Harvest Road Group announces new era for WA beef production

Harvest Road, one of Western Australia’s largest integrated agriculture businesses and owner of the iconic Harvey Beef, today announced plans to establish a world class cattle facility to develop lines of WA premium beef for local and international markets.

Using leading animal welfare practices, Harvest Road’s planned facility would raise cattle on nutritional feeding programs and implement a free range inspired model, to provide the cattle with significantly more freedom to move than the current industry standard.

Innovative cattle husbandry practices, as advised by leading world expert Professor Temple Grandin, are proposed to deliver a radical improvement in animal welfare.

The facility would be located on 17,000 acres of land recently acquired at Koojan near Moora in the West Australian Wheatbelt, 170km north of the capital Perth.

The first development phase would accommodate 20,000 cattle at any one time, with a view to supplying 70,000 100-day grain finished cattle each year to Harvest Road’s processing facility at Harvey. A proposed second phase would double this capacity.

The Koojan facility would be the most innovative, cost efficient and high-quality cattle operation in WA. It would fill a long-standing gap in the WA cattle supply chain and provide a viable and sustainable alternative to live export markets for local cattle producers. It would also complement and advance WA’s existing feeding facilities.

“Western Australia by rights should be producing the highest quality beef in Asia,” said Greg Harvey, CEO of Harvest Road Group.

“We have a unique provenance as one of the most isolated and pristine agricultural regions in the world, and WA needs to capitalise on that.”

“Today’s food consumers are food citizens. They express their right to have ethically produced foods that are clean and traceable. This project will build an international reputation for West Australian beef that delivers a high-quality product to consumers with confidence.”

The Koojan facility would also provide local producers with year-round options to sell their cattle, as well as provide a premium and super premium market for WA cattle producers, including the development of 100 Day, Angus and Wagyu lines.

“For years now, Western Australia has missed many opportunities in the top end of the beef market, by failing to develop and consistently supply premium products that add value to our local cattle trade,” said Kim McDougall, General Manager for Livestock at Harvest Road.

“Now, the world can taste the true quality of our locally produced beef, and we can keep the processing on shore to create jobs, ensure the ethical treatment of our animals and give producers a real alternative when they come to sell their cattle,” he said.

Harvest Road is conducting final design work on the Koojan project and engaging with relevant authorities for development approvals.

Harvest Road is part of the Minderoo Group, one of Australia’s largest private investment groups owned by the Forrest family. Its portfolio of agricultural investments encompasses 1.3 million hectares of pastoral land, the Harvey Beef business and a growing portfolio of fine food brands for domestic and international markets, which export to over 30 countries.