BETTER IN BLONDE: Terry Nolan with his Blonde d'Aquitaine-cross breeding herd, which is producing 280kg carcase animals at 12 months of age.

THE combination of fast growing genetics and quality nutrition is producing high performance carcases for the Nolan family at Gympie.

The Nolans run a 400 head commercial Blonde d'Aquitaine-cross breeder herd producing 280kg carcases at just 12 months of age, fast forwarding the beef production cycle by up to a year.

Terry Nolan said regardless of breed, the objective was to produce quality beef from young cattle as efficiently as possible.

"I'm not against marbling, but I'm not going to sacrifice growth rates to chase marbling."

Marbling was not a priority, as domestic customers were consistently more attracted to lean beef and the production of marbled beef required a significantly longer production time, he said.

"I'm not against marbling, but I'm not going to sacrifice growth rates to chase marbling. The sums just don't stack up," Mr Nolan said.

"The inclusion of any of the European breeds has the ability to do it, I just happen to like Blonde cattle.

"It's about making the most efficient use of our resources to produce the best beef possible."

Testament to the eating quality of the Nolans cattle is that Blonde beef has been an annual feature on the Bracken Ridge Tavern menu and is being featured at the Breakfast Creek Hotel in November and December.

The breeders are cell grazed on 80 hectares around the meatworks and on 2000ha of country surrounding the Wide Bay Feedlot at Cinnabar. Both locations have irrigation enabling the production of fodder crops.

The drive for efficiency includes testing all of the bulls prior to the compressed eight week joining period and conducting pregnancy tests at 42 days and culling the empties.

Steers calves and cull heifers spend 12 to 20 weeks in the feedlot.

Replacement heifers run on the softer country are joined at 12 months of age, while heifers on the harder country at Cinnabar go to the bull at 24 months.

The cattle operation is overseen by farm team leader Pat Kelly, who also looks after the 100 stud cows, mainly used to produce bulls for the operation.

While limited in Australia, Blonde d'Aquitaine is the third most popular breed in France, coming in behind Charolais and Limousin.

Classic carcases

Blonde d'Aquitaine-cross cattle well and truly demonstrated their ability to perform, jagging both first and second places overall in the recent Gympie Carcase Classic competition.

The Nolan family's Blonde-cross entries had both the first and second most profitable carcases in the popular annual competition with impressive $374 and $338 net gains respectively in value after 77 days on feed.

RELATED STORY: 'Resource usage. Why Terry Nolan says beef needs to be concerned'.

Blonde-cross entries were also named the winner of the aggregate of three carcases award, with a $271 net gain entry teaming up with the top two carcases.

At 114 square centimetres, the breed also produced the equal largest eye muscle of the competition.

The Nolan's winning entry entered the feedlot at 318kg and gained 138kg in 77 days (1.792kg/day).

The steer dressed at an impressive 61.36 per cent for a final value of $1693 and a $374 net gain.

The second placed heifer yielded 59.95pc, going on to feed at 278kg and gaining 144kg (1.87kg/day).

Very impressive results indeed from 12 month old animals.

 --- Story curtesy of Queensland Country Life.

Seventeen (17) POLL bulls of varying ages and twelve (12) POLL young P year heifers were trucked to Terry Nolan’s Cooloola Blondes’ operation in the Gympie region of South East Queensland on February 27, 2020.

Terry Nolan is also a director of a 100% family owned operation, Nolan’s Meats. The business is vertically integrated throughout the beef chain from breeding to feed lotting, processing, distribution and wholesaling. Their reputation for quality is impressive and well known within Australian and overseas’ markets.

In the Gympie Carcase Classic 2019 Terry Nolan won the Charlie Cotter all-rounder award and received 1st and 2nd placings for most profitable animals with impressive $374 and $338 net gain in value with blonde and blonde cross animals. There were 51 exhibitors and 180 entries all fed the same amount over the same period of time.

