AGCAL Feeding the Future
Australian Sustainable Agriculture
AGCAL Hay & Livestock – incorporated in January 2017 as a Private company has over 150 years of continual growth as a family farming practice and evolved from the family partnerships and trusts of past generations.
The property is situated on the Mossiface flats on the Tambo river overlooked by the township of Bruthen, gateway to the Gippsland High Country. The province of Gippsland has been well known as the food bowl for Melbourne but with transport infrastructure so advanced we have access to world markets like never before. The Clean Green, Fresh is Best, produced and packed in Australia logos are never so true for this regions production and ability to deliver world class export quality produce to tables across the globe.
As Agriculturalists, the Calvert family has continuously farmed the same land with the 7th generation on the ground now. We believe that a company structure lends to the overall importance of best practice needed to deliver quality produce. Hence AGCAL was formed to provide the generations to come an ongoing platform for primary production into the future. Our farming practices have evolved to be compliant on the world stage striving to keep ahead of government regulation requirements and market demands. AGCAL policy of sustainable agriculture is based on employing ethical work practices, environmentally sound production methods and a passion for the land that has supported us so well in the past.
Currently our business is based on tried and true income streams from Hay and Fodder, Fattening Cattle and Sheep, and the Dairy running around 300 head on average.
Hay production is seasonal in our southern climate and more weather related than other areas so fodder grows in fast succulent spurts from November to May. Curing hay quickly is the key that holds all the goodness and protein’s synonymous with top quality fodder production, our feed testing figures attest to this.
Lucerne being the most popular product we market. Rye and clover grass hay being the most prevalent acreage provides excellent value for money as the high nutrient factors of any fodder grown on the Mossi flats is well proven by the numbers. Pre-season orders and all inquires welcome.
AGCAL is ready to take your orders via the phone numbers below or email us direct from this site.
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The AGCAL Timeline
1852
The Very Beginning
Our forebears, Brothers John and William Calvert emigrated from the coal mines of Northern England to Australia, joined the Gold rush to Ballarat and successfully mined gold for 4 years, making enough to purchase land selected by government ballot near Bruthen on the Tambo river. Mossiface is where they settled, this then became the inland river port for Omeo, thus giving the property access to the sea and the markets of Melbourne to London. A consistent and reliable water supply in a mild climate was a good basis to work on for a farming operation and it prospered well.
1900
Getting Started
The property now well established, having cleared the land of massive river red gums and drained the swampy, flood prone lower end of the property, allowing fabulous pastures to establish in the rich fertile soils, the 2nd and 3rd generation prospered with crops of Maize, Hops, market gardens of pumpkins, peas, beans, potatoes and carrots along with fat cattle to feed the surrounding gold mining communities of Deptford, Sterling, Cassaliss and Omeo. The inland waterways of the Gippsland lakes has by now a well-established boat trade, moving produce along the Latrobe, Tambo, Nicholson and Mitchell rivers, all exiting at Lakes Entrance to Bass Strait ocean, it took 4 days to get to Melbourne, 6 months to London by sailing vessels.
1928
Transport Links
In 1928 the railroad came thru to Bairnsdale and it cut travel time to Victoria’s Capital, Melbourne to 4 hours. Perishable goods to market expanded out from the range of a local days trip by a fast bullock team to the ever growing city of hungry hoards that demanded more and prepared to pay much better prices.
1948
Bring The Pigs
3rd and 4th generation farming and a Dairy is established with a side line in Pigs, Maize is still the predominating crop and fat bullocks with hay production as mechanization takes hold is now a market to be exploited.
1968
Come On The Cows
4th Generation and fattening store cattle is booming, Maize still the predominant crop with pea and bean growing contracts secured for the frozen food markets.
1974
Mixing It Up
5th Generation starts working the property, mixed farming is till the order of march, sales of Milk, Meat and Grain are in high demand and Lucerne Hay production kicking off as interstate markets opened up.
2015
Time For Sheep
6th Generation commenced managing the property, introducing Sheep for the first time in lieu of maize cropping. Lucerne and ryegrass fodder crops have produced a more consistent cash flow, Dairying has been an overall winner and still in full and continuous production since 1948.
2017
The Present
2017 –AGCAL Pty Ltd is officially incorporated as a company on 9th January 2017. Its associated Import Export company of AGCAL Thailand, with trading arms of Tambo fodder and Calvert Rural Contracting are successfully moving ahead. Now the 7th Generation is helping their Dad with mustering, yarding and shearing.