The sheer number of schools entered in the 2016 Royal Queensland Show interschool steer judging competition added further confidence to the possibility that the Australian beef industry is entering its finest years.
Despite the challenges associated with winning a blue ribbon, over judge Josh Heck, Savage, Barker and Backhouse, Rockhampton, said the experience was unmissable for any young person interested in a career in agriculture.
“I couldn’t speak more highly of these events. My trade at the moment is in livestock auctioneering and having the confidence to pick up a microphone and speak on what you see in front of you certainly stems from these types of competitions,” he said.
“Over the years as kids graduate from school and enter the work force they’ll be put into pressure situations where the heart starts to beat a little faster and the mouth gets a little drier, whether it be at a mate’s 21st or when you’ve got two future bosses asking what you’ve got to give their operation.
“It’s like anything, the more they do it the better they become and all of a sudden the process becomes natural and the rest is history.”
Tia Killen, Paris Stark and Demi Radosevic represented Riverside Christian College, Maryborough, and were the champion interschool judging team yesterday.
Having only been involved in junior judging competitions for about a year the girls agreed the win was unexpected yet said a rapid collection of experience contributed to their judging abilities.
“We’re all doing certificates two and three in agriculture at school, we all made it to regionals for judging and I’ve just qualified for the state level,” Miss Radosevic said.
“We train twice a week. We do workshops with judges and visit butchers and abattoirs to see the different cuts so we can envisage the end product- we clean up quite often at shows but we work extremely hard for it.”
Miss Killen said seeing the entire production process unfold from breeding right through to the kill floor gave the team well-rounded knowledge that was applicable to a judging role.
“We breed our own show animals, break them in and see them grow out so we don’t have to imagine the stages,” she said.
While none of the girls experienced an agricultural upbringing they all agreed their future lay in some aspect of primary production.
“I could never leave showing, it’s such an adrenaline rush,” Miss Stark said.
“Being able to control an 800kg beast is very satisfying from a handling perspective and being able to share our knowledge is also rewarding because it’s not always black and white when it comes to judging.
“There are so many facets to the beef industry and we still have so much more to learn.”
Bundaberg Christian College board member Brent Keune was spectating during the interschool judging and said he thought the Australian beef industry was in a very positive place.
“Cattle judging is a very specialised field and the level of knowledge and expertise these kids have had to learn is extraordinary,” he said.
“The nation has been advocating for support for farmers and I wonder if we’re finally seeing a real shift- the kids are keen and Australian beef has such a good reputation so I believe we’ll become quite dominant worldwide.”
