An Aboriginal corporation is establishing its own beef brand and supply chain to directly benefit indigenous communities in WA.
The Buurabalayji Thalanyji Aboriginal Corporation is the governing body for Native Title on the land around the coastal town of Onslow, about 500 kilometres south-east of Port Hedland.
But the group did not stop at mining royalties.
Its subsidiary, Thalanyji Pastoral Company, owns Maroonah Station and Mangaroon Station along with more than 7,000 head of cattle in the North West.
Thalanyji's connections to pastoral businesses date back to the 19th century when the Ashburton region was settled by Europeans.
The corporation prides itself on its commitment to Aboriginal employment, whether it be contractors or trainees, and funding initiatives to benefit communities.
Moving off country
The pastoral business is now expanding outside the North West.
It recently purchased Diamond Downs farm in Dandaragan, about 200 kilometres north of Perth.
Thalanyji Corporation CEO Matthew Slack, who is of Noongah heritage, said they would apply for a 3,000–5,000-head feedlot to be built on the property.
"Generally speaking, if we can get the Environmental Protection Authority approvals within 12–18 weeks, we should be able to have the feedlot operational by year's end," Mr Slack said.
The feedlot will be the last link in a supply chain beginning with Aboriginal-run stations and finishing with a feedlot on Yued Noongar country in Dandaragan.
The company's unique beef brand will be processed through the Borrello Beef abattoir, which is about a 30-minute drive south from the proposed feedlot.
Mr Slack said the initial construction would cost about $350,000 and would deliver 2,000–2,500 head of cattle to the domestic market each year.
"If we have a genuine paddock to plate program, which is our strategy here, and we look to peel off somewhere between 3,000–5,000 animals a year through the Droughtmaster line, and we introduce our Angus line as well, the sky is the limit," Mr Slack said.
Mr Slack said he would look to install two centre pivot irrigation areas on the property to supply in Thalanyji's grass-fed beef product line.
"We'll feed our Angus off that pivot produce and house them here for 90–100 days," he said.
Queensland project underway
While it is still in its infancy, a similar project producing the Blackfella Beef brand in Queensland is looking at the viability of an Indigenous branded product.
It is a collaboration between the Western Kangoulu Indigenous Group, University of Southern Queensland and Meat & Livestock Australia.
It will examine the desirability, feasibility and commercial viability of Indigenous branded beef products and services.
Under the concept, Indigenous groups will seek to leverage agricultural opportunities attached to native title negotiations to build a businesses that support the local community.
MLA chief marketing officer Lisa Sharp said the project was about identifying and working with innovative producers to increase the value of the red meat industry.
“The focus on beef production systems, specifically with a branded product, clearly identifies the desire to reinvest in community development and provide capability building for the wider red meat industry in regional areas," she said.
Bridging the gap with business
The Thalanyji Corporation is already using their business to positively influence community development.
Mr Slack said one of his biggest motivations was improving health outcomes for Aboriginal children.
"It's a tragic figure that you're eight times more likely, if you are an Indigenous child living in Onslow, to have type-two diabetes than if you're a white child in Perth, and that needs to change," Mr Slack said.
The corporation has also used its business acumen to develop other enterprises, such as a fuel distribution and civil works business.
"The money our corporation has earnt from its enterprises over the last two [years] has gone to build a medical clinic in Onslow for the entire community," Mr Slack said.
"We have the commercial nous and enterprise to make money from business and channel that money into better outcomes."
The pastoral properties also provide employment and run skill development camps for at-risk youth.
Leonard Ashburton, a Thalanyji man and deputy chairperson of the Thalanyji Corporation, said he got out of bed each morning to help create a better future for his people.
"For me, it's about making sure that everybody who's Thalanyji can have a future, and can have a life that's comfortable, and a life that we all want to live," he said.
"I want to be able to give them something they can be proud of, and not just the Thalanyji people but also people across Onslow in general, and all Indigenous people."
Mr Ashburton said it was not just about the "bottom line".
"We're not going to enter into any business that's not going to bring a direct benefit back to our community," he said.
A model for others
Mr Ashburton said he hoped the corporation's model was adopted by other Indigenous groups.
"It's new and it will allow us to be a leader in this area," he said.
"It gives us some financial stability going forward, without relying on mining royalties.
"People are always going to need cattle and beef, people are always going to need food."
A role in decolonisation
Carol Dowling, a Badimia/Yamatji woman and an anthropologist at Curtin University's Centre of Aboriginal Studies, said the project could bring about widespread economic development, as well as develop social capital.
She said the project also played a role in a broader decolonisation process.
"That's what decolonisation is about; healing and empowering and moving forward," she said.
"We're talking about people that were previously employed in the pastoral industry, have an intimate relationship with that industry, and are now starting to take control of it."