We're trying to capitalise on what we do and hit the company specs
On a July evening in Biloela, the Howard family of Burleigh Estates received recognition that is rarer than it appears: a second consecutive win in the Callide Dawson Beef Carcase competition, awarded by processor Teys Australia for the animals that most precisely met their exacting specifications. In an industry where the gap between premium and commodity pricing can determine a family operation's survival, the Howards have built something quietly profound — a breeding philosophy that begins not with the animal, but with the buyer's requirements. Their story is a reminder that in agriculture, as in most human endeavours, clarity of purpose, patiently applied across generations, tends to outperform complexity.
- Winning a major carcase competition once is an achievement; winning it back-to-back signals that Burleigh Estates has cracked a code most producers are still searching for.
- The Howards entered 13 cattle this year — up from eight — and swept the top three placings, exposing just how wide the gap has grown between their program and the competition.
- At the heart of the tension is a deceptively simple question every beef producer faces: do you breed cattle you love, or cattle the processor will pay a premium for — and the Howards have chosen the latter without apology.
- Their answer is a 90-percent Santa Gertrudis foundation herd, selective Shorthorn and Angus crosses for calving ease, zero grain, and EU and American market accreditations that lock in premium channels unavailable to commodity sellers.
- The operation is now landing in a position where instinct honed over decades — literally selecting cattle from horseback by eye — is being validated by the most rigorous measure available: the processor's own specifications.
When Teys Australia called Burleigh Estates to the podium at the Callide Dawson Beef Carcase awards dinner in Biloela on July 10, it was the second year in a row the Howard family had taken the processor's most suitable carcase prize. That kind of consistency is not accidental.
The winning animal was a grass-fed Santa Gertrudis-cross steer, entered in the single young steer category and sitting squarely within Teys' carcase weight specifications. But the family didn't stop there — they also claimed reserve champion with another Santa cross, and placed third with a pen of three grass-fed steers. Thirteen cattle entered, three major placings secured.
Jack Howard, who manages the operation at Belldeen near Biloela, is direct about the strategy. Around 90 percent of the cow herd is Santa Gertrudis. Younger females carry some Shorthorn and Angus influence — chosen for calving ease and suitability to the country, not sentiment. The entire breeding program is oriented toward one target: meeting Teys' specifications. "The animals that we breed, we try and meet the Teys' specs because they're the ones that buy them," Howard said. Simple logic, seriously applied.
The operation is entirely grass-fed, which is not a lifestyle choice so much as a market strategy. Burleigh Estates holds EU accreditation and sells into American markets — premium channels that demand exactly the kind of consistent, specification-driven production the Howards have spent years building.
Howard has been around this competition his whole life — he recalls being a toddler at the Teys plant while his parents showed cattle. That history informs a selection method that is refreshingly low-tech: ride through the mob on horseback, pull out what looks right. No algorithms, no scoring sheets. Just decades of accumulated judgment, applied to cattle bred specifically for the purpose. Two consecutive wins suggest that judgment is sound.
The Howard family's cattle operation at Burleigh Estates has done something most producers struggle with: they've won the same major carcase competition twice in a row. On the night of July 10, at the awards dinner in Biloela, Teys Australia announced that Burleigh Estates had secured the processor's most suitable carcase prize for the second consecutive year at the Callide Dawson Beef Carcase competition. The win matters because it means their animals came closest to meeting Teys' exact specifications—the technical requirements that determine whether a carcase commands premium pricing or sits in the middle of the pack.
This year, the Howards entered 13 cattle into the competition, up from eight the previous year. The winning animal was a Santa Gertrudis-cross steer, grass-fed, weighing between 300 and 420 kilograms, entered in the single young steer category. But the real story isn't just one win. Burleigh Estates also took reserve champion for another Santa Gertrudis-cross, and placed third with a pen of three grass-fed steers. That's consistency. That's a family that understands what the buyer wants and has built a breeding program to deliver it.
Jack Howard, who runs the operation at Belldeen near Biloela, explained the philosophy plainly. The family breeds Santa cattle as their foundation—about 90 percent of their cow herd carries that genetics. They've introduced some Shorthorn and Angus into their younger females, not for show or tradition, but for practical reasons: easier calving and animals that thrive in their particular country. Everything flows from one principle: hit the Teys specifications. "The animals that we breed, we try and meet the Teys' specs because they're the ones that buy them," Howard said. It's not complicated thinking, but it's the kind that builds a sustainable business.
The operation doesn't use grain. They sell grass-fed beef exclusively, which opens doors that commodity producers can't access. Some of their cattle go to European markets—they hold EU accreditation, which carries its own weight of compliance and quality assurance. Other animals end up in America. These aren't domestic commodity sales. These are premium channels that reward producers who can consistently deliver animals that meet strict standards.
Howard's family has been entering the Callide Dawson carcase competition for years. He remembers being two or three years old, running around the Teys plant while his parents were showing cattle. That's not nostalgia talking—it's the foundation of a business philosophy built over decades. The family's approach to selecting which cattle to enter is refreshingly unsentimental. "We just get a mob of cattle in the yard and ride through them on a horse, and whatever takes our eye, that's what we pull out," Howard said. No fancy technology, no complex scoring systems. Just experience and instinct, applied to animals bred specifically for the job. The second consecutive win suggests that instinct, backed by consistent genetics and a clear understanding of what the market demands, is working.
Notable Quotes
The animals that we breed, we try and meet the Teys' specs because they're the ones that buy them.— Jack Howard, Burleigh Estates
Winning the award again this year told him that the family was doing the right thing with their business.— Jack Howard, on the significance of the repeat win
The Hearth Conversation Another angle on the story
Why does winning this competition twice matter more than winning it once?
Because once could be luck. Twice says you've built something that works. You're not chasing the prize—you're chasing the specs, and the prize follows.
Most cattle producers breed for different reasons. What makes the Howards different?
They've reversed the usual logic. Instead of breeding cattle and hoping someone wants them, they breed cattle specifically because Teys wants them. It's a small shift, but it changes everything about how you make decisions.
The Santa Gertrudis seems important. Why that breed?
It's not fashionable or trendy. But it meets the specs. They've added bits of Shorthorn and Angus where it helps—easier calving, better adaptation. They're not purists. They're pragmatists.
Grass-fed beef is more expensive to produce. How does that fit?
It's not more expensive if you're selling to the right buyer. EU accreditation and American markets pay for that story. Commodity buyers won't. The Howards aren't selling commodity.
Jack Howard talks about selecting cattle on horseback, by eye. That sounds old-fashioned.
It is. But it works because the cattle are already bred right. You're not trying to make a silk purse from a sow's ear. You're picking the best from a herd that's already aligned with what the buyer wants.