Day 4: Lawson Angus & Lima Park

We started this morning of with breakfast at McDonalds so we were able to use there wifi. Since wifi in Australia is very limited and hotels charge a fortune for it. After breakfast it was on to Lawson Angus to learn more about cattle in Australia. We spent a lot of time looking at a mob of bulls in the rain learning the history of their operation. Lawson Angus is the largest seedstock operation in Australia selling over 800 bulls annually. They have farms in Victoria but also run many head in western Australia. We were also informed that they were effected by the same fire that hit the Webb black Simmental farm from yesterday's tour.Once the tour concluded the took us down to a place called Mandala where they served us biscuits and hot chocolate. Mandala was also a winery that offered wine tastings. The unique thing about their products was that each box was differentiated by an ear tag.Our last stop was to Lima Park which is a 300 head hereford commercial cow operation. This operation is accredited by the European union which is where they export the majority of there cattle. They also raise a lot sheep which right now is by far there most profitable operation.We drove to Albury where we would stop for the night. Here we ate at Sodens which is where we had the best food by far. We had a porterhouse with chips and salad. Australians prefer grass fed beef, which is not as good as what were produce in America.

Day 3: JBS Australia & Webb Black Simmental

We woke up to a cold and rainy day in Melbourne. While watching the news today we learned that in the area we are traveling in, is preparing for floods. In the next two days they are expecting as much rain as they usually get in a month.

The first thing on our list today is to visit the Brooklyn Abattior owned by JBS. We were very lucky to be able to receive this tour, however, we were not allowed to take pictures. This abattoir (slaughter plant) kills 5000 sheep and 1200 cattle daily. In Australia they own 11 meat processing plants and 5 feedlots.This particular operation employees 1100 people.

We started this tour by changing into mud boots, a smock, with a hair net, and ear plugs. Once equipped with these essentials we headed into the beef kill floor where we were allowed to see everything from the cattle being killed to the packaging of the meat. In the boning room it was amazing to watch all how fast and efficient the employees can work. In addition to this they have an automatic machine that takes the boxes of meat and automatically puts the lid on.

Also on their tour we got to see their sheep kill floor, which look like a miniature version of their beef like floor. However, this particular plant is in their second day of operation in a product that is sold in their local Coles supermarket and they hope to grow enough to be able to export it. This product is different cuts of lamb packaged with seasoning/marinade.

We were on to lunch for our next stop. This is some of the best food so far, besides our hotel breakfast. We had fish and chips and apple crumble with ice cream for dessert. Now this was not exactly like what you would get in the states, but compared to some of the food we have been eating it was Amazing.

This afternoon we visited with the owners and manager of Webb Black Simmental, which was a very enjoyable stop. This operation was bought 6 years ago and was started, and the Webb family is partly responsible for promoting and building the Simmental breed in Australia. They were able to do this by buying semen and embryos from the states. However, three years ago a fire went through and burnt down everything but one building, but they did not lose any animals. They were able to save them all because of they had a patch of ground that was all dirt where they put all the animals so the fire could not get to them.

Now their operations has been built back, and they now have a herd with approximately 150 head of cows. And their main focus is producing bulls, because they keep all their females for replacements. They soon hope to be able to sell Simmental or SimAngus females due to the market for them.

The time we spent at their operation was COLD and rainy. We did thought get to see some of their bulls, females, and sale facilities before we went into their office to have a drink and learn more about their operation.

Day 2: Melbourne, Australia May 24

We started this morning off with breakfast at the hotel after an amazing night of actually getting to sleep in a bed.

To get to our first visit this morning we had to walk across the river and through downtown Melbourne where we reached a government building where we would learn about Australia's National Livestock Identification System (NLIS). This system tracks cattle from the place where they were born and to every different owner they have until they are slaughtered. They also are attempting to implement the same system with the sheep industry.

Next, we toured the city of Melbourne before our trip to the brewery. We drove down the main streets of downtown before we stopped to explored the Shrine of Remembrance. Here we got to climb to the top of the shrine where it overlooked the city and the surrounding area.

The next stop we made was to St. Patricks Cathedral where we got to spend twenty minutes looking around the beautiful cathedral.

Our last stop before the brewery was a park that held Captain Cook's cottage. This was also home to a conservatory building that was filled with beautiful flowers and a small water fall. This was our last short twenty minute stop before we continued on our journey.

Finally, we were at our last stop for the day, the Carlton Brew House. This is the largest brewery in Australia that sits on twenty acres. We got to see where the beer was made and how they bottled the beer. Our tour guide Melissa also informed us that each employee gets a case of beer a week as part of their benefits. Once our tour was over we got to spend time in their tasting room to try there different beers and find the ones we liked.

Before heading to bed we were on a quest for dinner. We stopped at two different places before we found one that would serve our group of twenty five people. We ended up eating at a casino buffet which provided us with some food we actually enjoyed.