This certainly has not been a first for Terry who has taken out a number of Carcase and excellence awards over the years. He is a great believer in the power of blondes in the beef industry and been an advocate of the breed. In 2014 he partnered with the iconic Breakfast Creek Hotel, Brisbane to feature blonde steaks on their Menu and their “fresh, almost crisp flavour” and fine textured meat created a “melt in your mouth” experience for the hotel’s diners.

In an article in Queensland Country Life September 5, 2019 it states “the right combination of genetics and nutrition is helping beef producers like Terry Nolan reach the finish line sooner”. Terry hand picked these animals at our Riverina property, and we are excited that Renard bred cattle will part of his future breeding programs. We wish him well with them.

Renard Blonde Cattle is proud to present for sale a group of our finest P year (born 2018) pure blonde bulls, putting these young fellows in the 14 – 20 month age group.

The majority of this group are Poll though we have added some exceptional horned boys. We have the luxury to be able to cull hard and we do, so as to offer only what we would be proud to use ourselves. If our bulls do not meet our exacting standards of soundness and temperament they are not put up for offer.

We have a range of climate conditions here in the Riverina ranging from 48 degree days to cold bleak winters. This year the water situation in the area has been dire and has drastically reduced our capacity to grow pasture. These boys have endured some hard times at our Corowa (NSW) farm and in recent times been hand fed on pasture hay and soon we will supplement that with Anipro, a molasses based product with cider vinegar.

They have weathered it all showing the true resilience of this breed and their amazing ability to efficiently convert fodder. In anyone’s standards these young bulls are excellent and will be a valuable asset to anyone who adds them to their herd. What you see here is what you get. They are not grain fed and are all in good working condition.

Our Blonde cattle have certainly done their producers proud of recent times. Terry Nolan of Nolan’s Meats and Cooloola Blondes near Gympie took out the award for the “most profitable animals” with a pair of near pure Blondes against a huge line up of young cattle of all breeds. They had been on the same feed as all the other stock but came out well in front for their carcase yield, extra bone out percentages and weight gain.

Then at the Royal Melbourne Agricultural Carcass Competition a Blonde cross animal won Salesian College awards that included “Grand Champion Carcase”, “Champion Export Carcase”, and best school entry.

WINNER: Renard Blondes stud principal Ellie Stephens with the supreme exhibit female. Photo: Andrew Miller.

A COROWA stud has claimed the Blonde a'Aquitaine supreme exhibit with its two-year-old female.

Renard Blondes stud principal Ellie Stephens said the win was recognition for the stud's ongoing commitment to breeding pure Blondes.

"It's always a thrill when you put the hard work into the cattle and work with them to get them up to scratch so it's always nice to be rewarded," she said.

"The bull she went up against was excellent ... he was well put together and Bronwyn Ward who owns him specialises in French pure cattle so we were pleased to win the exhibit."

It was Ms Stephen's third time showing Blondes at the Royal Melbourne Show.

"The stud has been in operation since 1987. My partner Ian Fox has won many awards over the years for the breed," she said.

"I think for my heifer she's fairly soft and is a great feed converter.

"One of the things we find with our clients who buy Blonde bulls is that they go well over the British breeds because they add carcase and length and really that gives you more yield as a producer and more dollars in your pocket."

The stud runs 700 head as part of its operation which has a line of Blonde crosses for commercial purposes.

Farmers all over Australia at the moment are meeting some tough challenges what with scarcity of feed not to mention cost if you can find it; long term drought conditions; cost of water and the list goes on. It’s in times like these that farmers pull out all stops to think about other ways of doing things and in our case at Renard Blondes while juggling feed options, moving cattle around and trying to predict the weather we may have we stumbled on what looks like a winner in all the gloom.

An excellent farmer in the Berrigan district of Southern NSW recommended we try a product called Moby forage barley. We then allocated 90 hectares on our Corowa property to it and also put in 15 acres of grazing wheat in the same area. Both crops had the same fertilizer and both relied on natural rain as our Corowa (NSW) farm is on ZERO water allocation. In the last year we have had a total of 6 inches compared to our usual 18 inches and this autumn/winter period 5 inches which is half when compared to our average rainfall for the season. The past summer was long and dry as experienced by many with not a blade of grass to be seen.

