9 July 2008

Minister for Agriculture, Fisheries and Forestry - Tony Burke
Lamboo Station owner - Dickie Cox

Tony: G’day its Tony. I’m out in the Kimberly today with Dickie Cox here at Lamboo Station and—Dickie, you were saying the different breeds that we’ve got behind us, you’ve been changing them over the last 10 years is it?

Dickie: Yes yeah.

Tony: So how’s it changed from what the cattle would been here 10 years ago?

Dickie: Well it if the cattle was 10 years ago and it [inaudible] shorthorn and that’s all [inaudible].

Tony: All Shorthorns back then?

Dickie: Shorthorns [inaudible] after that we changed from Shorthorn to droughtmaster bulls and [inaudible] shorthorns cows and droughtmaster bulls and we crossed that and that come very good [inaudible] cattle like this one here.

Tony: Yeah.

Dickie: And that one there the black one.

Tony: Yep.

Dickie: And this black one here [inaudible] see.

Tony: Yeah.

Dickie: And every one in Nookambah probably about 300 or 400 head just like that.

Tony: Ok so how many head in that last 10 years, what’s your total [inaudible]?

Dickie: Oh well probably about 10.

Tony: 10 times what it used to be?

Dickie: Yeah, Yeah.

Tony: That’s incredible, how have you done that?

Dickie: Well sometimes we had mustering the horses and things like that, yeah

Tony: Ok and you were saying before that you were also doing training courses for the young people, teaching them about how to help run the [inaudible], run the station.

Dickie: Yeah.

Tony: So what sort of thing, what sort of courses have you been teaching?

Dickie: Well we’ve done about training program, we done for training for young people like an agricultural academy and young people and kids and that’s like that when I start to training my people like I learned from way back from that day and about training my kids and picking up fences and so from the cattle [inaudible] and a bit like taking [inaudible]

Tony: Ok

Dickie: [inaudible]

Tony: And so the training courses and the success of the station… what sort of difference has that made to the community?

Dickie: Well this is a make a lot different anyway like ways before

Tony: Right.

Dickie: Yeah.

Tony: How different?

Dickie: Well I think it’s very make it different like a lot of young people like changed a lot like [inaudible] and [inaudible] the cattle they tell us oh that’s that’s the same they all look same, what’s [inaudible].

Tony: Yeah

Dickie: And that that makes really different for kids [inaudible] ask the questions and they is told well when the cattle buyer come along and they saying alright I will take good cattle [inaudible] about $1.60.

Tony: Right.

Dickie: And or $1.40 for 6 [inaudible].

Tony: Yeah, ok, terrific well thanks for having me out at the station it’s good to be here in the Kimberlies.