Beef now core enterprise for Donnybrook apple growers

At a Donnybrook farm where reserves of rainwater once nurtured apple varieties, generational change has brought more prosperous beef production into the pipeline. In line to take over the family’s Crendon farm, John Fry was determined not to follow in the footsteps of his late father, Philip, an orchardist with a mixed dairy enterprise and huge labour-cost pressures. “My interest was towards value-added beef production by finishing cattle on grain,” Mr Fry said. “The first task was to increase the farm’s dam water storage, sourced from the Capel River, from 1.6 to 2.5 gigalitres.” Mr Fry, followed by his son Paul, was soon gravity-feeding dam water through natural creek pathways to the lower laser-levelled flood paddocks which carried Angus and trade cattle for grain finishing. Ten years ago, it was decided the feedlot was not a practical financial option and the Frys turned their attention to planning a year-round grass-fed operation. “We either had to spend big dollars on a feedlot upgrade or give it away,” Paul said. “The decision to change to grass-fed certification was about focusing on our comparative advantage of using the dam water to produce low-cost feed over the summer months.” With a good supply of licensed dam water to give them a competitive edge, the Frys invested in a 3km pipeline, costing $100 per metre, which was completed in 2015. The next year, three pivot sprinklers arrived from the US, to complete a capital investment that should see them through the next 20 years. The Frys now irrigate 120ha, 80ha through sprinklers and 40ha by flood irrigation, which produces 11 tonnes a hectare of fodder feed and they additionally harvest 2500 hay rolls, testing 10 megajoules of energy and 11 per cent protein. “The three main varieties grown are white clover, kikuyu and rye grass, with 15 per cent of all farm costs going into fertiliser,” Paul said. The Fry family’s self-replacing breeding herd, infused with Blackrock Angus genetics for more than 25 years, calves down 504 head from April to May, with bull selection concentrated on early maturity, early growth and good temperament. “We produce 11 to 12-month-old certified grass-fed calves, off-peak season from February to spring, for Harvey Beef,” Paul said. The operation is returning 2.3 per cent on total capital, which is above average. The Frys are now considering marketing their cattle from 12 months to 24 months with carcase weights up to 300kg. “This would eliminate some finishing input costs and would allow us to carry more trade cattle,” John Fry said.