CQ beef producer given opportunity of a lifetime

The fifth-generation grazier is the recipient of a 2020 Nuffield Scholarship

Alexandra (Tess) Camm from St Lawrence is the recipient of a 2020 Nuffield Scholarship.

A RARE opportunity has been granted to a fifth-generation grazier and beef producer, who will travel across the globe to share her research and learn more about her craft.

Alexandra (Tess) Camm from ‘Mystery Park’, St Lawrence, was the recipient of a 2020 Nuffield Scholarship, supported by The Yulgilbar Foundation.

Ms Camm holds a Bachelor of Business Management, and previously worked on her family’s grazing properties in Central Queensland.

“At St Lawrence, my family runs a regenerative beef cattle aggregation,” she said.

“As a child, like most bush families, we grew up riding horses, learning to work with cattle, and how to care for our land. This background has given me a unique perspective to working in the processing sector.

“When I speak with our beef customers around the world, it allows me to speak from personal experience on how cattle are raised and produced on a Central Queensland grazing property.”

Tess Camm runs the successful branded beef company 'Signature Beef'. Tess photographed at 'Sondella ', Clermont.

The 28-year-old runs the successful branded beef company ‘Signature Beef’, a role that oversees the coordination and production of livestock to ensure carcasses meet market requirements and customer expectations, as well as new product development and sales.

“Growing up on a breeding and backgrounding property, I was always intrigued by how the producer was a price taker,” she said.

“When the opportunity arose to join the Signature Beef team, I saw a chance to explore how to maximise farm-gate returns for producers, by increasing the value delivered to customers. This has driven my development with Signature Beef.”

Ms Camm said she was over the moon when she found out she was one of this year’s Nuffield Scholarship recipients.

“I am incredibly excited by this opportunity, Nuffield Australia is one of the most prestigious and valuable Agricultural networks,” she said.

“The program involves a dynamic mix of personal and leadership development, insights to agricultural operations from a range of geographic and socio-economic scales, then finally the opportunity to explore and report on our topic of research.”

Ms Camm said she would be investigating ways to increase the value of beef co-products, particularly their potential use in biodegradable packaging, opportunities in emerging markets for nutritional and pharmaceutical products, and alternatives to the rendering process.

“Currently, co-products account for more than 60 per cent of the liveweight of cattle, yet on average attract only 11 per cent of total value,” she said.

“By developing resilient markets for beef co-products, we can improve the stability of grid prices for producers and retail beef prices for consumers, which creates sustainable value growth across the entire supply chain.

“My Nuffield Scholarship will explore alternative markets and opportunities for beef co-products, such as hides, bones, blood products and other rendered items, and look at how these products can transition from commodities, to bespoke high-value products that increase industry viability.

“With emerging markets for beef co-products like pharmaceuticals, nutritional supplements, food and beverages, and collagen-based edible food packaging, there is potential for beef to be more than just a ‘centre of plate’ item. By exploring new harvesting, processing and value-adding mechanisms, we can enable new and innovative product development, as well as enhance sustainability and maximise value of production.”

Ms Camm said the scholarship provided her with the resources and network to gain an all-access pass to see how the world-class abattoirs across a multitude of species are working with their co-products.

Her main areas of focus will be exploring alternative uses for hides including collagen harvesting, harvesting products for pharmaceutical use, biodegradable packaging for beef, and alternative processes to rendering.

“I am inspired seeing the personal growth past scholars have undergone on their Nuffield journey, and the experience and learnings they have brought home into their businesses and lives upon their return,” she said.

Ms Camm will share her findings with stakeholders across the supply chain to explore where the costs of processing these products was viable for their respective markets.

She will visit leading enterprises across Europe, USA, South America, China and South East Asia to inform her research.