A group of government officials and key beef industry stakeholders toured the Emerald Saleyards recently as part of the Cattle Council of Australia (CCA) Rural Awareness Tour.
The visit was part of CCA’s regional itinerary that also included a dinner and lunch with the Central Highlands Accelerate Agribusiness Advisory group and a presentation of its priority projects.
CCA Board Chair Howard Smith accompanied the group of government officials from agriculture and biosecurity portfolios to gain on-the-ground understanding of the sale operation and to learn about recent and future upgrades to the saleyards.
Central Highlands Regional Council Mayor Kerry Hayes said agriculture and infrastructure investments are key priorities for the region and the visit highlighted the importance of the region as a beef cattle powerhouse.
‘The Central Highlands local government area has Australia’s highest density of cattle numbers and its infrastructure, such as the Emerald Saleyards, plays an important role in price pathing for graziers and feedlots across Queensland,’ he said.
‘This visit showed that the Central Highlands has an inherently high profile at strategic levels and our strong focus on value-adding to our rural production is attracting a lot of interest.
‘We are very grateful to the CCA for including us in their itinerary and to Rolleston-based chair Howard Smith for the continuing advocacy for beef producers by his organisation, particularly in a region where beef continues to be the highest value agricultural product.’
CCA’s annual Rural Awareness Tour provides policy and decision-makers on-the-ground understanding of rural operations. Networking with producers and rural businesses identifies opportunities and challenges and the effects of and shape of future government policy in the beef industry. The tour has been held annually since 1991 and more than 200 senior decision-makers have participated.