VICTORIAN-based supply chain Harmony Agriculture & Food Co has topped the annual Melbourne Royal Show Food Awards branded beef division this week with a sample of the company’s Black Opal F1 Wagyu x Angus product.
The Black Opal entry topped 21 entries in this year’s two classes for Wagyu and non-Wagyu beef.
The Wagyu class produced five gold medals, which (as well as Black Opal) also included Beefcorp International for a sample of Sher Wagyu, Andrews Meat Industries for a sample of Shiro Kin Fullblood Wagyu, and Stockyard Beef for samples of Kiwami and Stockyard Black.
In the branded beef (non Wagyu) division, gold medals were awarded to Stockyard Beef for its Stockyard Gold Angus program, and JBS Australia for its Yardstick marbling score 2 and better grainfed product.
In other beef award categories, Andrews Meat Industries claimed Melbourne’s Smallgoods champion trophy with a sample of Tajima Wagyu Beef Bresaola (air-dried, cured beef – see details below).
Champion Large Meat Producer was Stockyard Beef, Queensland, while champion Small Meat Producer was Ashburton Meats, in Melbourne’s southeast.
Recognising the next generation of the industry, Harry Owen of The Meat Inn Place butchery, located at Lilydale east of Melbourne, was awarded the Excellence in Apprentice Butchery Trophy.
Melbourne is the last major branded beef awards for the year, following Sydney Show’s Fine Foods awards last week, Brisbane Show back in May, and the annual Wagyu branded beef awards in March.
Competing in Melbourne’s Branded Wagyu Class, Black Opal topped the branded Wagyu class while Harmony’s Omino Fullblood Wagyu brand received a silver medal. Judges praised both brands for their creamy marbling and tenderness.
Black Opal is Harmony’s flagship Wagyu brand and is an F1 product produced using Wagyu and Angus maternal genetics.
Chinese-owned Harmony was established in 2016, today showing annual production volume of more than 5000 tonnes of Wagyu-influenced beef, which its website claims places the business in the world’s top ten Wagyu producers.
Customers include wholesalers, restaurants, butchers and speciality stores in Australia and international markets including China, North America, Asia and the Middle East.
The company operates a 2000ha Wagyu breeding and backgrounding hub near Murrindindi in northeastern Victoria, comprising five grazing properties: Kalatha (Glenburn), Brilliant (Gobur), Mirrabooka (Yarck), plus Drum Drum Aloc and Mittagundi (both near Molesworth).
Harmony grainfeeds more than 19,000 head of Wagyu and Wagyu cross cattle annually at its own 10,000 head Dimboola feedlot in western Victoria, and at third-party owned Hell’s Gate feedlot, Balraynald. Processing takes place at G&K O’Connor, Pakenham.
Black Opal also earned a gold medal in the recent Sydney Show Fine Food Awards, and a gold in the 2026 Australian Wagyu Association’s 2026 branded beef awards back in March.
Wagyu brasaola tops smallgoods
With three consecutive champion titles in both the Sydney Royal & Melbourne Royal competitions since 2024 – it’s safe to say there’s not much better.
Andrews Meat Industries’ Tajima Wagyu Bresaola claimed the Champion Smallgoods title for Melbourne Royal Australian Food Awards for the third year running yesterday, with a score of 92 out of 100. Last month, the bresaola secured a Champion medal at the Sydney Royal Fine Food Show, also for the third year in a row, with a score of 93.75 out of 100.
The bresaola was described by judges as: “An outstanding example of a bresaola, the appearance is very eye appealing, aroma very good, and the texture and flavour is excellent. A brilliant product and a credit to the maker.”
Peter Andrews, CEO of Andrews Meat Industries, said, “To see Tajima Wagyu Bresaola recognised as Champion three years in a row, in both Melbourne and Sydney, is an incredible honour. It reflects the commitment, skill, and care shown across the entire supply chain—from our wagyu producers, to our partners at De Palma Salumi, and everyone in between. We are proud to showcase the quality of Australian wagyu on such a respected stage.”
These coveted awards are presented to the best exhibit in each category, making back-to-back-to-back wins a remarkable achievement that attests to the dedication to quality in the Tajima Australian Grainfed Wagyu program.
Produced by long-time partners De Palma Salumi, Tajima Wagyu Bresaola is crafted from carefully selected cuts of Tajima Australian Grainfed Wagyu. De Palma Salumi’s process follows traditional Italian techniques, taking several months to cure and mature each piece. Cuts from the top round and silverside are trimmed and traditionally air-dried, resulting in bresaola that highlights the natural flavour, tenderness and marbling characteristics of Tajima Australian Grainfed Wagyu.
The Melbourne Royal Australian Food Awards and the Sydney Royal Fine Food Show are among Australia’s leading competitions, judged by industry experts who aim to bring together and celebrate the best Australian products.
On behalf of everyone at Harmony, including my co-founder and Chinese partner, we are incredibly proud that Black Opal was awarded Champion Branded Meat at the 2026 Melbourne Royal Australian Food Awards. While this is a monumental achievement for our team, my only wish is that Gordon Paterson was here to witness it too. Gordon was a passionate and determined cattle breeder, lotfeeder, farmer, and partner of ours, and a true believer in the unique qualities of the Wagyu breed. Like us, he saw the potential in Wagyu and what was required to not only produce champion meat but to surpass all other meats – pork, lamb, and beef – just as we have done with this champion award.
Our heartfelt thanks go to James and all at the JHW Paterson business, the dedicated staff at the Dimboola and Hells Gate feedlots, and to all our supply chain partners. From Harmony’s Murrindindi Breeding Hub genetics team to the cow/calf producers in Tasmania and across the mainland, this win belongs to all of us. Creating the Black Opal experience is a rigorous 1,200-day process that begins with careful breeding decisions made some three years prior and ends on the plate for diners to enjoy.
What threads us all together is that this is so much more than a job. It is a shared passion and an unwavering dedication to our craft that delivers results like these. Thank you to everyone who is part of this journey with us.
Anthony