Peechelba Beef

Education

About Feedlots

Whilst there are many breeds and cross breeds in Australia, the most common feedlot cattle in the Southern areas are Hereford, Angus, Shorthorn, and a range of crosses between these three, or crosses including European breeds such as Charolais and Limousine.

A large percentage of domestic meat is now grain fed.

The Northern feedlots tend to have animals with higher levels of Bos Indicus content. Bos Indicus cattle such as Brahman are better suited to the temperatures and humidity of tropical Australia.

In the past, feedlot cattle were traditionally destined for export, however, a large percentage of domestic meat is now grain fed. Grain feeding allows for the production of consistent, high quality beef regardless of seasonal variations. The animals are fed a grain based diet which is high in energy, but balanced with hay and other necessary roughages. Management of the high energy feed is important to maximise animal health, well being and performance.

The animals are at the feedlot for a relatively short period of time. Animals entering the feedlot are provided with different feed mixes depending on their market. End markets could be either domestic, which tend to mean 70 days on feed, or export markets which are longer. The export markets require a longer stay in the feedlot because these customers prefer a higher level of intramuscular fat.