To improve a cattle breed, cross it with a Limousin, says business mogul

If you want to make another cattle breed better, cross it with a Limousin.

That's according to Pelican Rise Limousin stud principal and business mogul Chris Meade, Irrewarra.

Mr Meade spent much of his life and continues to run a pallet and packaging business and first ventured into Limousin stud breeding in 2008.

The two worlds - business and farming - have given him a unique perspective on what he thinks the Australian beef industry needs.

It starts with an 'L' and to some people is a stretched-out fancy car.

The French breed could and should bring a lot to the table, according to Mr Meade, who sells bulls interstate each year.

With close to 60 Limousin breeders, he is working to build cattle with the perfect blend of carcase qualities.

"It's less marbled but it's a very soft, fine meat," he said, adding that Limousins typically kill out at close to 60 per cent.

His journey with the red cattle was a no-brainer.

"I think I liked the style of cattle they were," he said.

"I wasn't a fan of Angus and I wanted something a little bit different than that.

"I felt like the Limousin was a good type of animal for this area."

Alongside his sons, he runs a total of 700 breeders between the pedigree Limousins, Wagyu and Angus stock.

The family runs a number of small feedlots, and the herd calves predominantly in autumn.

Mr Meade said the Limousin dams and Limousin-sired calves stood out amongst the rest.

"Certainly their feed efficiency, their ease of calving and the ability to be able to perform in tougher conditions," he said.

"They just present as an animal with good meat in the right places."

The Pelican Rise stud uses a mix of Canadian, American and European genetics to breed balanced cattle.

"We want to retain the strength and muscle of the European Limousin but add the softness of what we're getting out of the Canadian," he said.

Mr Meade described how the stud flushed 1-3 of its top cows a year and used recipients to speed up the rate of genetic gain.

"I make sure I know what's in demand across the country," he said.

"Demand for our type of Limousin varies from Victoria, into NSW and Queensland."

He said black Limousin bulls were in demand, particularly in NSW and South Australia, due to the preference for black cattle by some abattoirs.

"It's an easy way for the abattoirs to provide consistency," he said.

However, he was adamant that in reality, coat colour made little difference when it came to beef.

"For the processors that supply to the restaurant game, they prefer to have Limousin in the mix," he said.

"I haven't heard of anybody that eats the skin yet."

Mr Meade said he was also breeding bulls for the growing dairy sire market with short gestation and easy calving traits.

"With the new dairy rules coming in of potentially not being able to sell bobby calves, Limousins have a big role to play," he said.

"We're already selling bulls into that system to suit the dairy market."

Adapting in this way, like in any business, is an approach more farmers needed to take, according to Mr Meade.

"In business, you're focused on making sensible farming decisions and farming communities sometimes miss a bit of that," he said.

He also felt his marketing skills helped in the stud game and said farmers needed to wear multiple hats.

"In business, we look at selling everything, including our waste and in farming, we need to think like that more," he said.

Mr Meade said his Limousin business was in it for the long haul.

"There are a lot of people who think that maybe there's not a future in the Limousin because of how much Angus is growing and Wagyu is growing," he said.

"I think that farmers need to look at them.

"There's always a place for an animal like a Limousin."