We had been told that the Moby Barley had very early growth and it has certainly lived up to its reputation particularly when compared with the grazing wheat planted alongside it. It is also known as a late finisher and we are looking forward to that and hoping for a five grazing yield. We have looked around our district and feel proud of this crop. Best of all the cows and calves are loving it and growing and fattening well.

We will harvest some for grain to re-sow for next year’s crop and use more across the greater farm.

Wishing everyone all the best with your own farming experiences.

Renard Blonde cattle have a range of bulls ready to work. Out of pure Blonde d’Aquitaine females by a homogyzous black and homogyzous poll Black Simmental sire they present the best of two great breeds from two reputable and well known studs.

Bonnydale Black Simmentals in western Australia has an impeccable reputation for it’s operation’s integrity, innovation and investment in its state of the art breeding plans. Bonnydale hold a bull sale every year. We carefully selected Bonnydale Jim Beam from 70 Bonnydale sires. He has sired the bulls on offer. He has been a prolific sire with a proven record of easy , low birth weight calving with approximately 80 calves on the ground. His wonderful laid back quiet nature has been a strong trait passed onto his offspring. When purchased as a yearling he had a plus rating for fat and an EMA of 110. This has been a great match with the carcass traits of the Renard Blondes.
www.bonnydalesimmentals.com

Renard Blondes boasts 700 head and is based in the Riverina area. We feel proud of the result of 32 years breeding blonde d’Aquitaine cattle suited for the Australian beef industry. Blonde cattle are resilient in climate extremes, great feed converters, easy calvers, easy to handle and as a result of a fine bone yield consistently at 60% plus. The meat is fine textured and flavoursome.
www.renardblondecattle.com

The fellow pictured is a fine example of these two breeds in one chunky package. He has great feet, is dumb quiet, has lots of fat cover and is beautifully balanced. He and his brothers will be great assets to any herd regardless of breed.

We are happy to consider transport assistance depending on the kms and keep the bull with us for a negotiated period until he is needed.

IAN FOX
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
0419721881

The Nolan family's Cooloola Blondes come up trumps at the Gympie Carcase Classic winning the Charlie Cotter all-rounder award. Pictured are Terry Nolan, Cooloola Blondes, Cinnabar, Jan Cotter, Sexton, and Dan and Leanne Sullivan, Sullivan Livestock, Gympie.

HE Nolan family claimed top honours at the Gympie Carcase Classic winning the prestigious Charlie Cotter all-rounder champion award and the reserve champion title on Friday night.

Blonde d'Aquitaine entries from Cooloola Blondes also had the first and second most profitable animals with impressive $374 and $338 net gain in value.

Renard Blondes is proud to announce that our own home grown “Renard Blonde Beef” from the Riverina districts has been sampled and sold through the Fitzroy and St. Kilda outlets of ”Meatsmith” a Melbourne wholesaler and retailer of the “best quality heritage meats” .

“We source breeds in the peak of their season and share the best with the restaurant industry. We have strong relationships with the farmers we work with, and all of our products are free range. We support their methods and vision for sustainable and considered farming.”
Troy Wheeler , speciality butcher and wine merchant is co-owner of Meatsmith with Chef-Restaurateur Andrew McConnell. We asked Troy to give us some feedback on our Renard product. He answered the following questions for us.

How would you describe Renard Blonde Beef?

“For me this is the finest example of true European beef in Australia. It has been raised and grown the same way they have been doing it for centuries in France e.g. grown out for a longer time, giving the beef time to develop into its genetic make-up without compromising on quality”.

Does it differ from other breeds and if so how ?

“The big difference between this breed and the common breeds found in Australia like Angus, Hereford, Limousine is the size and fine marble and muscle ratio”

What makes you want to have this product in your business ?

