Knowla Kruger T12PV (BLA22T12),
The Laurie Family are no strangers to the Angus Foundation and the opportunities it allows through the Angus Youth program. For many years the family, who hail from Moppy, NSW, have not only been somewhat fixtures in a number of activities as part of the program, but have continued to show up in different ways to support it.
In a continuation to give back to the program that they feel has offered their family and many others in the industry greater opportunities, the Laurie family will be generously auctioning a heifer at sale, with the proceeds going to the Angus Foundation.
The heifer, Knowla Kruger T12PV (BLA22T12), has been selected by the family, who have highlighted the 17-month-old as the full package and a heifer that they believe will make her mark in any herd.
“We thought it was a bit of a no brainer from a family perspective to select this heifer,” said Knowla Livestock Co-Principal Ted Laurie.
“She’s a pretty good heifer, and probably not a heifer that we’d normally give people the opportunity to purchase. We think she’s special, as she is not only very feminine and structurally correct, but also has a pretty unique data set. She’s definitely a heifer that not a lot of people would have the opportunity to purchase every day of the week.”
Offered as Lot 85 during the Knowla Livestock Sale, taking place July 28th and hosted at Kanangara, Gloucester, NSW, the Foundation heifer has a number of qualities that put her in good stead with stud Co-Principal James Laurie.
“We’ve got seven PTIC heifers, of which she’ll be one of them. She was the first one in and I think she’s a pretty outstanding individual.”
“If there are people out there that are trying to establish an Angus stud or grow their genetics within their stud, I think she’s got a fair bit to offer. If she stayed here at home, we’d be looking eagerly awaiting her first calf next year, to see what she’d produce for us.”
The Laurie Family have long been a part of the Angus Youth program and the entities of the Angus Foundation in various ways, with the next generation of the family, being Ted and his wife Alison’s children Jack and Georgia and James and his wife Annie’s children Sandy, Doug and Rob, taking part in the Angus Youth National Roundup over the years.
Furthermore, Jack Laurie has been member of the Angus Youth Consultative and Roundup Organising Committees, a member of the 2022 cohort of the GenAngus Future Leaders Program, recipient of various scholarships made available through the Angus Foundation Scholarships, Awards and Bursaries program and was the 2023 Cornell Shield recipient due to his service to the Roundup event.
Georgia Laurie is a member of the 2024 Roundup Organising Committee and has been recipient of a number of scholarship opportunities through the Scholarships, Awards and Bursaries program, including the Beef Australia 2021 Scholarship and the 2021 SmartBeef Scholarship.
Understanding the opportunity that a scholarship, award or bursary could give a young person, the Laurie’s hope that the foundation heifer will go aways in assisting a young person in the industry to be put on a path that continues their involvement in the beef industry, and wider agriculture, for many years to come.
“I think the Angus Foundation is just a terrific thing to support. If you look at the people that have benefited over the years within the industry, both in the Angus breed and the beef industry overall, a lot of people have got a lot out of it,” said James.
“We’ve got kids in in our family at the moment that are in a position to take advantage of it, so we think it’s just a really good thing from our perspective to support.”
“The Angus Foundation encourages young people to get into programs, whether through bursaries or scholarships, that they can’t otherwise do.” He continued, “Obviously, younger people haven’t got the facilities to cash in on programs, but if we can raise some money and give them that opportunity, I think the best young minds in the beef industry will return in spades if we give them that opportunity to choose their path, whether it be a scholarship or a bursary, to further their knowledge within the industry.”
Ted continued, “I would just like to add to that, I think we as breeders need to be mindful that not everyone’s kids have the privilege of growing up on a farm.”
“We really need to look to the next generation of breeders to come from all parts of society, not just rural backgrounds, but urban backgrounds with different mindsets, different aspirations, different goals, as I think they have a massive role to play within our industry going forward in the next 20 and 30 years.”
-Angus Australia