Award-winning duo take out Droughtmaster honour after six decades in the breed

They've won numerous awards for their cattle, and now a Blackwater couple has been recognised for their work within the Droughtmaster breed.

The Neil Donaldson Memorial Award, one of the society's most prestigious honours, was presented to Ken and Kerry McKenzie of Yaralla Droughtmasters on Monday night, September 15.

The award commemorates the late Neil Donaldson OAM, a long-serving CEO of the society, with recipients recognised for demonstrating outstanding, long-term commitment to the Droughtmaster breed.

For the McKenzies, it acknowledged more than six decades of family involvement in the breed, from pioneering roots with the Colarah stud to their present-day operation running over 1000 breeders across Duaringa and Blackwater.

The McKenzies said the recognition reflected not just their work, but a lifetime of dedication from the generation before them.

"My parents have been in the breed forever," Mr McKenzie said, recounting when his father established the Colarah stud just five or six years after the breed was first established in Australia.

"So that was Dad's initial stud, and then we turned that over a long time ago, when we got married, and started the Yaralla stud.

"Dad actually bought a bull here at the first national sale, 60 years ago, I think."

The family remained loyal to the breed because of its adaptability and survivability.

"Our breeding country is forest country, so they just really suit that," Mr McKenzie said.

"We've got a lot of friends in all different breeds.

"The good ones in every breed are good, but we just liked the Droughties.

"They've adapted really well to that harder forest country and then into the Brigalow, and they fit into any market, so that's why we've always stuck with them."

Over the decades, the McKenzies have endured both extremes of climate and market downfalls.

"In the first two years of starting the stud, we were really wet and then it never rained for four years," he said.

"But we survived, and I think that's the strength of the group."

Today, the McKenzie's herd runs across three properties, including Pearl Creek at Duaringa, Yaralla, and another property near Blackwater.

"Pearl Creek is our main breeder place... it's been in the family for 46 years," Mr McKenzie said.

They have around 450 registered females, with a program predominantly commercial but grounded in pure Droughtmaster genetics with generations of depth in pedigree.

Markets shifted over time, and the McKenzies adjusted with them.

"We used to fatten bullocks, then we went to feeders, and then we increased our feeder numbers," Mr McKenzie said.

Their bulls are marketed through both the Droughtmaster National Sale and the Artesian Sale.

It is not just Ken and Kerry shaping the program anymore, with their two sons now stepping into the sale ring themselves.

"And obviously, both boys are now involved in the same fashion," Mr McKenzie said.

The couple admitted it was a big step watching the next generation take responsibility.

"It's stressful, passing someone the responsibility of a bull sale," Mrs McKenzie said.

"But they'll be alright."

In 2023, the award was won by Kerri McKenzie, K Team Droughtmasters, Boolburra, and the inaugural award winner was Jenny Underwood, Eversleigh and Wallace Vale Droughtmasters, Wallumbilla.