Tassie beef family to sell premier farm

A tightly held 1236ha holding near Launceston has hit the market after 90 years in the hand renowned beef barons.

The 1236ha Mineral Banks property has been held by the Foster family for 90 years,

A prominent Tasmanian farming family is preparing to sell a tightly held farm in the state’s northeast, listed for sale for the first time in 90 years.

The Foster family, well known as part-owner of one of Australia’s largest cattle enterprises, the North Australian Pastoral Company, is selling the 1236ha Mineral Banks property, located 58km from Launceston.

Predominantly a grazing property across 781ha, there is also 55ha used for intensive cropping with the balance of 400ha used for native forestry producing significant volumes of hardwood timber, also suited to biodiversity stewardship and carbon farming pursuits.

No price guide has been offered for the property, but industry sources have suggested the property could be worth more than $30m.

Mineral Banks, located 58km from Launceston, has been listed for sale by the Foster family.

Colliers Agribusiness agents Duncan McCulloch, Connor Dixon and Rawdon Briggs are handling the sale via expressions of interest closing March 20.

“Mineral Banks is a truly unique offering in the Tasmanian market,” Mr McCulloch said.

“The combination of rich red loam and alluvial soils, improved pastures, and reliable water supply from the Upper Ringarooma scheme make it an exceptional investment opportunity.”

“The property’s extensive infrastructure, including multiple residential dwellings, machinery sheds, and upgraded fencing, supports both beef cattle and fat lamb production,” Mr Dixon said.

Mineral Banks boasts extensive river frontage with the Dorset River and New River traversing the property, ensuring a highly reliable and secure water supply.

The property benefits from 420ML of Tasmanian irrigation water from the Upper Ringarooma scheme, irrigating Mineral Banks’ rich red loam and alluvial soil types

The property’s structural improvements include multiple residential dwellings, machinery sheds, hay sheds, three sets of cattle yards, and a three-stand shearing shed.

Alongside Mineral Banks the Foster family’s agricultural pursuits include significant investment in NAPCo, dating back to the 1930s.

Previously they owned 43 per cent of the company, but when the Queensland Investment Corporation acquired an 80 per cent interest in 2016, the Fosters retained the remaining 20 per cent stake.

NAPCo currently runs about 200,000 cattle on six million hectares of land across Queensland and the Northern Territory.