Geoff Willett receives his Hall of Fame Award from Alan Hoey and Charlie Perry at the AWA Conference o the Gold Coast this morning.

A HIGHLIGHT of the AWA Conference this morning was the induction into the Australian Wagyu Hall of Fame of Geoff Willett, who founded and developed Maydan Feedlot at Warwick.

Mr Willett was one of the first people in the feedlot sector to see the potential of Wagyu cattle and conducted significant early research into Japanese feeding regimes so that knowledge could be applied in an Australian context through specialised Wagyu feeding programs.

He also championed the cause with AusMeat to extend the marble score rating to 7, 8 and 9 to accommodate the higher levels achieved in Wagyu.

Starting from a humble four pens in 1984, his feedlot went on to represent the very best of Wagyu feeding programs, with many of those early pioneers staying with the program until its sale in 2017, where it housed at least 77 pens of premium Wagyu cattle.

“The reputation of the man and his business, is testament to his tenacity to overcome challenges and surround himself with people to advise him on the feedlot journey,” AWA president Charlie Perry said.

Alan Hoey, who was there with Geoff as Maydan Feedlot Manager in the very beginning, said it was the mistakes and lessons learned by Geoff, that many feedlots today have benefited from, around the country.

“Geoff’s integrity, tenacity and dedication to Wagyu in Australia has paved the way for many in the Wagyu sector to prosper and produce the worlds luxury beef,” Mr Perry said.