White Suffolk breed and its visionary developers celebrated in 40-year anniversary of Association

A major milestone was celebrated when White Suffolk breeders of multiple generations converged at Hahndorf on Sunday night.

Jovial breeders from several states reminisced as they gathered for the opening dinner of the Australian White Suffolk Association 2025 conference at the Adelaide Hills Convention Centre, marking 40 years since the AWSA was founded.

Among them were many members of the AWSA's 17 founding studs - eight of which were South Australian - that launched the Association in 1985.

It was eight years prior to AWSA's formation that University of NSW Professor Euan Roberts began trials to see if a white gene could be introduced into the Suffolk breed to overcome the issue of Suffolk lambs getting severely discounted on skin prices - many thought unfairly - for black points.

His interest had been sparked after prime lamb trials showed Suffolks were far and away the best performers, but still only made up 10 per cent of the Australian prime lamb industry at the time.

The Suffolk Society of SA supplied some cull ewes for Prof Roberts' early work and there were many SA sheep breeders supportive of the ambition.

Among them was the AWSA's first president Ian Turner, Smiths Bay, near Kingscote on Kangaroo Island.

His Renrut stud was christened flock number three in the cherished original flock book, after he lost a coin toss to Barry Lang, Langley Heights, Oberon, NSW, for number two.

"The reality was that most of the contamination in the Australian wool industry at that time came from poor shed hygiene or the Merino breed itself," Mr Turner said.

"We were getting penalised in the wool market for that (Suffolk) wool at that stage, and getting penalised severely on skin prices.

"In the peak of prime lamb season in spring, we were getting $9 for lambs, our freight was $3.50 and we were getting docked up to $5 for black-pointed skins."

Mr Turner had Border Leicesters, Suffolks and began breeding Poll Dorsets at about the same time as White Suffolks.

He said the development of the White Suffolk breed was one of the best things that ever happened to the Poll Dorset breed and the prime lamb industry in general.

"It gave Poll Dorsets some serious competition and you only improve with competition, as you can't afford complacency," he said.

"If that improves Poll Dorsets and White Suffolks are successful, the prime lamb industry would be better for it and I think that has proven to be the case."

Mr Turner himself used Border Leicester genetics and a dash of Merino to add to the Suffolk to breed a White Suffolk, where as many others used Poll Dorsets.

"I wanted them to have a finer front end, a bit of neck extension, and get the wool off the legs and the head. They were key points to me, then you added the better muscling as you went on," he said.

The breed was officially launched at the World Sheep & Wool Congress in Tas in 1989, with the first Royal Adelaide showing in 1991.

Geoff Gale, Galaxy Park, Monarto South, took out the two major ram titles, with Mr Turner successful in the two major ewe competitions.

Mr Turner said there had been seven key reasons for the breed's success - good commercial demand; a popular parent breed in the Suffolk that was the most popular meat sheep in the world, bar Australia; the skilled and respected livestock breeders that were involved from the start; those breeders had belief and passion; good timing due to the fact lamb was progressing from a sheep industry byproduct to a major industry in its own; developers had a performance-based mindset; and an "open flock book".

"Initially, everyone had an idea on how they were going to make the Suffolk breed white, but no one really had a definitive template so we left it to individuals involved," he said.

"The marketplace decides whether you're successful or not."

The honour of flock number one in the world was bestowed on Peter Heinrich, Ella Matta Pastoral.

Flock numbers were allocated on the basis of when ewes were first kept for breeding specifically for the White Suffolk ambition.

Ella Matta started their White Suffolk breeding journey in 1979 at Paskeville. The stud moved across Backstairs Passage to Parndana on Kangaroo Island in 1999.

Aged 92, Peter wasn't in attendance on Sunday night, but his son Andrew and grandson Jamie - the ones proudly carrying on the Ella Matta legacy - were.

The Heinrichs are still as passionate as ever about breeding White Suffolks and also sell Maternal Composites and Poll Merinos, selling more than 500 rams in 2024.

Peter first began the White Suffolk breeding program in 1979, after hearing about the work being done by Prof Roberts.

"His story is that he went to the Dorset Fair and bought a ram for $300 from a stud. He was asked if he wanted to register it and he said he was going to put it over some Suffolk ewes and they kicked him out of the tent," Andrew chuckled.

"He kept going down that path though. In the first drop some had speckly faces, some were black, some were white. He was advised to pick the whitest one that looked like a Suffolk and he kept crossing them back like that."

Andrew said while stud sheep breeders always strived for a better product, he estimated it would have been five to ten years for his father to reach what he considered a desirable White Suffolk.

He said the stud had continually evolved over the ensuing years and very much focused on performance in the current day, utilising programs like Lambplan and eating quality measurements to stay at the pointy end of the industry.

Having been involved in the development of the Australian White breed, AWSA president Ian Gilmore - who finished his two-year term on Tuesday - has a unique appreciation for the journey White Suffolk early adopters embarked on.

From Baringa stud, Oberon, NSW, Mr Gilmore was involved in the Tattykeel studs, breeding Poll Dorsets, Border Leicesters, Dorset Horns and Texels among others, before establishing his own enterprise and starting a White Suffolk program in 1999.

He said there were currently about 300 White Suffolk studs in Australia, with genetics and sheep exported to far-flung destinations like Kazakhstan, New Zealand, China, the US and South America.

Mr Gilmore considers it "the greatest composite breed there is", saying breeders have the advantage of being able to go to any other breed to access genetics to include into the White Suffolk breed.

Many SA farmers use White Suffolk rams over Merino and first-cross ewes for prime lamb production, or over Composite ewes in regions like KI and the South East.

Mr Gilmore says the breeds' strength lays in its versatility.

"We're now selling White Suffolk rams into shedding breed operations that are looking to put more growth into their lambs and the White Suffolk ticks the boxes, especially through the maternal aspects," he said.

With the breed's future appearing bright due to its versatility and sustained commercial demand, the early adopters and visionaries had plenty to celebrate as the 40-year celebration continued on into the night at Hahndorf.

The 17 founding Australian White Suffolk Association studs as they appear in the original AWSA flock book:

1 - PS Heinrich & Sons, Ella Matta, Bute, SA

2 - BA&JE Lang, Langley Heights, Oberon, NSW

3 - IG&WM Turner, Renrut, via Kingscote, KI, SA

4 - E&R Siggers & Sons, Yaridni, Goorambat, Vic

5 - DS&CJ Ferguson & Sons, Anna Villa, Weetulta, SA

6 - Elouera Studs, Cowra, NSW

7 - GB&J Gale, Galaxy Park, Monarto South, SA

8 - R Thirkell-Johnston & Co, Saundridge, Cressy, Tas

9 - AE Day & Sons, Allendale, Bordertown, SA

10 - RN&BA Spiers, Raverly, Heywood, Vic

11 - RE&JA Sonogan, Genelinc, Sunbury, Vic

12 - RJ Searls, Hollyburton, Sunbury, Vic

13 - R Bingham, Kinmel, Davenport, Tas

14 - KB Moore, Penrise, Campania, Tas

15 - RV Piggott & Son, Illoura, Moorlands, SA

16 - MC&BJ Gale, Fingerpost, Monarto South, SA

17 - HJ&MJ Krieg & Son, Aylesbury Farm, Willaston, SA