IT was a stellar 2020 season for third-generation farmer Jim Fox and his cattle enterprise at Pemberton.
The farm has been in the family since 1920 when Jim's grandfather purchased the farm, which was a group settlement consisting of 49 hectares.
Over the years Jim has continued to acquire more land and now works the 286-hectare property alongside his wife Marylou with the help of his son James.
Jim's brother Peter works in the Northern Territory but helps out on the farm over the Christmas holiday break.
In the early years, the family ran Herefords and dairy cattle before switching to Angus in 1976.
To develop their Angus herd the family bought some cows with calves at foot from American-owned farms at Esperance.
Jim said they were very well-bred cattle and it was good to start their Angus herd from such a good base.
The family now run 200 Angus breeders and is looking to increase to 400 breeders in the coming years.
He likes the Angus breed because they are good-natured cattle and he can run them a higher number per hectare.
"They have a very good temperament and are easy to handle," Jim said.
When it comes to sourcing their bulls, the Fox family has purchased from various studs over the years including Gandy, Diamond Tree and Mordallup.
"Gandy has some of the best bulls in the State," Peter Fox said.
When breeding their cattle the Fox family looks for good conformation, feet, frame and temperament.
"Our cattle are very quiet natured and have a good temperament," he said.
In terms of female replacements, Jim usually keeps 40 heifers each year to replace older cows that are culled from the herd.
"The system works well because the new ones come in and the old ones go out," Jim said.
The Foxes aim to put their bulls out on Anzac Day (April 25) which results in calving starting at the beginning of February and running through to April.
When it comes to marketing their calves, they are sold in one of the main Elders sales in mid-December and are generally purchased by lotfeeders or producers looking to grow out cattle for export.
Jim said they have sold their cattle through Elders ever since they first started running cattle.
"They are a very good organisation to deal with," he said.
This season the family sold 70 steer calves in the Elders Boyanup steer sale in December and they topped at $1695 for a pen of 12 which weighed 418kg.
When it comes to the operation's surplus heifer weaners, they are offered in the Elders Boyanup Beef Female Sale in January and are always highly sought after.
In this year's sale, which happened last week, their offering sold to a $1550 top.
As for prices, Jim said that the market had been strong over the past four to five years and had progressively improved.
"The Eastern States has pushed it up a lot, they have had a very good season over there and are receiving a lot of rainfall at the moment," Jim said.
"They lost a lot of cattle with the drought and fires, so they are looking to rebuild," he said.
In addition to the cattle, Jim grows potatoes for the export market which he has been doing for four to five years, but said potatoes have been grown on the property since the 1940s.
As for feed, he grows a mix of pasture including three different varieties of clover and various ryegrasses.
Of the land, 18-20 hectares is dedicated to hay, with the Fox family cutting about 160 square bales annually.
The 2019 season was another reasonable one for the family, with no complaints in what Jim said was a very reliable area.
"We don't have too many bad seasons here, were are very lucky to be in this area," he said.
"We wouldn't know what drought is like."
With an average annual rainfall of 1000mm its no wonder there is plenty of green feed available for the cattle.
"Last year was probably one of the best years we have had for 15-20 years," Jim said.
"The rain just kept coming, to a point where it was unpredictable."
The only downside to the amount of rain they received later in the season was that it was difficult for the Foxes to cut and bale the hay due to the moisture.