“A few different reasons. A point of difference in regards to giving our customers a product that is not commonly found in Australia as a pure breed. I also believe in working with people like Ian and Ellie (Renard Blondes)who are truly passionate about what they do, which also translates to the end consumer.
Knowing where our product comes from and why is so great and really important to our business.”

Do you supply to Melbourne Restaurants ?

“Yes, for example Cutler & Co, Cumulus Inc, Marion, San Telmo, Builders Arms Hotel”.

Have you had feedback from clients/customers so far?

"All the feedback from retail and wholesale sales has been extremely positive. Everyone has loved the flavour and texture of the beef. They found it quite clean and tender .”

What could you say to assure local buyers in Cobram who may outlay for a quarter of an animal?

“Ask your local butcher the best way to get the most out of your cuts and adapt different cooking techniques to utilise everything. “

Any tips for cooking this meat ?

“For me it’s simple, a nice big rib eye, cooked over coals and simply served with a good mustard and a fresh bright garden salad. “

Renard success at Beef 2018 – Rockhampton Queensland.

Beef 2012 found Ian Fox wandering around the biggest display of beef cattle in the southern hemisphere at “Beef”, Rockhampton and thinking “I really need to do this before the use by date on my birth certificate expires” and he did.
In 2018, after months of preparation i.e. selection of suitable animals, training, feeding, vaccinating them for northern conditions and general planning, Team Renard (consisting of Ian Fox and his partner Ellie Stephens, Mark Woodstock of Topwatch cattle services and Bronwyn Ward of BW cattle services) were ready to head North.

he goal was to exhibit high quality competitive animals that represented the Renard herd and promote the Blonde d’Aquitaine breed in a positive light. A very important part of our plan was to on-sell these animals into the Northern beef producer market.
Many were likely scratching their heads thinking Foxy (Ian Fox) had finally reached senility as the Renard team anticipated travelling some 2,200 kms North in a fully loaded old ex Post Office Mitsubshi farm truck. The old girl even got a full service and spray paint. Then the morning arrived when Foxy and Mark started the trip with the first stop at Goondiwindi 1050 Km’s from home. The next stop was at Ellie’s property at Kilkivan which is a further 650 Km trip. There the drivers relaxed at the iconic Kilkivan Pub owned by Fred & Sandy Brophy (of Boxing fame), and the cattle enjoyed a well earned rest. It then took 8 hours to travel to the final destination and meet up with Ellie and Bronwyn.
The truck floor was fitted out with rubber matting and the cattle arrived in excellent condition without any obvious travel soreness. Anyone who has shown cattle knows that it takes some dedication and effort to keep the cattle clean, fed, watered and exercised over a week of display and showing, plus keep the site clean and tidy.
All up 21 head of very impressive Blonde d’Aquitaine cattle participated of which we had 7 head. We were very pleased with the Judge’s comments about the Renard cattle’s style and attributes and compatibility with what the industry needs today.

We were lucky enough to meet the right people who appreciated our stock and our seven head were all sold very quickly to good homes and we look forward to hearing some good success stories.
We took away awards for Champion Senior Bull (Renard Man Murray), Champion Junior Bull (Renard Moneymaker), Champion Senior Heifer, Breeders group of three and Sires group of three.
The Champion Senior Bull and Senior Champion Heifer, and the Sire’s group of three were all sired by our imported English embryo herd bull Renard Jackpot. Jackpot is an Embryo out of a Druk cow from England and sired by AI bull Ark Diego. This bull is leaving some wonderful stock for us at Renard including Grand Champion Blonde d’Aquitaine Female at Melbourne Agricultural show 2017.
We dropped off Renard Moneymaker to Wilstonson Agricultural Field Study Centre, Toowoomba on the way home and a highlight was being asked to address some keen young farmers of the future about the Blonde Breed and our Junior Bull took it all in his stride.
Will we do it again in 2021 ? Who knows, but we think the use by date on the old red truck may have expired by then.

