SINCE the inception of the National Charbray Sale there has been one constant in the buying gallery.
For the past 43 years, the Stewart family has supported the sale and invested in Charbray bulls from a number of vendors and this year's sale was no exception.
The family purchased five bulls for its operation near Jambin, however this year's sale at CQLX Gracemere was slightly different as it was the first without the matriarch of the family Heather Stewart, who had passed away days before the sale.
"Mum had been coming right from the start, so it was a little bit different not having her there," buyer Glen Stewart said.
"In saying that, we still came away with a few bulls this year, which I'm sure Mum would have been happy with."
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This year's bulls are already being used in the family's herd of Charbray females with an objective of breeding high-yielding and durable calves.
"One thing we really love about the national sale is that you can come and find exactly the sort of bulls you're after and get the best from a variety of studs," Mr Stewart said.
"Different studs have different goals so you know that you will be able to find something you like and the way the sale is these days, you know the vendors aren't just going to offer anything, they will make sure it is their best.
"If anything, I wish we'd bought a couple more this year."
Mr Stewart said one of his favorite attributes of the Charbary breed was its commercial relevance.
"We've entered a few of them in the Callide Dawson Carcase Competition just to get a bit of an idea of where we're at," he said.
"Over the years we have achieved some success in that competition, which is really pleasing but for us it is more about benchmarking against ourselves.
"For us the big thing is knowing these bulls will go out into the paddock and do the job with very little hands-on work from us.
"There are some breeds that would need a little bit more help, whereas we have found the Charbrays will go out and do the job, all while not sacrificing meat yield or anything like that."
After 43 years of buying at the national sale, Mr Stewart said he had no intentions of letting the tradition end.
"I think the breed is getting better and better every year so I for sure reckon we will back next year in some capacity," he said.
Billy Jupp
Billy is a Senior Livestock Journalist for the Queensland Country Life based in Toowoomba. He has worked for a variety of different ACM mastheads during the past five years including the Namoi Valley Independent, Northern Daily Leader and The Land.
Billy is a Senior Livestock Journalist for the Queensland Country Life based in Toowoomba. He has worked for a variety of different ACM mastheads during the past five years including the Namoi Valley Independent, Northern Daily Leader and The Land.
