HUGE DEMAND for livestock activities in the state's Burnett regions has helped make the first Biggenden cattle camp a major success.
More than 60 youngsters from as far away as Biloela, Wandoan and Ipswich flocked to the camp hosted by local volunteers and the Biggenden Show Society.
The four-day camp featured a variety of activities ranging from handling, fitting and showing livestock, to hearing from a local butcher about different cuts of beef.
Spearheading the event was 18-year-old Flynn Suendermann, who was eager to ensure the next generation of cattle lovers had a chance to hone their craft.
"For kids around here there wasn't any real camps like this, I think the closest two are Junior Beef at Rockhampton and a camp at Toogoolawah," Ms Suendermann said.
"So we decided to get this one off the ground and I think it went so well that we are already planning on making it annual.
"A lot of the kids brought their own cattle, while we were lucky enough to have some donated cattle for other kids to use as well, which was fantastic."
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Among the highlights of the camp was a seminar from a local butcher, which allowed the kids to get a better understanding of beef.
"One of the fun things we got up to was actually allowing the kids to trace the different cuts of beef on a poddy calf with chalk," Ms Suendermann said.
"It was great because when you just tell people where different cuts of beef are it can be difficult to understand, but drawing on it would hopefully have helped drive the message home."
Already a cattle steward with the Mundubbera Show Society, Ms Suendermann said helping to inspire the next generation was one of her biggest goals.
"The idea for something like this came up at a Biggenden Show Society meeting and it was something I'd been thinking about for a few years now," she said.
"I'm really glad we were able to pull it all together because giving back to the next generation is what I'm all about.
"Although, trying to help organise it while finishing my HSC was a bit stressful at times, but it was really rewarding and I can't wait to go again next year."
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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.
