BEEF industry leader Zanda McDonald was farewelled in Cloncurry on Thursday afternoon.
Some 500 people turned out in the north west Queensland town to attend the funeral of one of the industry's most respected and popular identities.
The eulogy was delivered by Zanda's father, Don McDonald.
There was only one venue in the 41-year-old's home town that was ever going to be big enough for his funeral.
Fittingly it was the Cloncurry Shire Memorial Hall which adjoins the town's library - named after his Uncle Bob McDonald. It was full to overflowing with hundreds of former friends, staff, school mates, and cattle industry heavy weights.
Deputy Premier Jeff Seeney represented the Queensland government along with Natural Resources Minister Andrew Cripps, and state members Vaughan Johnson, Howard Hobbs and Robbie Katter. Senator Barnaby Joyce and federal Member for Maranoa, Bruce Scott, and former Deputy Prime Minister Tim Fisher were also there to show their respects.
Zanda was chairman of MDH Ltd, the family's cattle and beef enterprise - a vertically integrated beef supply business that involves breeding, backgrounding, lotfeeding, live cattle export and marketing its own branded beef domestically and across the world.
MDH runs about 180,000 head of cattle on 11 properties, finishing many animals at the company-owned Wallumba feedlot on the Darling Downs.
His funeral drew people from Brazil, Japan, Korea, Switzerland and all over Northern Australia, including LNP boss Bruce McIver, LNP state director Brad Henderson, and former Queensland Premier Russell Cooper.
Also in attendance were AgForce president Ian Burnett, Meat and Livestock Australia general manager Scott Hansen, Western Grazing's Pam Deamer, Peter and Jane Hughes, Georgina Pastoral, David Foote, Australian Country Choice, processors John Berry and Brett Campbell, JBS Australia, and Geoff Teys, Teys Brothers, former RNA president Alan Warby and son Dugald, Brisbane, Rod Kelly from Westpac Agribusiness, along with ex-CPC boss Ken Warriner and his son Geoff and Warwick Cooper, Roma.
Also paying their respects were Chick Olsson and James Dickson, Four Season, Rob Baines, Coopers, and Elanco's Brett Hall and Peter Ramsey, along with Allflex general manger Shane McManaway and his wife Lynette, Australian Lotfeeders Association president and Rangers Valley feedlot manager Don McKay, Glen Innes, NSW, together with Geoff Wagstaff, Elders, Troy Setter, AACo, Gary Stark, Warwick Cattle Crush Co, and Queensland Country Life manager John Warlters.
Mr McDonald died at Townsville Hospital last Wednesday following injuries suffered during a fall from a windmill on Devoncourt, Cloncurry.
He is survived by his wife Julie and their four daughters as well as the extended McDonald family.
The family has requested in lieu of flowers that donations be made to the St Joseph's School Cloncurry Building Fund.
