Hereford cattle free ranging across eight million hectares in central Australia are producing some of the world’s most premium organic grass-fed beef.
They contribute to OBE Organic Beef, a company established in the 1990s as Australia’s oldest farmer-owned organic beef supply chain and first organic beef exporter.
Formed by a group of far-sighted pastoral families, the company was founded on mainly Hereford herds finished on diverse native rangeland pastures in the harsh, arid Channel country of South Australia and western Queensland.
Each property is certified by third party auditors to comply with Australia’s National Standards for organic and biodynamic produce, and the United States Department of Agriculture National Organic Program.
The beef is free of antibiotics, added hormones, genetically modified feed, and raised on pastures free from chemical treatments.
Annual organic certification inspections ensure the producers have stocking rates appropriate for the region taking into consideration feed production capacity, health, nutrient balance, and environmental impact.
OBE Organic Managing Director Dalene Wray AM said the company exports to more than 12 countries, including the Middle East, Asia and its largest export market of the USA.
“We have lots of unique selling points from certified organic, grass fed, family-owned, sustainable and from the Channel Country rangelands – each of those are important to different customers around the world,” Ms Wray said.
“We have the luxury of having amazing certified organic grass fed and sustainable beef from an amazing part of the world giving us a compelling case for customers to choose our product over an alternate.
“That product is largely based on the Hereford breed as they do well in the harsh environment of low rainfall and heat. All our imagery use Herefords and it is a nice example of a sustainable beef brand.”
Ms Wray said Herefords were performing for OBE Organic through the supply chain on meat and fat colour.
“As a beef exporter, we have to meet state and federal government requirements when it comes to animal welfare, and when the animal is handled well that typically results in good carcase characteristics,” she said.
“Texture and tenderness are managed through the wet ageing of the carcase. The unique flavour profile comes from the way animals choose their own diet among the native species of the rangelands.
“We buy steers, heifers and cows and have a market for all of them – steer and cow product are sold domestically and all around the world.”
Ms Wray said producers with low maintenance, pasture-based systems were ideally positioned to take on the three-year transition to organic certification to open future marketing opportunities.
The company’s animal welfare strategy aims to develop a process to monitor performance using existing data, participate in industry animal welfare initiatives and enhance the feedback loop to producers using behaviour theory to encourage change.
Cattle are transported to a USDA approved certified organic processing facility on the east coast of Australia under strict certified organic standards. All feed provided to animals in transit is organically certified and on arrival at the processing facility cattle are kept in yards dedicated exclusively to organic stock.
The beef travels through an unbroken cold chain from the time it leaves the processing facility until it reaches its final destination where it is stacked fresh in premium retailers and restaurants.
Ms Wray said large global hotel chains had sustainability quotas with chefs obligated to purchase a percentage of their food and beef inventory from sustainable sources, with OBE Organic filling the niche.
“A Brisbane butcher shop we supply has many vegans and vegetarians as new customers. They are wanting to start putting meat back in their diet but want it to be more sustainable, clean, and safe or with a guarantee of integrity.
“We are proud of what we are doing – we wouldn’t be here if consumers weren’t buying our product. We do sell to more and more places around the world, but as one market opens, another closes so we have to have a product with market flexibility.
“Producers need to present an animal to the market in the best possible condition and genetics has a key role to play in that.”