On our journey today we got to see many different places, and interesting people. Some of the best parts of the day was seeing how beautifully put together the city is.

Day 1: Melbourne, Australia May 23

About 30 hours after starting our trip to Australia, we have finally arrived. We have been on three different flights, spent hours waiting in airports, watched countless movies and multiple hours flying over the ocean but we made it! After landing is when the fun began. Not only have many of us been up since the early hours of Monday morning but we have yet to go to bed besides the short naps we have encountered over our fifteen hour flight, so we were ready to start our day.Once we landed and made it through customs and immigration it was off to the Healesville sanctuary where we were able to spend some quality animals native to Australia. During this tour we got the chance to interact with koalas, kangaroos, dingos, and many more animals. One of the most interesting and fun activities the sanctuary offers was the ability to go into a cage of birds, where you could feed and hold them whenever you wanted. Once we concluded at the sanctuary we had a two hour drive back to Melbourne before we would finally be able to shower and relax before we head out to dinner. There have been many problems trying to get Internet access so hopefully soon the blogs will more frequent and more detailed.

Class Summary on Australia

Its official only 21 DAYS until we leave for our exciting adventure to Australia! We have worked all semester learning different pieces about Australia so we will be informed travelers when we arrive.

We started out the semester by learning about the geography of Australia, with emphasis on the areas that we will be traveling in. First of all the capital of Australia is Canberra. We also learned that there are 6 different states and 2 territories that form Australia.

After we were familiar with the area we would be traveling in, we were introduced to the history of Australia. Leaning that convicts founded Australia, was relatively interesting. This was because King George IV sent them there after they were convicted. This fell under is Transportation act, and the first fleet arrived in Australia in 1788. Once they arrived it was up to everyone on the fleet to make a livable area, which is out the convict colonies were established.

Next we moved on the government and economy of Australia were we learned that the current prime minister is Julia Gillard, and the Current minister of Agriculture is Joe Ludwig. When studying the economy of Australia we observed that they have a relatively stable economy when compared to the United States. In addition to this when we hit the recent recession so did they, however, it was not a drastic and they bounced back faster than we did.  

From there we started to focus on the agriculture industry in Australia. Wheat is Australia's most important grain crop, because it is the largest grown crop. In addition to this we have learned about Angus, Shorthorn, Simmental, and Hereford cattle in Australia. After we learned about cattle in Australia which they are very similar to American cattle we moved on to sheep.
Finally, we learned about how JBS and Cargill of Australia function. They operate differently than they do in the United States, for instance, when cattle are brought to the slaughter facility they have to be free of mud and need to be clean or they are turned away. This is a major difference from the united states. In addition to this, we learned about the Sale Yards in Australia. They are also different than what we are use to because they sell are pen of cattle out in the yards, where in America we usually sell cattle in a Sale Barn where the animals are ran into a pen individually or in a small group. Along with this in Australia they Auctioneer walks down a cat walk located above the pens and auctions the pens off. While in America the Auctioneer stays in their stand and the animals are brought to them.
There are many things to look forward on this trip besides experiencing the country in general. I am looking forward to being able to see how other cattle operations functions and what they focus on. Also I am looking forward to being able to see the Great Barrier Reef, the city of Sydney, and also the unique animals that inhabit Australia. Now that the countdown has began there are many things to do before we leave!

The South Coast and Snowy Mountains

Ever since the settlers crossed the Blue Mountains,the southern coast has been the prime target for agriculture land. By getting the desired amount of rainfall and weather temperatures. The south coast and the snowy mountains are very beautiful, however, a car is needed to have the full experience.  Since the busiest highway in Australia runs right through New South Whales having a good road will not be a problem. The combination of both of the snowy mountains and the aqua blue sea perfect for surfing gives this destination the added advantage.

The Snowy Mountains are 310 miles long and stretch from Victoria to Canberra and were formed over 250 million years ago. During the winter the Snowy Mountains snow gums bend beneath the cold wind, and the summer the meadows are covered in wallflowers. Also the Snowy Mountains are home to the only glacial lakes found in Australia.

Since the Snowy Mountains experience very harsh diverse weather conditions both plant and animal life has overtime adapted. Some of the plants unique to the mountains are silver snow daisies, the mountain plum pine, and sphagnum moss. The pine is very unique as it grows at an angle and the moss helps protect primitive plants in the snowy mountains. However, the mountains have some distinct animals too; corroboree frogs, mountain pygmy possums, and brown and rainbow trout. The pygmy possums live under the snow high in the mountains and eat the berries that the pines produce.

In the snowy mountain range the tallest mountain is Mount Kosciuszko at 7310 ft in elevation. This mountain is also home to the Kosciuszko National Park. Slightly lower next to Mount Kosciuszko is Mount Townsend which is almost as tall with a now pronounced peak.