The rise of Australian breed societies over 100 years

The breed society, however, doesn't date back far at all by comparison.

Established to provide support to cattle producers linked to one particular breed, national breed societies or cattle clubs were born in Australia in the early 1900s.

Today breed societies are involved in everything from herd book recording to cooking their particular steaks at field days and shows. It's all part of the job promoting their brand.

There are more than 50 beef cattle breeds in Australia today, with an overarching authority in the Australian Registered Cattle Breeders Association (ARCBA) which is the leading peak body for the beef cattle seedstock industry in Australia.

With a focus on promoting and supporting the breeding and registration of purebred beef cattle, ARCBA works to improve the genetics and overall quality of Australian beef cattle.

It has 38 breed societies as members and all are passionate about the industry and strive to produce the best quality beef cattle in the world. Its membership includes 12 British Breed societies, eight Tropical breed societies, and 13 European breed societies, as well as several other modern breed societies including Waygu, Tuli, and Speckle Park.

ARCBA executive officer Chris Todd said the most important role of the modern breed society was maintaining the genetic pool, as well as keeping registrations updated, and being proactive in promoting their breed.

"We are the spokesperson for our member breed societies, and advocate for the beef seedstock industry on relevant issues," Mr Todd said.

"Going forward, our gene pool has to be maintained for each breed, therefore continually progressing beef quality in Australia."

The Shorthorn breed keeps the oldest breed registry in the world and Shorthorn cattle first arrived in Australia in 1800. In 1825 the first registered Shorthorn cattle arrived in Australia, however by 1890 they accounted for 50 per cent of all temperate cattle and 100pc of all cattle in the difficult northern climate.

Now known as Shorthorn Beef, the national breed society was formed in 1920, however the Victorian branch was established as early as 1848. In 1999, the then Shorthorn Society of Australia established a research and development facility, Durham Research and Development Pty Ltd, near Orange to enhance the advancement of the beef industry using principally Shorthorn genetics.

In 1919, the Angus Society of Australia (Angus Australia) was created. This event was followed by the publication of the first herd book, in 1922. This book listed 14 members, and the only state not represented was South Australia. By 2016, the list of Angus breeders in the country had grown to 3756. In the same year, a record 8405 Angus bulls were sold at auction and the breed continues to sell impressively at cattle markets and auctions today.

Introduced to Australia in 1920, the first Hereford breed association was formed in 1922, and the Australian Poll Hereford Society was established in 1933.

In 1946, the Australian Zebu Breeders' Association was formed at Mareeba in north Queensland, with Ken Atkinson as president, and Maurice de Tournouer as secretary. The first 10 registered studs were Wairuna, Wetherby, Cherokee, Walla, Dundee, CW Wright, Tropical Cattle, Allensleigh, Avondale and Burnside.

From humble beginnings the association, which changed its name to the Australian Brahman Breeders' Association (ABBA) in 1954, has today a membership of 1300, and was the first beef breed society to own its own premises, Brahman House, purchased in 1971.

More recent formations include that of the British White Cattle Society of Australia which was formed following an inaugural meeting at the Royal Agricultural Society showgrounds in Randwick, Sydney, in 1982, chaired by Anthony Hordern.

The Australian Wagyu Association (AWA) was formed in 1989, and was the first Wagyu Registry Association formed outside Japan, maintaining the largest registry of Wagyu cattle.

Highland cattle have a vast history, dating back to 1829 when the first Highland cattle were imported into Australia by various Scottish migrants. However, it wasn't until some 160 years later that they formed the Highland Cattle Breed Society, on May 7, 1988.