RENARD BLONDES is once again heading to what has been termed Victoria’s premier regional agricultural show, ‘Farm World 2019 – Lardner Park”,

commencing Thursday April 11 through to Sunday 14th. This iconic agribusiness event held annually showcases the best on offer regarding information, technology, machinery and livestock and we are proud to be able to showcase our cattle for general viewing and sale.

Renard will have some N year poll pure blonde d’Aquitaine bulls aged between 18 to 24 months and ready to work. Ian Fox at Renard has been breeding Blonde d’Aquitaine cattle since 1987, is passionate about the breed’s attributes and has for many years sourced genetics from all over the world. As a result our Renard blonde stock produce offspring that have high yield carcase traits, good muscling combined with appropriate softness. Structural soundness is a must in our breeding regime and enhances the breed’s natural hardiness to cope and thrive in a range of tough Australian environments.
With a 600 head plus herd we have the luxury of being able to cull hard in order to achieve our high quality expectations. Renard proven females have been mated with our out-cross homozygous poll sire and the N year bulls on offer are the result of these joinings.

Blonde d’Aquitaine sires, according to our repeat clients have realised great return on their investment when used with their herds regardless of breed. On offer from our Renard composite line are three young P year boys. Their sire is Simmental Bonnydale Jim Beam, homozygous poll and homozygous black. He was chosen for his low birth weight ability, his high fat score of 9mm rump, and 8mm Rib and his amazingly laid back nature. These young fellows will grow into stud sires that will bring added diversity and value to any herd.
It’s a great day out at Lardner Park Farm World for the whole family so check out the events on their website and swing by our stand for a look and chat.
We will be located at the Rotunda and sharing the site with two Blonde d’Aquitaine studs -Rahnik Blondes and Lyndon Park Blondes.
Contact Ian Fox on 0419-721881

We are definitely much better off than many of our fellow producers in other parts of Australia, but at the same time with the loss of our winter rain, it has been a battle keeping the Renard herds fed, watered and cool in these shocking 40 – 46 degree days. Even now nearing the end of February we have not seen any decent rain.

We have always known the Blonde breed is resilient and able to handle a range of adverse weather conditions but this summer certainly confirms it. While we worry about their ability to handle the heat, it constantly amazes us that with shade to go to the blondes lie out in the sun and seem to thrive on it .

Farmers are doing it tough there is no doubt about it. On top of the drought, there is the exorbitant water costs, and the scarcity and cost of good quality feed while the floods in North Queensland have had a devastating personal impact on many farming families and the industry in general.

We are currently feeding our dry cows a combination of “anipro” mineral supplement and straw and our cows and calves have had some green feed on our crops of sorghum. For many a long year we have had to wean claves early at 100 kg. and/or at the 3-4 month age and they have been doing very well on wheaten hay.

Amazingly our cattle are holding their own in these tough conditions which is a great testimony for the breed in its ability to handle our conditions here in the Riverina where we have freezing winters and torrid summers at times.

We are also putting in 4 small bores with submersible pumps which will deliver 2mega-litres per day to supplement our irrigation supply as temporary water is $530 per mega-litre.

Hoping for rain soon.

Renard 'Blondes Do It Better' Bull and Female Sale
Timed Online Auction - Commencing 8:00am Thursday 25th May - Closing 7:00pm Sunday 28th May.

As part of their inaugural ONLINE ONLY Sale, Renard Blonde d'Aquitaine Stud from Corowa is offering a select draft of bulls, cows & calves and PTIC Heifers all for genuine sale.
Photos and sale videos are available now at www.elitelivestockauctions.com.au. Contact Mr Ian Fox 0419 721 881 of RBA or Sale Manager Michael Glasser 0403 526 702 of GTSM for further details or to arrange an inspection.

In November 2016 we said goodbye to three Blondeman bulls as they head off to Queensland to work with Braham cows and 70 Braham/Droughtmaster cross heifers. In our experience the red Blondeman are an excellent match with heifers……and they are Poll. We look forward to the results.

