Summary of the episode:

In this episode of The Angus Table, host Scott Wright sits down with Tim Brittain from New Zealand for a wide-ranging conversation about global Angus leadership, brand building, and consumer focus.

Tim shares his remarkable journey from growing up in Auckland with no farming background to establishing Storth Oaks Angus, serving as Secretary General of the World Angus Secretariat for eight years, founding and chairing Angus Pure (New Zealand's first large-scale Angus beef brand), instigating Angus Pro and navigating the transition to Angus Australia registration, and becoming Reserve Grand Champion in BBQ competition.

They discuss why Angus is a brand that must be protected, the importance of never losing sight of the consumer, managing the World Angus Secretariat through COVID, and Sir Keith Holyoake's wisdom: "Live as though you'll die tomorrow, but farm as though you'll live forever."

So pull up a chair at the Angus Table for insights from one of the breed's most accomplished international leaders.

Key topics covered:

1. How Tim's journey began from Auckland city to agricultural university
2. The evolution of Storth Oaks Angus from 37 stud cows at a 1991 sale to the seed stock operation they run today
3. Why Tim's breeding philosophy emphasises maternal attributes, performance recording, genomics, and carcass quality
4. Tim’s agripolitical career progression from the deer industry to New Zealand Meat Board and ultimately Angus leadership
5. About the World Angus Secretariat and Tim’s experience serving as Secretary General
6. Tim’s role in building the Angus brand, including the origins of Angus Pure, New Zealand's first large-scale Angus beef brand
7. How the McDonald's Angus program created a paradigm shift in consumer awareness
8. The impact of Angus Pure, such as tangible premium for producers and catalyst for major meat companies
9. How Angus Pro formed and why the group chose to register with Angus Australia
10. The challenges facing the World Angus Secretariat with rapid European expansion
11. Why measuring business outcomes at events like Beef Australia matters for the industry
12. The importance of protecting Angus as a brand, not just a breed
13. How Tim became Reserve Grand Champion BBQ competitor with Storth Oaks Smokers
14. The power of customer focus in agriculture and why Tim believes more farmers need to remember this
15. What Sir Keith Holyoake taught about sustainability: "Farm as though you'll live forever"

Pull quotes:

"We are looking for strong maternal attributes, we have always put a lot of emphasis on performance… And to put a lot of emphasis on carcass quality because at the end of the day, without the consumer, there's no industry. That's a real driver for us."

"During my time on the New Zealand Meat Board, [we] saw what certified Angus beef were doing in the US… also there was a certified Australian Angus beef and Michael Porter and the work that he was doing... And Jeff Ette at Saatchi and Saatchi wrote the brand brief for Angus Pure."

"The work McDonald's did in creating consumer awareness of what Angus was really took it to another level. When you look back on it now, that was one of the real paradigm shifts for the Angus breed, certainly in New Zealand and probably Australia."

"Angus Pure acted as a catalyst for most major meat companies to develop their own Angus brand. They paid premiums to get that supply. It certainly had a very tangible effect and it's grown from there."

"We need to recognise that Angus is a brand and it needs to be protected. While multi-breed may have a place, we can't lose sight of the fact that Angus is a big name and big breed in itself, and needs to position itself to best advantage."

"Farmers and commercial cattle people often lose sight of the consumer. We are in a consumer business whether we like it or not… There's lots of beef out there in the market, there's probably not a lot of future in the commodity end. We need to concentrate on the quality end and keep changing with those needs."

"Sir Keith Holyoake always used to say: live as though you'll die tomorrow, but farm as though you'll live forever. That's an early sustainability statement…Cattle breeding is a long-term business, it takes a while for those new genetics to materialise."

Relevant links mentioned in the episode:

1. Storth Oaks Angus https://www.storthoaks.com/
2. Angus Pro New Zealand https://anguspro.co.nz/
3. Angus Pure brand https://anguspure.co.nz/
4. World Angus Secretariat https://worldangussecretariat.com/

Contact details:

This podcast is proudly brought to you by Angus Australia https://www.angusaustralia.com.au/

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CREDITS:

Host: Scott Wright, CEO. Get in touch via email [email protected]

Producer: Mel Strasburg [email protected]

Audio editing and post-production: Ellen Ronalds Keene at https://perkdigital.com.au