both in Australia and globally.

The new tag product will be sold direct to market, through a dedicated ecommerce platform, which will be accessible here (https://www.cerestag.com/) from launch date. “The platform makes the purchase and delivery to the door process quite easy and automated, for producers anywhere in the world,” said CEO David Smith.

COO Lewis Frost said the product would allow producers to move to a level of precision animal management that they have not previously experienced. “We are going to have access to data that previously has been in the realm of large John Deere tractors in broadacre cropping applications,” he said.

The company will host demonstrations, Q&A’s and showcases with software and industry partners to further build agtech awareness and adoption.

• Ceres Tag’s Beef 2021 site is in the Ken Coombe Tech Yards, site TY10

BOQ hosts info sessions

BOQ Agribusiness is a proud Supporting Partner of Beef 21, and as part of the lender’s line-up during this week-long celebration of the Australian beef industry, it has scheduled ‘The Round Up’ – a series of informative and thought-provoking sessions.

Hosted on BOQ’s trade stand, the information sessions include:

• Tuesday 4 & Thursday 6 May, 10am: Economic Snapshot with BOQ’s chief economist, Peter Munckton
• Wednesday 5 May, 2pm: Future-proofing the family business. Innovation, education and succession, with Kylie Morrow, BOQ senior agribusiness manager hosting an impressive panel of female leaders and innovators
• Thursday 6 May, 2pm – Custom feeding: the economics of value-adding smaller livestock with Sean Conaghan from Barmount Feedlot, Clarke Creek QLD.

Beef 2021 patrons keen to book a spot should reach out to the BOQ Agribusiness team, https://www.boq.com.au/business/industry-specialists/agribusiness/our-people, or visit BOQ’s trade site R25 – R27.

Seminar to explore opportunities for Angus in the north

Angus Australia will host a producer seminar during Beef Australia 2021 next month, titled ‘The Angus Influence – from Performance to Profit.’

The seminar on Tuesday May 4 will focus on producer profitability, the opportunities for Angus use in the north and features the experience of two producers implementing Angus genetics in their operations.

Taking part in the event will be speakers Ian McLean from Bush AgriBusiness; Sam Crowther, Harrow Grazing; and Robert MacKenzie, Macka’s Pastoral and Macka’s Australian Black Angus Beef. Angus Australia president Sam White will act as master of ceremonies.

The seminar will provide informative discussion about the influence of Angus genetics throughout the supply chain – investigating profit drivers in beef cattle enterprises, production on-farm and performance in-market. It will showcase the experiences of producers who already using Angus genetics in their operations and how they are maximising profitability within their businesses.

The 90-minute seminar takes place in the Lawson Room at the Rockhampton State High School, from 1pm on Tuesday 4 May. Tickets ($45 each) are available for purchase from the Beef Australia website – click here to access.

• Angus Australia is also hosting a trade site in the Durack pavilion, site D1.

Elders seminar to focus on navigating innovation in the beef industry

As part of its broad exposure during Beef 2021 next month, Elders in association with Thomas Elder Consulting will present a seminar titled, What really matters? Navigating innovation in the beef industry.

Being held on Thursday 6 May from 1:30pm, this conversation hosted by Elders head of technical services, Graham Page, will explore how ground-breaking developments in agtech and in-field trials can help producers realise the opportunities of the beef industry in 2021 and beyond.

• After a year of remarkable prices, Elders state livestock manager Paul Holm explores the big shifts that have changed commercial livestock trading forever, and why data capture is so important for a beef producer in today’s market and the possibilities for 2021.
• To meet the opportunities that lay ahead, Thomas Elder Consulting advisor Bruce Creek provides a snapshot of the most promising new technology on the market today and what’s to come out of two new agtech trial sites in the country’s south east.
• Elders Toowoomba advisor Maree Crawford reports on breakthroughs yielded by extensive forage cropping trials and feed conversion efficiency studies, and what this ongoing innovation may mean for producers going forward.

The seminar will also hear from a producer on-the-ground, revealing how their business uses new technology to take advantage of the rising beef market and what they’re excited to see for the future of the Australian beef industry.

