The brothers Staal grew up on a farm in the district of Kroonstad. They are the third generation farming on the family farm, which originally belonged to their grandfather, Van Lingen.
They joined their farther, Burnett Staal on the farm in 1987 and the Bos Blanco herd was founded in 1991 when they bought the complete white Brahman herd of Peter McEwan, which in turn was part of Wayne Porter’s herd. At that time the McEwan herd had been a closed herd for 11 years. It was a pure Bilse herd, which, with much knowledge and expertise, Eric Bilse had put together from the best genetics, which he had imported from America.
The Bos Blanco herd was extended by purchases from Louis Bosman. The brothers Staal also bought the herd of Nick van Rensburg.
They started an AI breeding programme in 1995. That was when red Brahmans were very popular and there was no demand for white Brahmans.
The Brahman:
The brothers Staal are very serious about their red Brahman herd because they believe that the interest in red Brahmans will again take a turn. “There are important differences between white and red Brahmans which breeders should consider. For instance the white Brahman is earlier maturing than the red. That means that if I want to cross with a Simmentaler type animal, I will rather use white Brahmans but if I go to Angus, I will rather use red Brahmans, because the Angus is an early maturing breed.”
“I am only too aware of the different traits of the red and white Brahmans and from experience I know that the desired results will be obtained if it is applied correctly. It is not a case of the one being better than the other.”
Australian involvement:
Some time ago the brothers Staal had the opportunity to establish a herd of approximately 200 – 300 stud Brahmans in partnership with Australian breeders in Australia. The first embryo bull of the partners surpassed the Australian all breed record when the bull was sold at Aus $145 000 (approximately R750 000,00). This embryo was exported from South Africa to Australia. They had 11 bulls at the sale that were each sold at an average price of Aus $48 000 (approximately R250 000). “There are approximately 1 500 registered breeders in Australia. That means that there is a vast market for sound genetics. If the truth be known, given the fact that the market is so vast and the Brahman being the biggest breed in Australia, these few bulls are but a drop in the ocean.” “If South African breeders can provide the correct composition and supply in the Australian demand this market will never become saturated.” “The Australians require a different kind of bovine from the one that is normally bred in South Africa. They have a different market and require, amongst others, large frame cattle. It is clear that we do have the genetic material that the Australians demand.