SOUTHERN cattle enthusiasts are getting a taste of the enormity that is northern beef operations in a new training relationship between the Northern Territory Rural College and Rural Industries Skill Training, Hamilton.
The first group of students undertook the 18-day northern exchange recently, working on two cattle before competing in the Katherine Show.
RIST traineeship co-ordinator Sally Aldridge said the experience was about introducing the four students to the complexities of Northern Territory operations involved in live export.
RIST students Andrew Jackson, Toolong Angus, Woolsthorpe, Lachlan Wrentsch, Malanda, Penshurst, Aaron Seabrook, Alanvale, Macarthur and Will Pierce, Hamilton (pictured) made the inaugural venture.
They worked on Lakefield Station, a 60,000 hectare property near Mataranka and Dry River Station, a 65,000ha property near Katherine in the NT.
"On one station that had a cattle yards 40 kilometres from the front gate and 7000 Brahman breeders was classified as a small farm – the distances were phenomenal," Ms Aldridge said.
"The large stocking numbers across vast areas blew their minds."
With a stocking capacity of one cow per 80ha on the stations, Ms Aldridge said the students learnt about livestock handling across enormous distances, the live export trade, production in monsoon seasons and dry conditions.
"It was amazing – students undertook branding, drafting and mustering on these properties that are so different to their southern operations," she said.
"The cattle are tough out there and they only have live exports so sell to.
"When the live cattle trade shut down it was devastatingly hard up there – it was a personal to see how much it had affected farmers."
RIST are in talks with the NT Rural College to continue the experience annually for students undertaking a Diploma of Agriculture and Certificate III in Agriculture with the training centre.