A truck of about 14 head of Victorian Angus and Red Angus cattle will be headed to the 2019 Angus Youth National Roundup in January at Armidale, NSW, thanks to a handful of generous sponsors.
The 1400-kilometre one-way trip would be near impossible without the support of Victorian beef-breeders that believe in the future of the industry.
Te Mania Angus, Murdeduke Angus, Mortlake Angus, the Red Angus Victorian state committee and the Angus Victorian state committee are on board, helping the participants raise the current figure of $2500 to put directly towards the fuel costs associated with the trip.
Cattle will be transported by locals Richard Martin and family from Birriwindi Pastoral, Mortlake.
Held from January 10 to 13, the annual Angus Youth event is the largest single-breed heifer show in Australia, this year welcoming over 170 competitors to the New England, NSW, region.
Angus Youth Victorian representative Lilli Stewart from Waterlilli Angus, Birregurra, said most of the cattle were coming from the south-west of the state and the Shepparton area.
“Studs include PJ Angus, Waterlilli Angus, Merridale Angus, Bolton Girls Red Angus, Jillangus Red Angus, and Banquet Angus,” Ms Stewart said.
“It will be a two-day trek for the cattle, so we will leave on Tuesday to arrive Wednesday. Cattle will be rested overnight at about a halfway point.”
Ms Stewart said if the truck wasn’t going, support from the southern states would be minimal.
“With the drought, a lot of kids don’t have the funds to get up there even though they wanted to go,” she said.
“Also, because of the drought we knew the amount of ballot cattle could be down meaning we might not have that opportunity.”
The interest shown by those sponsoring shows the support of producers in giving the future beef breeders the opportunities they need to network with like-minded individuals and gain knowledge and experience all while showing the passion they have for the industry.
Ms Stewart said the Roundup is an amazing event, as it brings together the youth of the beef industry from across Australia.
“People attend from different parts of the country and from different areas within the Angus industry. There are educational talks, scholarship opportunities and everyone gets something out of being there,” she said.
“Everyone takes something that can help their own beef business or help them get where they want to go within the industry into the future.”
Kicking off the 100-year celebration of Angus Australia, the 2019 event Ms Stewart said would be an experience within itself.
“It is going to be a big year to meet Angus breeders and a good start to the year where Angus feature shows will be running in the Sydney, Adelaide and Melbourne Royals following on from the Roundup,” she said.
Sponsors of the truck will be promoted by the group through their Facebook page and merchandise they will be wearing during the Roundup.
With an estimated final figure of $3000 needed, the group is close to covering travel costs, but they are still seeking sponsorship from anyone interested in supporting their journey.