Facebook bid hits $50,000
Louise Preece•16 Mar 2015, 2:39 p.m.
Rupari principal, Linden Roberts, Bob Andrews, Old Kentucky Blondes, Wangaratta, and Chris McIlroy, Agri-Gene, with the $50,000 bull.

Rupari principal, Linden Roberts, Bob Andrews, Old Kentucky Blondes, Wangaratta, and Chris McIlroy, Agri-Gene, with the $50,000 bull.

A SPONTANEOUS Facebook auction has led to a Victorian Poll Blonde d'Aquitaine bull fetching what is believed to be a world record price for the breed at $50,000.

The previous Australian highest sale price record for a Blonde Bull was $14,500.

The off-the-cuff silent helmsman auction was initiated by Bob Andrews, Wangaratta, for an 18-month-old bull, Rupari Joiner d'Poll - bred and owned by Greg and Linden Roberts, Rupari Polled Blondes, Yarrawonga.

Mr Andrews said he first viewed the bull in December on the Roberts' farm, and admitted he was "gobsmacked" by its quality.

He was extremely impressed by the fact the animal was homozygous polled, and said he rated the bull 98.5 out of 100 on all traits.

Although Mr Roberts was not interested in selling the imposing bull, Mr Andrews put up a picture of the animal on his Facebook page about a week ago, not realising how much attention it would get.

It attracted interest from about eight Blonde breeders; and a silent helmsman auction quickly eventuated.

"I said I thought he would get $15,000, but it wasn't serious in the beginning," Mr Andrews said.

By lunchtime, the auction had hit $20,000.

"I thought I better phone Greg to see if he would put the bull on the market," he added.

When the bids reached $27,000 by 3pm, Mr Andrews decided he wanted to put in a bid too, and contacted Agri-Gene - and together they formed a syndicate to up the offer to $50,000.

When the auction closed at 5pm, Mr Roberts was informed about the final bid, and after an inspection of Rupari Joiner d'Poll last Saturday, the deal was done.

"When I first got the phone call, I asked whether they were serious," Mr Roberts said, who has devoted the past eight years breeding quality polled Blonde genetics.

"We initially didn't want to sell because he was so good and we wanted to keep him for ourselves, but that was just too much money to refuse."

Mr Roberts said he did not expect to sell another $50,000 bull in his lifetime.

He said the heightened interest stemmed from the bull's polled gene.

"When we first said we were going to breed polled Blondes in the beginning, everyone said we were silly, but we stuck to guns," he said. "I guess people thought it was too difficult."

He said the challenge was in breeding a polled bull that was as good as a horned bull.

"This bull is as good as - or even better - than the best quality horn bulls," Mr Robert said.

Part-owners Mr Andrews and Agri-Gene principal, Chris McIlroy, agreed.

They have both identified a world shortage of high-quality Poll Blonde genetics, and since signing the $50,000 deal this week, they've already sold 3000 straws of semen offshore.

They are confident of making their money back on the investment.

Mr Roberts said the sale was a reflection of the growth and widening appeal of Blonde cattle within the Australian beef industry.

The bull is expected to spend the next few months in an AI centre, but when collection is finished, he will live at Mr Andrews' Wangaratta farm.

Mr Andrews is the father of Victorian Premier Dan Andrews - and dispersed his own Blonde stud, Old Kentucky, late last year, after being diagnosed with terminal cancer.

But his diagnosis appeared to be more positive now, after doctors recently told him a scan came up clear.

"I was initially told I had three months to live. I just can't explain what's happened," he said.

"During the last few weeks, I've been able to buy back some of my best foundation cows, and I'm pretty happy to have them back."

He was looking forward to building up his herd back up slowly, and he anticipated the $50,000 was going to make a big impact on quality.

Mr Andrews added 10 per cent of the profit from the bull's semen sales will be donated to a new foundation that he and wife Jan have established, which will go towards cancer research and equipment.

Mr Roberts has donated the first $5000 to the foundation, which was the commission from the sale.