Speckle Park set to shine at Ekka as fresh science, saleyard results boost commercial appeal

A BEEF cattle breed once dismissed as “too boutique” is walking into this week’s 2025 Royal Queensland Show (Ekka) with wind at its back—buoyed by new research into eating quality, standout sale results and a five-fold surge in stud registrations since 2016.

With 191 head catalogued, Speckle Park will headline the 2025 Ekka as the show’s Feature Breed—almost double its 2024 entry and the largest single-breed representation in this year’s stud-beef program.

Photo kindly supplied by Kent and Libby Wells of Hawthorne Speckle Park and Ash Stud, showcasing premium Speckle Park beef served at the Speckles on the Teviot event—an immersive farm to plate experience held recently as part of Scenic Rim Eat Local Month.

‘More to meat quality than marbling’

In late March, ABC Landline spotlighted University of Newcastle research led by Professor Aduli Malau-Aduli revealing that Speckle Park carcases carry unusually higher concentrations of long-chain Omega-3 fatty acids than most British breeds at similar marbling levels.

“There’s more to eating quality than marbling alone,” Prof Malau-Aduli told Landline. “Omega-3s influence texture, flavour and health benefits.”

That breakthrough was facilitated and funded by Justin and Amy Dickens, JAD Speckle Park, Yeoval, NSW, who had 50 live biopsies collected by a veterinarian to inform the University’s findings. JAD’s consistent collection of performance data across large contemporary groups provided researchers with the real-world validation they needed.

Fine-dining chefs have been quick to capitalise—recognising the eating-quality credentials for themselves.

Te Mooi Speckle Park (Londrigan, Vic) played a key role in introducing the breed to Melbourne steakhouse Cinder, where a 38-day dry-aged Speckle Park tomahawk now commands $360 on the menu.

JAD Speckle Park took their beef to several leading Sydney chefs, including veteran Mark Best, who recently described their beef in Broadsheet magazine “Wagyu mouthfeel with a true beefy flavour”—clear proof that stud-led data and consistency are translating into premiums all the way to the plate.

Importantly, those gains aren’t confined to a single finishing system. Feedlot trials involving F1 Speckle Park × Angus heifers fed under controlled conditions for 90–100 days have consistently shown Speckle-influenced mobs grading into the upper MSA marbling tiers—earning carcase-value premiums of up to $149 per head over straight Angus counterparts.

Just as significantly, those results aren’t limited to grain-fed programs. Processor grid data and carcase competition outcomes confirm that the same genetics can finish off pasture alone and still meet tender-cut thresholds, demonstrating Speckle Park’s ability to deliver premium eating quality across both grain and grass systems. In short, whether they’re on grain, grass or a custom ration, Speckle Park cattle are turning nutritional science into dollars.

Dollars in the ring

Scientific headlines mean little without a commercial signal—and Queensland buyers provided one last month. At the Dalby Prime Market on 16 July, Speckle Park heifers met processors at 340.2 ¢/kg liveweight ($1,990), matching or beating comparable British runs despite a 6,500-head yarding and softer national grid.

Stud demand is holding up, too.

At Yeoval in April, JAD Speckle Park cleared all bulls to five states and topped at $18,000, underlining national reach for carcase-focused genetics.

At the Blueprint Opportunity Speckle Park Sale, held on 9 May 2025 at Pine Lodge in Victoria, Lot 20 (Anden T25 from Anden Speckle Parks, Swan Hill) sold for $24,000 to a Queensland purchaser—making it the top-priced bull at the multi-vendor event and affirming the appetite for Speckle Park beyond traditional strongholds.

Fast-growing membership base

Behind the market activity is a rapidly expanding SPI Herdbook. ARCBA statistics analysed by Beef Central show Speckle Park’s share of national seedstock registrations has climbed from 0.5 pc in 2016 to 2.58 pc in 2023—elevating the breed from 16th to 10th in just seven years.

Speckle Park International (SPI) Chairman Vaughn Johnston says the momentum reflects a decade of strategic, data-driven promotion.

“We’ve seen a J-curve in growth over the past ten years, thanks to passionate and progressive SPI members who’ve backed their cattle and invested in the right tools,” he said.

“Our Herdbook is 100% DNA tested and underpinned by Single-Step Genomic BREEDPLAN analysis. That’s world-class technology, and it proves our breeders are serious about innovation and accountability.”

The result, he says, is rising interest across commercial and seedstock sectors alike—fuelled not just by eating quality, but by reliable carcase performance, docility and breed consistency.

Dairy–beef and northern interest

Part of that growth is coming from outside the traditional beef-breed bubble.

In the dairy sector, Speckle Park × Holstein calves are finishing to 315–330 kg HSCW in under a year, hitting MSA thresholds with minimal fat trim and delivering the kind of consistency that processors and dairy-beef supply chains value. Processors highlighted “consistency and marbling without extended days on feed”.

Meanwhile, northern breeders are testing the breed’s adaptability and eating-quality advantage. Central Queensland producer Robert Connors swapped Charbray terminal sires for Speckle Park this season “to chase higher yield and IMF without losing coat slickness”.

Early-weaned Speckle Park calves are averaging 0.93 kg/day on oats at Emerald—highlighting their efficiency under pasture-based northern production systems.

Centre-ring shopfront at Ekka

As the 2025 Ekka’s Feature Breed, Speckle Park takes the main ring on Friday 8 August, backed by a week-long Feature-Breed Hub running daily member meet-ups.

The schedule also features a Youth Handlers’ Jackpot and “Speckle Steers” Led-Steer Competition—with separate sections for schools/junior exhibitors and three-head open teams—before culminating in the “Ekka After Dark – Speckle Edition” dinner on Saturday night, for members and commercial producers.

RNA stud-beef committee chair Gary Noller says the breed’s growth in entries is unlike anything he’s seen in recent years.

“Jumping from the 70s two years ago to nearly 200 head confirms commercial momentum,” he said.

“Visitors will see the kind of depth and quality that simply wasn’t here five years back.”

The bottom line

Recent Omega-3 research, saleyard parity with mainstream British breeds and record Ekka exposure combine to make 2025 a watershed year for Speckle Park.

For commercial producers wanting to shorten days-on-feed without compromising eating quality—and for new breeders seeking a data-driven, fast-growing breed—Speckle Park will be well worth a closer look in Brisbane during this year’s Ekka.

Speckle Park is delivering in both feedlot and grass-fed systems, offering genuine flexibility for diverse production environments.

The challenge now—for Speckle Park International, processors and breeders alike—is turning that rising interest into a consistent, scalable supply chain.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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