Renowned Limousin stud Mandayen shaking up the Angus industry

9th Jan | Stock General

For more than 25 years South Australian cattle stud Mandayen have been renowned for their highly sort after Limousin genetics.

However, eight years ago, with demand for Angus beef increasing, they decided to use their experience to diversify their operation.

Today, their thorough breeding program is producing some of the top Angus genetics in the country and clients across the region are clamoring for their top stock.

On February 19, they will offer some of their best bulls and females when they hold their annual on property sale at the “Eight Mile” sale complex in Keith.

The sale will get under way at 1.30pm and see 45 Angus bulls, 35 Limousin bulls and 30 Limousin females go under the hammer.

While he’s the last one to toot his own horn, stud owner Damian Gommers is an expert when it comes to breeding good bulls.

The secret, he says, is proven cow families and being pedantic about your genetics, structure and balancing phenotype with EBVs (Estimated Breeding Values).

His Angus herd is based almost exclusively on genetics from the prestigious Bathurst based stud Millah Murrah, who made history this year when they sold one of their prized bulls for $160,000.

A country boy born and raised, Mr Gommers’ family have always been well known for their cropping and pigs. However when he decided to branch out into beef in 1995, he was determined to do it right.

He did his research and scoured the globe for the best genetics, purchasing from a number of sources.

“When we first started with the Limousins, we slowly built as we went, trying to find the best genetics we could,” he explained.

“We even imported semen from overseas. It took us about seven or eight years to make a name for ourselves and then we grew rapidly from there.”

This attention to detail paid off and they soon became one of the most renowned Limousin studs in Australia. In fact, every year for the last ten years, they’ve played host to one of the largest and most successful on property Limousin sales in the country. So, it was no surprise when they decided to get into Angus that they did so with similar zeal.

“When we started breeding Angus I studied pretty hard to try to find the best genetics that were on the market,” Mr Gommers explained.

“We knew from experience that we needed to build our herd off a strong female foundation of proven blood lines,” he continued.

“I even went to our embryo technician we’ve been working with for 20 years and said: ‘If you were going to build an Angus herd where would you go?’

“He rattled off three or four names and I researched all of them. In the end I chose Millah Murrah. They’d been in the industry for more than 50 years and I was able to purchase embryos from their top matrons.

“We bought approximately 150 over five years. On top of that, we also purchased eight top end females at their last two sales.”

All of Mandayen’s Angus bulls are genomics tested to document parentage and help improve the accuracy of key breeding values.

As a result, they’ve managed to breed a soft fleshy animal with a medium frame, good muscle, structure and temperament.

Mr Gommers runs the family based stud alongside his wife Mandy, father Len and son Brayden. They have 330 stud Limousin cows as well as 200 registered Angus cows.

For more information on the upcoming sale contact Mr Gommers on +61 418 824 799 or email him at: mandayenlimousin@bigpond.com