Summer Angus: Gavin Pearce uses agriculture as release from federal politics

With typical farmer's forthright honesty, he admits it's tough maintaining three properties at Lapoinya on the north west coast of Tasmania.

"I borrowed too much money to get them," he said.

Having been the federal member for Braddon for just more than 18 months, he's still learning to juggle his political duties and his beloved herd of Angus cattle.

This consists of about 150 breeders, culled from a normal size of about 220 due to time constraints and drier-than-usual conditions.

Sure, he can talk policy, party initiatives and community concerns like the best of them, but that's not where his natural flow of conversation will lead to.

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Instead, he relishes the chance to chew over the fat, well, fat coverage, genetics and complete beef production systems.

It's not the usual domain for national representatives.

To say agriculture is in Mr Pearce's blood is an understatement; his family has been farming in the region since 1860.

Despite his father being a long-term Hereford breeder, Mr Pearce said he went with the Angus breed for their saleability.

"Going into a breed is a bit like electing a politician - you may as well feed a good one because they'll eat the same amount of tucker," he said.

"The profile of the breed has just been incredible."

"It has just been a continuing success story. There's the integrity of the breed.

"Even if you're pinched by conditions, black cattle will sell anywhere before anything else."

Mr Pearce said he didn't particularly think they were genetically superior to other breeds but within a holistic approach to beef production, they fitted well.

Temperament is high on the checklist.

"Most of my cattle will walk up to you and you can scratch their foreheads," he said.

In Mr Pearce's thinking, a "stirry" herd is more difficult to manage and therefore frustrates the handler which in turns puts more pressure onto the cattle, stirring them up further, and so the cycle goes on.

He said a solid wedge type animal always catches his eye, with his herd being more stockier but with a bit of length.

He holds a strict eye when it comes to bull purchases, buying for genetics, not necessarily looks or show prowess.

Maternal traits are not ignored either.

"You can have the best looking cow but unless it looks after its calf, it's useless," he said.

Things such as a floppy brisket indicating lower milk yield and the condition of the udder tract are all indicators Mr Pearce takes on board in his selection process.

Mr Pearce said he particularly admired Daryl Heazlewood's Platinum Angus bloodlines.

Mr Pearce operates under the Global Animal Partnership (GAP), a quality assurance program which requires a six-monthly audit but delivers higher returns.

Subsequently, the herd does not use antibiotic shots, growth hormones or even grain fattening.

He aims to turn off a beast at about 18 months.

"You've got to minimise the time they are on the farm," he said.

As if the flow of information across his political desk isn't enough, Mr Pearce is a key data tracker when it comes to livestock as well.

"We are very much record-driven," he said.

Without making a pun about being politically grounded, Mr Pearce knows what lies beneath him.

He's conscious of balancing the trace elements provided by the soil, and therefore the pasture, to ensure a healthy beast.

It's a two-way street though.

Mr Pearce uses rotational cropping to rest and revive the land, growing potatoes and conducting pasture renovation programs with seed blends heavy on diploid grasses.

The mix of two types of clover, quality ryegrass and the odd chat potato doesn't hurt the herd either.

All this is spurred on by an average annual rainfall of about 1400mm.

In fact the farms more closely resemble dairy farms with a rotational grazing system to utilise the smaller paddock size.

With no supplementary hay program, the grasses have to be able to respond and provide adequate nutrition.

"Having a 230 to 240kg beast at 14 to 15 months of age isn't uncommon," Mr Pearce said.

The detailed monitoring doesn't automatically mean the cattle are at the weight gain level he'd prefer.

"I'd like to see a kilogram a day," he said.

Mr Pearce has an abattoir on one of his properties which processes about 20 to 30 cattle a week for locals as needed. It allows him a direct insight into the processing and cutting quality of his carcases.

"We still do a 14- to 15-day hang time (for carcases)," he said.

"Some of the best beef I've had is from one that hangs longer."

He gives credit to the current modern butchery industry and its ability to produce excellent cuts while minimising waste.

"Some butchers are doing fantastic work," Mr Pearce said.

"Unless it's cut and dressed properly, the meat won't be as good as it could be."

But the make-up of the beast will trump whatever is going down its throat.

"Again, it gets back to genetics. If the genetics aren't right, no matter how much quality feed they are given, they just won't have that quality," he said.

The appeal of farming provides a welcome balance to the cold brutality that can be politics.

"It's my passion. There's nothing like looking at a paddock of even, quiet cattle," Mr Pearce said.

Mr Pearce's fellow members of parliament and even his own local constituents are generally not the first to hear a speech from the Member for Braddon.

That privilege goes to the Angus herd.

The former soldier said that during his 2019 election campaign he'd head out to the paddock, lean on a water trough and practise his speeches.

"About 100 cattle would come up to me, and a real peace would come over me," he said.

The routine paid off as he went on to win the seat off Labor's incumbent Justine Keay in a 5.8 per cent swing to the Liberal party.

Canberra is a long way from the paddocks of Lapoinya.

In the halls of Parliament House, there are few who are able to talk about cattle in the detail Mr Pearce can.

He admits most federal politicians don't stop to discuss carcase weights, pasture nutrition or estimated breeding values.

That said, he listed WA politicians, dairy owner Nola Marino (Member for Forrest) and grain producer Rick Wilson (Member for O'Connor), plus fellow Tasmanian and sheep producer Bridget Archer (Member for Bass) as contemporaries with genuine agricultural links.

"Farming is a great leveller," he said.

He cites his 20 years in the army as providing him with similar disciplines to that of both agriculture and politics.

"Those I don't look up to are those who have built a career in politics; who've never had their hands dirty, never had a failure," he said.

"Representatives need to be representative.

"They (constituents) don't want smooth lines - they want fair dinkum honesty."

And quite possibly someone who can talk agriculture.