Supporter Information:
Established in 1824, the Australian Agricultural Company (AACo) is Australia’s largest integrated cattle and beef producer, and is the oldest continuously operating company in Australia.
Today, AACo owns and operates a strategic balance of properties, feedlots and farms comprising around 7 million hectares of land in Queensland and the Northern Territory. This equates to roughly 1% of Australia’s land mass. AACo specialises in grass fed beef, grain fed beef and Wagyu beef production.
ANZ has a proud heritage of more than 180 years, operating in 34 markets globally. With over 20,000 Agribusiness clients, ANZ are committed to the agricultural sector and the long term growth of rural and regional Australia. Their representation across Australia, New Zealand, Asia Pacific, Europe, America and the Middle East allows them to provide true connectivity for their clients. Their focus on supporting customers through evolving offerings, nurturing and promoting innovation and leading with insights has helped ANZ become a top 4 bank in Australia, top 50 bank globally and CANSTAR's 2016 'Bank of the Year - Agribusiness'.
Cameron Kruckow
Nuffield Australia 2017 Scholar
Cameron Kruckow, from Katherine in the Northern Territory, received a 2017 Nuffield Scholarship supported by the Australian Agricultural Company (AACO) and ANZ Bank.
He has investigated improving cattle grazing on his employer’s northern grazing operations by looking at different grazing strategies, including cell, rotational and time control, and how these are used internationally. He also explored opportunities to improve soil and pasture quality to produce more beef.
Cameron is the Station Manager of Manbulloo, owned by Consolidated Pastoral Company (CPC). CPC is an Australian based Agrifood business with an enterprise value in excess of $700 million. It owns and operates a portfolio of 19 cattle stations with a carrying capacity of 375,000 head of cattle, across 5.6 million hectares of land in Australia.
Manbulloo Station is nearly 380,000 hectares and used as a breeding property and a holding depot for stock being exported by CPC. It boasts frontage to both the Katherine and King Rivers and is capable of carrying almost 20,000 head of cattle.
Cameron was born in Innisfail and started his career with CPC as a 17-year old jackaroo in 2002. He has worked in a variety of CPC holdings and been steadily promoted. He is married to Tammy and they have three children.
Cameron’s research is particularly pertinent to better utilising vast areas of underutilised land in Northern Australia. He will use his new knowledge to help educate other graziers and lead industry change.
“We have already implemented time control grazing on Manbulloo, but I feel there is much more that could be done by looking at international grazing strategies,” he said.
“Beyond just weight gain, other potential benefits include environmental and animal welfare improvements, as well as better planning and cost control.
“This is knowledge that will benefit the industry.”
Cameron travelled to New Zealand, America and South America.