The Weekly Grill

This week's Weekly Grill podcast is a conversation with livestock scientist Fran Cowley from the University of New England, whose current work focusses on managing and mitigating livestock methane emissions.

Associate Professor in livestock production at UNE, her current work includes looking for better ways to predict emissions from feedlot cattle. A lot of this was a future-proofing exercise – providing support to grain feeding being a method of reducing the carbon footprint of beef.

“The feedlot industry is an important way that we can work towards a carbon-neutral food production system,” she said.

“In the future, it’s highly likely that we will see an environment where there will be a price on market access on carbon. Being able to have a more accurate and lower estimate of the emissions and carbon footprint of feedlots is going to ease potential issues accessing markets that require no or low emission product,” she said.

Prof Cowley reinforced the importance of producers continuing to adopt best practices, with research reinforcing the importance of feeding more efficiently and making sure that every mouthful of feed that cattle are consuming is being turned into more beef.

The Weekly Grill is brought to readers and listeners by Rhinogard by Zoetis.

In this week's Weekly Grill podcast, host Kerry Lonergan turns up the heat on Queensland lotfeeder Charlie Mort, principal of Mort & Co.

The pair discuss the changing Australian feedlot environment, plans for the construction of Mort & Co's new Central Queensland feedlot near Gogango, market demand for grainfed beef and other topics.

The Weekly Grill is brought to readers and listeners by  Rhinogard by Zoetis.

Jack Owen is a Victorian sheep-meat producer who used to spend hours thinking about what his neighbours were doing and how successful they were – until he decided to stop thinking and do something about it – so he interviewed over 200 successful farmers and graziers and made notes on how they operated and why they there successful.

The result is his personal improvement book, 'You Are Not Your Farm - What the top 5pc of farmers are doing that the average farmer is not.'

His work takes a broad sweep of common farming practices – and personal likes and dislikes among the primary producers he spoke to, which contribute to ongoing success.

Much of this is self-evident, but there’s also thought-provoking assessments which will challenge our everyday habits, he tells Weekly Grill podcast host Kerry Lonergan.

His book is available from the Amazon books website.

In this week’s Weekly Grill podcast, host Kerry Lonergan turns up the heat on Wagyu boss Matt McDonagh, discussing the opportunities and challenges facing the Wagyu industry in Australia, where breeders are placing their genetic selection emphasis, and the impact as greater numbers of Wagyu feeders occupy valuable pen space for long periods in Australian feedlots.

Victorian veterinarian Dr Craig Wood is the new president of the Australian Cattle Vets, a special interst group of the Australian Veterinarians Association.

A cattle specialist at Mortlake Vet Clinic, Dr Wood succeeds Broome WA vet, Dr Tracy Sullivan as ACV president.

In a wide ranging discussion, Weekly Grill host Kerry Lonergan chats with Dr Wood about the role vets would play in any exotic disease incursion in Australia, the current level of risk from LSD and FMD from nearby Indonesia, and the challenges in attracting young veterinarians to work in the bush.

The Australian Cattle Vets members provide crucial services to agricultural producers who feed the country, playing key roles in disease surveillance, securing the nation’s quarantine status and protecting ongoing productivity. Members also have a significant responsibility in managing and maintaining animal welfare.

The ACV is one of the AVA's largest special interest groups, with 1100 members across Australia. Members come from private practice, government departments including agriculture and quarantine services, research, and animal health companies. The ACV has representation on Cattle Australia, with which it has associate membership, and works closely with other cattle industry bodies.

The Weekly Grill is brought to readers and listeners by Elders and Rhinogard by Zoetis.

Fifth generation retail butcher Michael James operates a successful retail site at the inner southeastern Brisbane suburb of Carina. He also represents independent retailers on the board of the Australian Meat Industry Council.

In this Weekly Grill episode, Michael speaks with host Kerry Lonergan about the current domestic retail beef trading environment, where consumers face considerable cost of living presses and time constraints.

Are customers shifting out of steak into mince, or out of beef into cheaper chicken and pork? How are modern independent butchers countering the challenge of the dominant national supermarket meat retailers?

The Weekly Grill is brought to readers and listeners by Elders and Rhinogard by Zoetis.

Today's Weekly Grill podcast continues our occasional markets series, with host Kerry Lonergan talking with regular markets commentators RMA's Chris Howie and Ep3's Matt Dalgleish.

The looming impact of the US drought on global beef demand over the next two years out of the US and other countries is one of the key focuses in today's update.

Slaughter and store cattle supply and demand heading into winter could produce some  surprises, the pair suggest

The Weekly Grill is brought to readers and listeners by Elders and Rhinogard by Zoetis.

Carbon, industry advocacy and greater need for education in agriculture came into focus during Weekly Grill podcast host, Kerry’s Lonergan’s lengthy chat this week with large scale Queensland beef producer MDH’s Julie McDonald.

Julie wears many hats within the family-owned MDH cattle business. In addition to providing an update on MDH’s cattle operations spread across 14 properties in North, Central and southern Queensland totalling some 3.4 million hectares, she shares her thoughts on carbon – saying while its represents an opportunity for the industry, there is still a lot of work to be done.

Julie said it was important for the industry to have government understanding of the difference between carbon and methane. Carbon and the associated impositions on the beef industry needed to be carefully thought out, and agriculture needs to be weary that it is not simply burdened by additional costs.

MDH is using AgForce’s carbon assessment tool AgCare, and is very happy with it, she says in this week’s Weekly Grill.

The Weekly Grill is brought to readers and listeners by Elders and Rhinogard by Zoetis.

ONE in six people in Australia experience food insecurity and hunger on a weekly basis.

Now a unique outback initiative has been launched enabling members of the Australian cattle industry to help their city counterparts and raise much needed funds to support those in need.

The inaugural 2025 Great Australian Charity Cattle Drive was officially unveiled by Beef Bank director Bim Struss during the sold-out Rural Press Club of Queensland breakfast during Beef Week in Rockhampton. The drive will see 2000 head of cattle walked by professional drovers and paying supporters on horseback along designated stock routes from Longreach to Roma in May next year.

In this week’s Weekly Grill, Bim chats with host Kerry Lonergan about the exciting project, designed to bring city and country together.

The long, hot, wet 2023-24 summer saw a marked rise in Three Day Sickness across Australia, including outbreaks in areas as far south as Victoria where it has never before been seen. In those regions, naive herds never previously exposed to BEF were hard-hit, with stock losses reported. Is climate change and warner temperatures behind it, or is it simply natural variation from season to season?

Zoetis's senior veterinary technical manager Dr Lee Taylor provides some answers, and suggestions for preventative management in different parts of Australia.

The Weekly Grill is brought to readers and listeners by Elders and Rhinogard by Zoetis.