Australian charity to send Northern Territory cattle to Cambodian families
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An Australian charity has bought 150 Brahman breeders from a Northern Territory Government research farm to send to Cambodia.
Cows for Cambodia loans Cambodian families pregnant cows to look after until they have a calf, which the family keeps as payment.
The Northern Territory cattle, bought from the Kidman Springs Research Station south-west of Katherine, will be a significant boost to the charity's herd, bringing it to about 400 head.
Charity founder Andrew Costello said cattle in Cambodia were "inferior" to the bos indicus cattle in the NT.
He said he bought the select Brahman cows bred at Kidman Springs because of their high fertility rates.
"That is of high interest to us in Cambodia because we really want our cows to conceive as quick as they can," Mr Costello said.
"Because as soon as the family gets a calf, the sooner they can break the poverty cycle."
Quiet cattle perfect for program
Mr Costello said he was very impressed with the quiet temperament of the Kidman Springs cattle.
"In Cambodia the cows live with the families inside their house at night, so the temperament is really, really important," he said.
"So these cows are absolutely perfect for our program."
The charity also purchased five bulls from the Department of Primary Industry's select bull herd.
Mr Costello said the bulls would be passed around Cambodian villages to improve the genetics in the country's herd.
"We are going to try and combat the in-breeding that has been happening in Cambodia for decades," he said.
"So those five Northern Territory bulls are going to be solid gold.
"I believe over time, in the next 10 years, the introduction of Australian genetics in Cambodian cattle will spread far and wide."
Live export market means cattle can be shipped directly
Mr Costello said he initially had planned to ship the cattle to Vietnam, then transport them by road to Cambodia.
However, the opening of live export to Cambodia last year has allowed the opportunity to ship the cattle direct.
The cattle are currently at Phoenix Park near Katherine, waiting until space can be found on a live export vessel.
"Right now the process for us is to get a breeder protocol established between Cambodia and Australia, which is 90 per cent done," Mr Costello said.
"So I have been working with the Australian Government and the Cambodian Minister for Agriculture and his team to get that signed off and done."
After passing his goal of 100 head of cattle, Mr Costello hopes to raise the charity's herd to 1,000 head.
Topics: beef-cattle, charities, katherine-0850