• When: Thursday 6 May, 1:30-3pm
• Where: The Patterson Room, Rockhampton State High School
• Cost: $45 per person https://beefaustralia.eventsair.com/ba2021/ticketsonsale/Site/Register

Welcome to Elders BEEF21 Pavilion

Open from 8:30am Monday to Friday during the event, the Elders Pavilion – located between the Archer and Durack pavilions at the edge of the centre ring – is a must-see for all visitors. Exhibitors cover stock handling and fencing, seed, animal health and nutrition products, water management products, weed control, animal ID and more.

Bumper season of innovation for Clipex

As a business built around innovation, Clipex is bringing its latest advancements in cattle handling equipment and fence post technology to Beef 2021 – including some brand new products.

The company’s engineering and installation teams have been hard at work preparing a full-scale showcase of the company’s class-leading cattle handling solutions, with some new editions manufactured specifically for the event.

These include a newly-designed, heavy-duty race, featuring a new panel system which provides an extra layer of safety, along with greater access and control when processing cattle.

In keeping with its reputation as a fencing innovator, Clipex will debut its new Twin Tip posts at Beef 2021. The posts (pictured right) feature a proprietary, passive coating to the in-ground section, providing a barrier against corrosion which significantly extends the life of the post.

Clipex founder Ashley Olsson said Beef Australia had provided an excellent platform over the years to share the company’s innovations with Australian farmers, empowering them to produce for the world.

• Clipex has a large Outdoor site, located at OP10 on the site map.

Win a portable fridge-freezer with Nutrien

The Nutrien Ag Solutions team is offering the chance to win one of five Engel Eclipse 38L fridge-freezers with a transit bag, valued at $1000 for Beef 2021 visitors.

The promotion will run from Monday to Friday 3-7 May, with a daily barrel draw at 6pm at the Nutrien Ag Solutions site.

To enter, entrants must attend Beef 2021, scan the Nutrien QR code at the site and complete the required fields. Event patrons will receive one entry into the draw for each Nutrien QR code scanned. The maximum number of entries per customer per day is 22 (there is a separate QR code for each participating supplier at the Nutrien site). Terms and conditions apply – see www.NutrienAgSolutions.com.au for more information.

• Visit the Nutrien Ag Solutions trade tent located at site OP143 and meet the team of specialists from livestock, water, finance, insurance and real estate businesses, plus supplier partners.

Entegra’s major Darwin livex shed project

Completion of a major upgrade to Darwin’s Berrimah live export yards has been a great signpost for the possibilities available from shed solutions provider Entegra Signature Structures.

Since the construction of the sheds, there’s been up to 80,000 cattle quarantined at the Berrimah pre-export livestock quarantine facility, prior to export to South East Asia.

Berrimah received more than 1.5 metres of rain during the recent wet season, but the covered facility remained dry and easy to manage, improving conditions for the cattle, the feed and the personnel. Without the shelter of the Entegra Ridgeback sheds, the yards would have become “mud…slop”, yards manager Ben Giblett said. Before the installation, the hardest part was cleaning pens in the middle of the wet, he said.

“Anecdotally, we observe that the cattle certainly do well under the shed, they eat a lot and drink a lot and those are the characteristics we are looking for,” NTLEA chief executive Will Evans said.

The yards upgrade (pictured below) included structures 171 metres x 45 metres, using Entrgra’s Ridgeback design to shelter the feedpad-style yards. The Ridgeback is a patented climate-controlled design with 20pc more air exchange per hour compared to traditional sheds.

The sheds were always planned to be a “shop-front to the industry,” according to Entegra director Charles McCalman. “NTLEA could stand-up and say we are providing our cattle with the best infrastructure and most advanced technology to provide better conditions for our cattle,” he said.

• Entegra will host a commercial trade display site at Beef 2021, located in the Walter Pearce pavilion, site WP5.

Win 5 tonnes of ruminant pellets with PBA Feeds

Want the chance to win five tonnes of ruminant pellets? Simply drop into the PBA Feeds trade display site at Beef 2021, in the Town Square Precinct, to go into a draw.

There will also be free samples of loose lick supplements, horse feed and poultry feed. If stock owners have ever wanted a chance to see, smell and touch the range of loose licks, horse feed or poultry feed, then this is their chance. There will be a wide range of products on display, and the PBA Feeds representatives will be on hand to discuss and answer any questions.

