Provenance · Arrawatta Station
The character
of our beef begins
with the land.
At Arrawatta Station, cattle, forage and country belong to the same story. We believe that the character of our beef reflects where our Native Angus cattle are raised, what they eat and the care taken with them through every season.
Every animal supplying Native Angus Beef is bred, born, raised and finished at Arrawatta. From there, a small and closely managed supply chain takes the beef through slaughter, hanging, butchery and chilled delivery.
01 / The Arrawatta herd
A herd with
a known home
Our Native Angus herd is closed. We breed our cattle at Arrawatta, keep individual records and remain responsible for their management throughout their lives. We do not buy cattle from other farms to supply Native Angus Beef.
Every animal carries an electronic NLIS tag and a visual identification tag. Its records are kept in our livestock-management systems. Our Native Angus seedstock calves are recorded at birth, including their dam and likely sire, with parentage confirmed by DNA testing.
02 / Forage & seasons
Raised and finished
on forage
Our cattle are never fed grain or grain-based supplements. Pasture is the foundation of their diet, supported when necessary by high-quality pasture hay and non-grain supplements such as copra. We do not use urea or artificial nitrogen sources in their feed.
Seasonal conditions shape our decisions. In dry times we reduce stock numbers, protect the breeding herd and use available irrigation and supplementary forage to maintain the cattle being prepared for beef. We cannot simply buy replacement cattle to make up a shortfall: the beef comes from our own herd.
We never use hormonal growth promotants. Animal welfare comes first when veterinary treatment is needed; cattle with a history of antibiotic treatment do not enter the Native Angus Beef supply chain.
03 / A closely managed journey
From Arrawatta
to the butchery
Arrawatta herd
Bred, born, raised and finished at the station.
Regional slaughter
Small groups, generally four to six animals.
Carcass hanging
Under refrigeration before cutting.
Butchery & packing
Native Angus Beef, Coffs Harbour.
Refrigerated delivery
To the customer’s door.
Cattle travel from Arrawatta to a regional abattoir in small groups, generally four to six animals at a time. The abattoir records the processing lot, carcass body number and hot carcass weight.
The carcasses then pass to Native Angus Beef, which undertakes hanging, cutting, preparation and packing in its own Coffs Harbour facility. Arrawatta raises the cattle; Native Angus Beef looks after the beef after slaughter and supplies the customer.
Our preferred practice is to hang carcasses under refrigeration for seven to ten days before cutting. This allows time for the beef to mature on the carcass. This is traditional refrigerated carcass hanging.
04 / The pack and its records
Records behind
every pack
The records continue through our butchery. Each carcass is allocated a processing batch number and a packing date. The date appears on the package label and is linked through our internal records to the processing batch and the abattoir lot and body information.
When mince or sausages are made from beef from two carcasses, we record both source batch numbers and the amount of trim contributed by each. Our dispatch records let us identify where a batch of beef has been sent if it ever needs to be traced or recalled.
05 / The final journey
Fresh and chilled
to your door
We normally supply our beef fresh and chilled. Once packed, it moves through refrigerated transport and delivery to the customer’s door. Frozen beef is supplied when requested or offered separately as an identified frozen special.
The farm behind the beef
One station.
A direct connection.
Arrawatta Station is the source of the cattle. Native Angus Beef is the butchery and customer-facing business. Together, they make it possible to know the farm behind the beef and the people responsible for bringing it to the table.