Jumbuck Pastoral’s MacLachlan family splits grazing empire

One of Australia’s largest landowners has split its family empire, with millions of hectares of pastoral land divided between fourth-generation siblings.

One of Australia’s largest agricultural landowners has split its family empire in a shake up resulting in the “regrettable” departure of fourth-generation managing directors Jock and Callum MacLachlan.

The brothers have ended their 14-year reign as joint managing directors of the MacLachlan family’s Jumbuck Pastoral operations, and exited the business as part of a succession plan overseen by family patriarch Hugh MacLachlan.

As part of the changes detailed in a newsletter to staff, Jumbuck Pastoral’s 5.2 million hectares of pastoral land across South Australia, Western Australia, NSW and the Northern Territory have been divided between Hugh MacLachlan and his children, with Callum taking control of the Killarney, Wave Hill and Springfield stations, and Jock managing the Meda and McCoy’s Well properties.

Callum MacLachlan will retain control of the Wave Hill cattle station following the family’s acquisition of the property in 2021.

Jumbuck Pastoral is one of Australia's biggest wool growers. Source: Facebook

The family’s remaining seven stations will be retained within the Jumbuck Pastoral business, with Hugh MacLachlan’s daughters Airlie, Islay and Brooke “taking more active roles where they can”.

“Planning for family succession, most regrettably, sees my sons Jock and Callum departing the Jumbuck family in September,” Hugh MacLachlan says in the newsletter.

“As joint managing directors, they have served Jumbuck for a very long period of time with distinction.

“In the meantime, Jumbuck will carry on as before with my daughters Airlie, Islay and Brooke as directors, taking more active roles where they can.”

Jumbuck Pastoral’s roots date back to 1888 when Hugh MacLachlan’s grandfather, also named Hugh, established a wool growing operation near Yunta in South Australia’s Far North.

Wave Hill cattle station, which will be retain by Callum MacLachlan.

It has grown to become Australia’s third-largest landowner by area, behind Crown Point Pastoral Company and ASX-listed Australian Agricultural Company.

Hugh MacLachlan has overseen the succession plan at Jumbuck Pastoral.

In 2009, after close to 50 years at the helm, Hugh MacLachlan handed the reins to Jock and Callum, who have departed the family business after a combined 55 years of service.

“We have spent the past 14 years as joint managing directors and feel this has been a good era at Jumbuck, with some weather events thrown in that were a bit difficult for us all but, of the things that we could manage, we have felt we have given it our best crack,” they said in a message in the company’s newsletter.

“Whilst neither of us have envisaged this as scripted when we commenced working for this business, change is unavoidable and with it, we flex, refocus, and move on. One chapter closes and another one opens.

“We wish owner and chairman Hugh MacLachlan and our sisters, Airlie MacLachlan, Islay McKenzie and Brooke Yates, good seasons, markets, and fortune with the future management of Jumbuck.”

Callum and Jock had overseen an aggressive expansion into the Northern Territory, first with the acquisition of the Killarney station in 2014, and later with the $104m purchase of the 1.25 million hectare Wave Hill cattle station in 2021.

That deal was backed by outside investors, including ex-AFL boss (and second cousin to Jock and Callum) Gillon McLachlan and the billionaire Wilson family behind Reece Plumbing.

Earlier this year, Jumbuck Pastoral sold the country’s largest sheep station – the 10,117sq km Rawlinna Station in Western Australia – to Andrew Forrest’s clean energy venture Fortescue Future Industries.

Hugh and Callum MacLachlan declined to comment. Jock did not return calls.

Originally published as Jumbuck Pastoral’s MacLachlan family splits grazing empire