Patrons can also pick up a toy for the kids and check out the new PBA brochure, containing all the new information about the new-look loose lick supplements.

PBA Feeds is able to help producers with their supplement program or feedlot ration, as well as ways to improve production. To organise a farm visit by one of the PBA Feeds representatives, make your way to the Outdoor trade site OP100 and talk to the team.

Daily livestock management software demo’s from Elynx

Leading livestock management software company Elynx will host daily on-site demonstrations for cattle producers and lotfeeders throughout Beef 2021.

For grazing, backgrounding and breeding applications, the Stockmate mobile app and cloud management system, widely used by large scale extensive cattle operators and smallholders alike, will be on display.

The Stockmate product ensures lifetime traceability and delivers critical data at all stages of production; helps manage production & performance at an individual animal and mob level. The system can be used crush-side or in the paddock, and then synced to the web.

For feedlot owners and managers, Elynx will showcase its FY3000, Stockaid and Weighbridge3000 feedlot management software packages. Elynx has been in the business of feedbunk management software since 2000. Systems help manage production, commodities, rations, feeding, livestock performance, health and financials. All systems are robust, accurate and comprehensive.

Elynx is hosting a trade site in the Sidney Kidman Pavilion – Sites SK12 &13. Daily demonstrations:

• Stockmate 11am and 2.30pm
• FY3000 10am
• Stockaid 1.30pm
• BMS 3.30pm

Droughtmasters mount big showing

Droughtmasters will be proudly exhibiting in both stud and commercial sections at Beef 2021, mounting the single largest breed display, with 224 head nominated for stud beef competition from 41 studs in Queensland and NSW.

The Droughtmaster Stud Breeders Society will also host a panel session called “Beef into the Future” at the Droughtmaster marquee from 5.30pm on Thursday, 6 May.

Speakers will include Federal Agriculture minister David Littleproud; Queensland Live Exporters Association president Greg Pankhurst; Sarah Donovan from Donovan Feedlot; and Dr David Johnston from Armidale’s Animal Genetics and Breeding Unit (AGBU). Facilitator will be Harry Clarke, The Country Caller. For COVID management reasons, an RSVP is required – click here to access

• Commercial judging will take place at CQLX, Gracemere, on Sunday 2 from 9am; Droughtmaster stud judging will take place on Wednesday 5 May from 7am, Ring 1.
• The Droughtmaster Marquee and Stud Housing Precinct can be found at the north-western side of the Rockhampton Showgrounds, site numbers CP18-21.

Grow your red meat business with the Casino Food Co-op

Having undergone a name change last year, the Northern Cooperative Meat Co – now called the Casino Food Co-op – looks forward to engaging with producers and other stakeholders during Beef 2021.

Proudly farmer-owned since 1933, the northern NSW-based beef processor and value-added food producer is Australia’s largest farmer-owned beef processing co-operative, with state of the art facilities for service kill operators. To find out how you can join the cooperative, share in the profits and grow your business visit Casino Food Co-op at the Walter Pearce Pavilion Sites 29 & 54.

TopX looks forward to engaging with producers

TopX are proud to be part of Beef Australia, being a nominated agent in the Commercial Cattle Championships. We would like to wish our clients and all entrants the best of luck.

Our people will be on the ground throughout Beef Week 2021, so be sure to keep an eye out and say hello.

All TopX branches are independently owned and operated businesses offering professional livestock and rural property marketing services in the following areas: Central Qld, Cloncurry, Goondiwindi, Gracemere, Longreach, Roma, Taroom, St George and Warwick. The TopX head office, based in Roma, serves as an administrative and marketing hub for the branches allowing agents to be on the ground doing what they are passionate about and what they do best – marketing livestock and rural property.

With a focus on producing maximum returns through innovative marketing, backed by experience and contact networks, TopX agents provide tailor-made marketing plans to suit clients’ needs.

If you’re looking for an honest and hard-working agent to market your livestock or rural property, call your local TopX agent. If you’d like know more about TopX or to subscribe to livestock and property listings, market reports and sale numbers visit www.topx.com.au.