Beef Spectacular Feedback Trial 2024: First-time entrant Rockvale Farming finishes in top three for eating quality

The team of five Angus steers recorded a daily average weight gain of 2.25 kilograms per day, along with three of the five carcases being graded a marble score two, while another carcase was graded a score three.

Four out of the five carcases qualified for the Riverine Premium Beef label.

The team received the full points for entry weight averaging 430kg, with an average feedlot exit weight of 679kg, resulting in an average carcase weight of 378kg.

The mixed farming operation runs 1700 Angus cows for a spring calving over 9712 hectares, alongside 4000 Merino ewes and 2000 Composite ewes, with the main bloodlines for the cattle being Glenavon Angus.

The operations manager Finlay Munro said they joined the trial to benchmark the operation against other producers steers.

"We sell predominantly into the feedlots for that premium Angus market," Mr Munro said.

"We had one team that went exceptionally well and then the other team were above average in the carcass traits category.

"It's really nice to see that what we're producing is up there with the rest of the best of them."

Mr Munro said the ten steers picked for the trial was a neat overview of the steers within the operation, given the time of year of entry, the programs steers were reaching weights to head into the feedlot.

The main group of steers are sent into the feedlot market at 16 months old, with any steers being too heavy then continue and go onto the grassfed market.

Mr Munro said the results of the trial back up what the operation has been trying to achieve with their genetics and where they source their bulls from.

"It reassured us that what we are doing is what we want to be doing," Mr Munro said.

"It's a tick in the box that we're going in the right direction.

He said having the right balance of eating quality and good weight gain was important for the program.

"It's about making sure the article we are putting through, is what the feedlots want and what the consumer wants,"

"So keeping that good weight gain for us but not diminishing that eating quality as well.

Overall the team that placed third in the eating quality was ranked 17^th overall, while the operations other team placed 74^th out of the 91 teams entered in the trial.

Read more results from the 2024 Beef Spectacular: