Well we just had to try it, our first Cloudbreak Lowlines Christmas photo shoot featuring 'Cloudbreak Lucinda',our trade-show-star calf-now-weaned. At first Lucy thought it was food, then when she worked out it wasn't, Lucy was not so impressed...
We are very excited to announce the release of our 2019 paddock-to-plate tours, in conjuction with our local partners Eungelladale Milk and Platypus Lodge Restaurant, and with the wonderful support of the Greater Whitsunday Food Network Inc, Sarina Sugar Shed, Mackay Regional Council, and Mackay Tourism.
For bookings please click here.
Your tour starts with a visit to Playtpus Restaurant & Cafe where you can enjoy homemade waffles and ice-cream for morning tea, overlooking Broken River. Take a stroll to the platypus viewing deck which is one of the best locations in the world to see a rare marsupial in the wild – a platypus!
At Eungelladale Dairy Farm, nestled in the green rolling hills of Eungella you’ll take a tour of Dale Fortescue’s dairy farm. Dale will take you through his daily ritual, and showcase the dairy that milks around 120 cows per day. In their boutique processing plant the milk is batch pasteurised, non-homogenised and bottled on site. Their milk products are unlike any others. Even Dale’s elderly father labels every bottle by hand.
A unique opportunity to “meet your meat” at Cloudbreak Lowlines (Eungella Beef) Tour and Lunch. Discover the history of the “Cloudbreak” property and Eungella region with Mandy and Kell who will share their journey and explain why soil, pasture and cattle health is so important when producing premium beef. Enjoy canapes and a Ploughman’s Lunch with table service within the paddock and 360 degree stunning rural views. You’ll have the opportunity to hand-feed the cattle and to purchase some of Mandy’s delicious preserves and sample packs of Eungella Lowline Beef. (No eftpos available.)
When one of the top Lowline breeders in Australia chose to attend Beef 2018 in Rockhampton, all the way from Southern Victoria, we simply couldn't let them take this exquisite bull home again.
'Rotherwood Masterpiece' is a beautifully muscled, deep-bodied bull, and we look forward to seeing his progeny on the ground.
‘Rotherwood Masterpiece won Junior Champion & Grand Champion Bull & Supreme Exhibit at Royal Melbourne Show 2017 at 17 months.
‘Rotherwood Masterpiece' then went on to win Senior Champion Bull & Grand Champion Bull & Supreme Exhibit at Royal Canberra 2018 at 22 months and 552 kgs.
‘Rotherwood Masterpiece' later won Senior Champion Male at Beef Australia 2018, so we just had to bring him home to Cloudbreak Lowlines.
Thanks very much to Rotherwood Lowlines for sharing this spectacular bull with us.
We have always loved our Victorian breeders genetics, so when we had the opportunity to add Wanamara Consentino to our breeding plan, we jumped at the opportunity.
Consentino has beautiful conformation, and the most wonderful nature. We look forward to seeing his progeny on the ground.
Wanamara Consentino impressed us greatly (and surprised his breeder) by winning the Reserve Senior Champion Bull at his first show, the prestigous 2018 Royal Sydney Show.
Wanamara Consentino won 1st place in the class AUSTRALIAN LOWLINE - Bull, over 20 & not over 24mths.
Wanamara Consentino then went on to win AUSTRALIAN LOWLINE - RESERVE SENIOR CHAMPION BULL at the 2018 Royal Sydney Show.
We are very grateful to Wanamara Lowlines for parting with the wonderful bull.
Pittsworth Model has joined us at Cloudbreak, to expand our quality genetics. Model is a lovely long, early maturing bull, and we look forward to seeing his progeny on the ground.
Pittsworth Model is a lovely junior bull, we were first impressed by him when he won his class as BULL over 12 mths and under 16 mths at the Brisbane Royal EKKA in 2017.
Pittsworth Model then went on to win Junior Champion Bull at the EKKA.
A big thanks to the wonderful Cattle Show Team at Pittsworth State High School who did such a wonderful job breeding, preparing, and showing this bull, and then sharing him with us.
Cloudbreak is thrilled to partner with Wild Mob for an experience within a magical week in the spectacular Queensland rainforest! Wild Mob is a not-for-profit organisation that gets visitors to the coalface of environmental conservation. Wild Mob empowers everyday people to make a real, measurable difference to the world by taking them on adventures to actual conservation sites.
Packed with birdwatching, wildlife walks, foodie experiences and more, Eungella Bird and Wildlife Week is the ultimate chance to explore an incredible new part of Australia. And meet it’s vibrant community!
Eungella National Park lies in the hinterland of Central Queensland, just outside Mackay. Its majestic landscape supports almost 900 species of plants and a stunning array of wildlife. There have been 227 bird species recorded here, including the endemic Eungella Honeyeater. And you’re almost guaranteed to see a platypus in Eungella’s lush creeks.
The Eungella Bird Week and Bushwalking Festival caters to the serious birdwatcher looking to add to their list, right through to the casual birder wanting to learn a little more about birds and explore some amazing places.
It’s also a totally unique chance to hunt for the Eungella Honeyeater with local experts. These rare and beautiful creatures can’t be found anywhere else in the world!
Enjoy a wonderful afternoon at the local Cloudbreak Lowlines Farm. Cloudbreak is in the beautiful Eungella Hinterland, fringed by pristine Crediton Creek and surrounded my misty National Park.
Feed the cows, tour the old dairy and learn about the local history, ecology and the farm’s sustainability practices.
Enjoy a ploughman’s paddock-to-plate lunch featuring local Eungella Beef, homemade bread and Cloudbreak Tomato Relish. There will also be time for birdwatching!
We are excited to announce our new service, grass-fed, free-range, local Eungella Beef, delivered monthly to your workplace or home, starting on Thursday 8th March. Purchase over $50 and get free delivery to Mackay, Valley and Beaches.
So get your workplace, friends and family together, and experience the freshest local beef.
Cloudbreak Lowlines is very excited to announce that we are taking our grass-fed, free-range, premium Eungella Lowline Beef to the Gargett Markets, Pioneer Valley, starting Saturday 10 March 2018, and the 2nd Saturday of each month thereafter.
Our family farm at Eungella is covered in lush Kikuyu and Clover pastures, has a unique cool climate and abundant rainfall, which grows well-marbled, tender, flavoursome and beautifully textured beef, bred and nurtured from our paddock to your plate, with low food miles.
'Cloudbreak' is fringed by pristine Crediton Creek and surrounded by mist-shrouded Eungella National Park. At an altitude of 800m we enjoy the purest air and water nature provides.
So please come and visit us, the farmers, at Gargett, from 9am. We will have a full range of beef cuts available, presented beautifully by our local butcher.
We are very proud to be supplying our grass-fed, free-range, sustainable Eungella Beef broth bones to Celebrity Chef Matt Golinsky and his wonderful team, to be part of the amazing, locally grown, fesh produce served up at the 3rd annual Farm-to-Plate Dinner at the MECC.
Watch out for our table centre and foyer display, featuring our own lush kikuyu and clover pasture, which provides the nutrient and protein rich pasture for our sustainable cattle. There are a number of surprises in the display, and who knows, you might even discover a four-leaf-clover, our own Eungella Beef logo!
It was a pleasure to meet The Hungry Travellers on the weekend, and share our farm with them. The Hungry Travellers are doing an amazing job of promoting local to locals, keep up the good work, and never loose your passion for local adventure, culture & food! This is what they said:
? C l o u d b r e a k - L o w l i n e s ?
We were lucky enough to have been invited to the charming property of Cloudbreak Lowlines Cattle & Eungella Beef, nestled in the hills of the Eungella hinterland. This piece of paradise is surrounded by lush pastures and is home to Mackay's own herd of Australian Lowline Cattle.
Kel, Mandy and their gorgeous daughters Imogen & Cassidy have turned this old dairy farm into a thriving beef cattle farm. They're very passionate when it comes to producing the highest quality, sustainable beef.
Free-range, pasture fed, hormone free and low-stress cattle;
From their paddock to our plate...
It's that good that even celebrity chef Matt Golinski has sampled Cloudbreak’s beef and has left a testimonial he was so impressed.
Kel & Mandy are now offering tours of their property to share their knowledge of Lowline cattle and how they’re using innovative farming techniques to provide our region with top quality meat. Scratch a cow, cuddle a puppy and sit back and enjoy a tasty lunch with a view to die for! Tours include delicious home-made scones & jam and a gourmet ploughman’s spread for lunch; including fresh baked bread, home-made relish and of course a sample of their juicy beef. Yum!
On the 1st Wednesday of every month Cloudbreak will be at the Greater Whitsunday Farmers' Market, so pop on down and say hi to Mandy this week and get your hands on some tender, juicy, pure certified Eungella Lowline beef 
??
Cloudbreak Lowlines is very excited to announce that we are taking our grass-fed, free-range, premium Eungella Lowline Beef to the Greater Whitsunday Farmers' Market starting this Wednesday 1st March 2017, and the 1st Wednesday of each month thereafter.
Our family farm at Eungella is covered in lush Kikuyu and Clover pastures, has a unique cool climate and abundant rainfall, which grows well-marbled, tender, flavoursome and beautifully textured beef, bred and nurtured from our paddock to your plate, with low food miles.
'Cloudbreak' is fringed by pristine Crediton Creek and surrounded by mist-shrouded Eungella National Park. At an altitude of 800m we enjoy the purest air and water nature provides.
So please come and visit us, the farmers, at Bluewater Quay, River Street, Mackay, from 8am, on Wednesday. We will have a full range of beef cuts available, presented beautifully by our local butcher.
And here is yet another amazing new bull to add to our growing premium bloodlines, what a year 2016 has been!
Vitulus Ferrari was part of the show team at the Royal Brisbane Show in 2012.
Ferrari is (obviously) one of the elusive red gene Lowlines, which are now recognized by ALCA and now appear on the ALCA herdbook.
Thanks Sandra at Roulette Lowlines for parting with this wonderful bull.
Ferrari is shown here in paddock condition.
For ALCA herdbook and lineage details, please Click Here.
Meet another amazing new bull to add to our growing premium bloodlines.
Senior Grand Champion Bull Vitulus Full Force won the Small Breeds Interbreed at the Royal Brisbane Show in 2012.
Full Force semen has been exported to the USA and Europe.
Thanks Sandra at Roulette Lowlines for parting with this wonderful bull.
For ALCA herdbook and lineage details, please Click Here.
Congratulations to the Australian Lowline studs showing this wonderful breed at the Brisbane Ekka last week. Please click here for all the Lowline results.
A special mention to Tanya and Ken Falkenhagen, of Tanview Lowlines, who had great success with their wonderful cattle. We were lucky enough to purchase Tanview Freedom from Tanya and Ken in 2012, and he has gone on to produce many wonderful calves, three of which were in our show team this year.
Tanview Freedom was Junior Champion Bull at the Brisbane Ekka 2011, and 1st in Lowline Bull 24 & under 36 months class, Beef Australia 2012.
Cloudbreak Lowlines is now home to some registered RED Australian Lowlines. We were very lucky to source some amazing varied genetics from Roulette Lowlines, including red cow 'Gifted and Red', and red heifer 'Red Delight', together with a number of red-gene-carrier cows and heifers.
The informationon red genetics below is from the Australian Lowline Cattle Association (ALCA)
Why red and black?
These are the two most common colours in cattle breeds and both have always existed in the Angus herd genetics. Historically it is not certain how the gene came to be in the Lowline herd but it is present in registered animals today that have been Parent Verified and DNA tested.
Why are there only a few red lowlines?
Unless you have both black parents that carry the red gene you will never produce a red calf. The genes for red are still reasonably rare although they are present in the registered Lowline herd. Even if both parents are carrying the red gene there is still only one chance in four of a red calf. This does not mean that every four calves they have, one will be red. There is a one in four chance each time. Like picking out a single heart in a pack of cards each time you pick one card. And if one parent has the gene and the other does not you will never have a red calf, ever.
Which animals have the gene and how can you tell?
You cannot pick a red gene carrier by looking at it. They are all black – which is the dominant colour. The only real way to tell is by DNA testing.
Are there any differences between red and black animals?
No. In all other aspects they are the same, except for the colour of their coat. If they are
DNA tested and Parent Verified they are the same as any other Lowline.
We were very proud to host our first farm tour, the Gourmet Safari was a part of Mackay Regional Council's Festival of Arts program.
'50 lucky ticket holders embark on a unique food trail as they sip and sample the day away, visiting local lowline beef producer Cloudbreak Lowlines on their picturesque property overlooking Eungella in the Pioneer Valley hinterland.Coupled with amazing food tips and including a farm to plate lunch experience created using local produce and coupled with wines from Sirromet Wines'.
Well we just had to try it, our first Cloudbreak Lowlines Christmas photo shoot featuring 'Cloudbreak Lucinda',our trade-show-star calf-now-weaned. At first Lucy thought it was food, then when she worked out it wasn't, Lucy was not so impressed...
Anyone for some Eye Fillet? 2 kgs of prime grass-fed Eungella Lowline beef, and another 9 kgs of Rib Fillet, makes a box full of goodness. This amazing marbling is courtesy of a 4yo freemartin (born sterile as she was a twin to a bull calf) Lowline heifer, who put all her energy into growth. And yes, the beef tastes even better than it looks, we actually got to keep some of our own beef, all in the name of research of course!
We are very excited to announce our new partnership with Mackay Christian College's Cattle Show Team, whose dedicated students will be preparing and showing some of our wonderful Lowlines during next year's regional show circuit. We had a lovely morning showing Kate and Steph around Cloudbreak.
We were happy to show David Sparks of ABC Tropical North around our farm recently, David met our Australian Lowline cattle, checked out the view (once the cloud lifted), took some amazing photos, and had a chat with Mandy. To see more of David's photos, and hear the interview, please click here.
Our favourite Lowline slogan is 'A little bull goes a long way', and our Fresian xx cow 'Big Red' lives at Cloudbreak Lowlines just to prove the point. She has just had her second bull calf, named 'Baz' (after our wonderful farm caretaker last week). 'Baz' is a strong, healthy calf, and proudly sired by our wonderful Lowline bull 'Wydinya Clancy'. Clancy's legs may be short, but no job is too big for our busy bull!
It's snowing bull calves at Cloudbreak Lowlines, with our 3 latest Lowline calves born within the past week, pretty cute and (cover your ears, boys) will taste good in two years time when they become grass fed Eungella Beef. Welcome to Cloudbreak 'Luke Cloudwalker', Cloudbreak 'Lan Mandragoran', and Cloudbreak 'Laurent-Perrier'.
Meet our latest bull calf, born today, and named 'Lachy' after our recent trip to the Wiggles concert. He actually came over to check out the Wiggles figurine, his mum was not amused. Lachy was born to one of our wonderful registered Australian Lowline cows, and is a healthy, strong, happy calf. As I left he was already jumping around his poor mum and kicking up his heels.
If you’ve ever wondered why a four-leaf-clover for our logo, here is our story.
Cloudbreak is covered predominately in lush Kikuyu and Clover pastures, which adds to the unique flavour of our beef, and the great condition of our cattle. In the early days of our farm adventure, we found a number of four-leaf clovers, so we took that as a good sign!
White clover is a legume, and has an essential role in nitrogen fixation. Legumes contain symbiotic bacteria within nodules in their root systems, producing nitrogen compounds that help the plant to grow and compete with other plants. When the plant dies, the fixed nitrogen is released, making it available to other plants and this helps to fertilize the soil.
The advantages of white clover are many, including this nitrogen fixation which reduces the need for supplemental fertilizer. Less supplemental nitrogen is a benefit to the environment as there is less chance of runoff and pollution of groundwater. White clover increases palatability and forage quality of pastures. The protein quality is high, providing a wide spectrum of amino acids and proteins. White clover has rapid regrowth following grazing.
On Thursday evening, we attended the inaugural Farm to Plate Dinner at the MECC, showcasing the most innovative producers from the region.
Guests experienced a true celebration of our region’s most outstanding produce, grown, caught or raised by passionate producers and prepared by Celebrity Chef Matt Golinski, alongside some of our best and brightest chefs.
This event was presented as a feast to celebrate the quality and diversity of our region’s produce from our abundant earth and ocean. Throughout the evening, special guests shared stories and insights into how our food had been nurtured from farm to the plate.
A highlight of the night was a live audio-visual link from the kitchen, with Matt Golinski taking us through the background and preparations of each wonderful course as it was about to be served.
This event was made possible by the sponsors of the Mackay Isaac Whitsunday Food and Agritourism Project and the producers of our region.
We were treated to a wonderful array of local produce today during the Regional Produce Master Class and Farm Tour lunch. Local chefs and producers joined Australian Celebrity Chef Matt Golinski to further promote the Farm to Plate movement in the Mackay Isaac Whitsunday Region.
A big thanks to Thirsty Sound Chef Wayne Boyle for presenting our Eungella Beef in such a wonderful way, the carpaccio of eye fillet was utterly inspired, and the rib fillet ‘steak sandwich’ was like no other. Congratulations to Wayne and the team at Thirsty’s.
Thanks CRT Mt Ossa Rural for supplying our temporary home, from Cooinda and Lucinda
A big thanks to Adrian and team at CRT Mt Ossa Rural for providing the cattle yard panels for our display today, for anything farm-related please see ‘The CRT Local Blokes’ at Finch Hatton, Mt Ossa, or Farleigh, and tap into their wealth of knowledge.
We had a wonderful day, thanks to everyone that stopped by to say hello, we hope you had a great day too. See you next year!
Our Eungella Certified Lowline Beef will be part of the wonderful array of local produce offered during the upcoming Regional Produce Master Class and Farm Tour on Wednesday. If you’re in the hospitality industry, you are invited to join Australian Celebrity Chef Matt Golinski and the region’s most innovative producers, click here for details.
On Thursday morning, you are invited to attend the Regional Food Value Chain Partners Forum presented by Rose Wright from the Mackay Isaac Whitsunday Farm to Plate Project with special guest speaker Matt Golinski. Retailers, wholesalers, food processors, manufacturers, distributors and transporters, click here for details.
On Thursday evening, please join us for the inaugural Farm to Plate Dinner at the MECC showcasing the most innovative producers from the region. You will experience a true celebration of our region’s most outstanding produce, prepared by Matt Golinski, alongside some of our best and brightest chefs, click here for details.
John McGill of Kuttabul Abattoir poses with our Eungella Beef steer carcase, our quality grass fed, free range, hormone free, low-stress, tender and juicy pure Certified Lowline Beef, just like it was meant to be, and now ready to be shared with Australian Celebrity Chef Matt Golinski and local chefs.
Our Eungella Certified Lowline Beef will be part of the wonderful array of local produce offered during the upcoming Regional Produce Master Class and Farm Tour, part of a focused effort to develop the Farm to Plate movement in the Mackay Isaac Whitsunday Region, to stimulate the region’s food culture, and develop food tourism.
Restaurateurs, cafe owners, chefs, apprentices, cooks and any hospitality business owners focusing on food service and production, who would like to use and feature more local produce in menu planning, are invited to join Australian Celebrity Chef Matt Golinski and the region’s most innovative producers on the Regional Produce Master Class and Farm Tour.
A foggy morning at Cloudbreak, and a bit chilly too. 10 degrees c on the hill, probably around zero down at the creek flats. Luckily kikuyu is frost tolerant. The fog rolled across the Crediton Plateau, and then lifted to a beautiful, sunny, clear day.
Very exciting news, Our Eungella Certified Lowline Beef will be part of the wonderful array of local produce offered during the upcoming Regional Produce Master Class and Farm Tour, part of a focused effort to develop the Farm to Plate movement in the Mackay Isaac Whitsunday Region, to stimulate the region’s food culture, and develop food tourism.
Restaurateurs, cafe owners, chefs, apprentices, cooks and any hospitality business owners focusing on food service and production, who would like to use and feature more local produce in menu planning, are invited to join Australian Celebrity Chef Matt Golinski and the region’s most innovative producers on the Regional Produce Master Class and Farm Tour.
It's official, you will find Cloudbreak at the end of the Rainbow.
In the right place at the right time last Wednesday, and an afternoon sun shower across the Crediton plateau made a great photo.
Come and visit us on Sunday the 14th of June at the Pioneer Valley Show, Finch Hatton. We will be taking our Australian Lowline cow 'Cooinda' and 4 month old heifer calf 'Lucinda', who gained alot of attention recently at Ag.Trade.Life, and the CRT Rural Supplies Field Day.
We are proud to share our Australian Lowline Cattle, and paddock-to-plate beef, in our local area, and to connect with other like-minded people from near and far. These field days are fantastic for showcasing our local rural strengths, and re-uniting people with the importance of local food provenance. Always remember, Every Family needs a Farmer!.
The Pioneer Valley Show is an iconic event in the community, widely regarded as the best one day show in Queensland. A country-orientated fun, family day, the show consistently attracts crowds of over 16,000 people and transforms the small town of Finch Hatton into a sea of colour and excitement.
On Saturday 16 May we attended another trade show at the Mackay Rural Supplies Field Day, Pleystowe. Again we took our foundation cow Cooinda and 2 month old heifer calf Lucinda with us, and they continued to gain alot of attention. We are proud to share our Australian Lowline Cattle in our local area, and to connect with other like-minded people from near and far. The day was wonderful for anyone interested in furthering their knowledge of animal husbandry and property management, with a wide range of information and great speakers, in a small, friendly, local setting. If you missed it this year, please join us next year for a wonderful experience.
We attended Beef Week 2015, and helped out at the Ausralian Lowline Cattle Association (ALCA) trade stand. It was a wonderful turn-out, with ALCA members from New Zealand, and all accross Australia, attending. There was a great range of Lowlines on display and entered in the show, and lots of ribbons were taken home. Many of the Lowlines also went home with new owners, including three lovely heifers which have joined the Cloudbreak family.
This was a great opportuniity to share ideas and knowledge with other keen Lowline breeders, and to help increase the awareness of, and involvement in, this wonderful breed. We met many interested people, including some international visitors, who were keen to share the benefits of owning Australian Lowlines.
On 1st and 2nd May we attended our first trade show at Ag.Trade.Life. Our foundation cow Cooinda and 2 month old heifer calf Lucinda joined us, and gained alot of attention. We are proud to share our Australian Lowline Cattle in our local area, and to connect with other like-minded people from near and far. The field day was a great success in showcasing our rural strengths, and re-unitng people with the importance of local food provenance. If you missed it this year, please join us next year for a wonderful experience.
We were thrilled to be invited to provide a profile story, photo and recipe for the Mackay Isaac Whitsunday Regional Showcase, held at Parliament House, Canberra, on 16 March 2015, hosted by Mr George Christensen MP and the mayors of the three regional councils to showcase our region to parliamentarians. The guests were treated to canapes and drinks from our region.
Our story was collated into a booklet showcasing the diverse range of produce our region has to offer, and placed into showbags which were given to all guests at the event. The event was co-ordinated by the Department of State Development, who are looking to expand the booklet and it's distribution in the future.
We were lucky enough to be accepted for the Agritourism Business Development Workshop, an amazing opportunity to grow our business to new levels, and share this experience with like-minded people who are equally passionate about growing food and creating a local food culture in the Mackay, Isaac and Whitsunday regions.
On Wednesday 11/03/2015 we attended our first meeting in Mackay, focusing on 'It's all about you and your idea: an internal review'. One highlight of the day was that each participant is required to bring a shared dish of local food and share its story of where it was sourced or how it was made. There were some wonderful local food, recipes and stories shared.
Our foundation Cloudbreak Lowline cow Wydinya Cooinda, (and our personal favourite due to her fantastic nature, she is just a darling), had a heifer calf on 27/02/2015, named Cloudbreak Lucinda. The lowline calf is huge, and strong, and we are hoping for big things from Lucinda. We are very excited as we are planning to take Cooinda and Lucinda to the Community Bank® AG.Trade.Life | Powering the Future, brought to you by CANEGROWERS Mackay field day in Mackay on 1st and 2nd May. Please come and meet the Cloudbreak Lowline girls there!
On 20 February 2015, one of our lowline cows had a lovely, big, healthy, bull calf, and of course we had to name him 'Marcia', in memory of the Cyclone that also arrived on that day, and has damaged so much of our beloved Emu Park and surrounds on the Capricorn Coast. Our thoughts are with all our family and friends across the entire region.
On 18 February 2015 I attended an Agritourism Field Day at Eton, a fabulous opportunity for growing our business and show-casing our wonderful products. We hope to be invited to participate in the Agritourism Business Development Program. For more information, visit Mackay Regional Council.
What is an agritourism field day?
Agritourism provides business opportunities for the agriculture and tourism sectors to work together and develop quality products, services and experiences for visitors and consumers. These activities add value to a farm and the surrounding region and can relate to farm produce, its environment or education about farm life. E.g. on-farm tours, accommodation, dining or entertainment. This information day will help you learn about agritourism, nature-based and food tourism opportunities that may be available and how you can make them work for you.
