Shorthorn Beef 3.06

In the beginning, there were no cattle in Australia at the time of settlement. Livestock taken on board the First Fleet in 1787 from the Cape of Good Hope destined for the Colony of NSW included, 2 bulls, 3 cows, 3 horses, 44 sheep, 32 pigs and a very large quantity of poultry of every kind.

But the livestock fared badly after landing at Sydney Cove in January 1788. One year later there were fewer livestock than at the start. It is recorded that... "Convicts were unskilled husband-men in a foreign environment and many animals died, were stolen or lost in the bush. Bushrangers were active then, as now, in the Colony of NSW. (Only their corporate images have changed.)

Shorthorn cattle "types" and at least one Brahman were part of the First Fleet. With further imports and successful management of the Government herd by 1803 there were 2450 head in the colony. These evidently were mainly "Shorthorn types". By 1820 the colonies in NSW and Tasmania were self sufficient in beef and mutton and were looking for more consumers - these were supplied by a doubling of the population (to 70,000 persons) from expanded convict and free settler arrivals.

In 1825 the first importation of registered Shorthorns was recorded, just one year ahead of the first Hereford imports. Cattle numbers expanded rapidly between 1830 and 1840, to the point where the recession of 1841 - 1843 saw an over-supply of the meat market. The market for tallow in England for soap and candle manufacture saved the meat industry at that time.

The discovery of gold in the 1840s in NSW changed all of this. Suddenly there was an expanded demand for beef and mutton to supply the gold fields - Australia's extensive livestock industries had begun!

The Shorthorn breed has had a remarkable impact on the Australian cattle herd. From the earliest time of settlement cattle were required for beef, milk and draught purposes. The Shorthorn breed provided the genes for all these traits: Its beef genetics, by 1890 accounted for 50% of temperate cattle and 100% of cattle running in difficult northern environments. (At this time there were 8 million cattle in Australia.) At the same time the dual-purpose background of the Shorthorn saw the breed develop into Australia's "local" dairy breed in the Australian Illawarra Shorthorn established to the south of Sydney. Photographs of bullock teams in Australia's first century confirm that Shorthorns were widely used for draught purposes, especially in the timber industry.

The Shorthorn was truly the "Adaptable Breed".

The most remarkable feature of the Shorthorn story is the breed's numerical dominance in northern Australia. Despite several importations of Bos indicus cattle before 1900 and again in 1932 these cattle had little impression on the Australian cattle herd. In 1960 for example, there were 6 million beef cattle north of the Tropic of Capricorn. 99% of these were Shorthorns. It was not until the 1970s that the rapid expansion of Brahmans occurred. For nearly 150 years the Shorthorn had adapted successfully to the extreme conditions of Northern Australia.

Recent Events
In the 1970s there appeared to be a decline in popularity of Shorthorn cattle in both northern and temperate Australia. At this time European cattle were making their mark in southern Australia. Again the versatility of Shorthorn genetics became evident with the expansion of the Japanese market in the 1980s, particularly for cattle with early maturity and marbling. The rest is history. Shorthorn cattle populations expanded again, in line with the feedlot sector. Marbling genetics are now highly important for the premium end of the Japanese trade. Shorthorn genetics have been carefully evaluated from all over Australia to fill this market.

Shorthorn's role in Research
The Shorthorn Society has played a significant role in Australia's genetic improvement schemes. The following are notable milestones:

In 1985
The Shorthorns were early participants in serious genetic evaluation following the launch of Breedplan.
In 1986
The Shorthorn Society moved its Technical Director to Armidale to join in the R&D action.
In 1992
The Shorthorns were one of the earliest breeds to join the CRC's Straightbreed and Crossbreed progeny tests. The Society has been an avid user of carcase and meat quality data from the CRC.
In 2001
The Shorthorns again set the standard by establishing the Durham Research and Development initiative at Orange.
The Shorthorns contribution has set the example in serious Research and Development for the benefit of:

The Shorthorn Breed
Australian beef industry
Australian and world consumers.