All About Fernvale Genetics

The Fernvale stud was founded by John Nelson Brenssell in 1946 with a clear vision for Romneys to become productive in (at that time) the very under developed Moa Flat Country. After two decades of growing the registered stud to a ewe base of near on 750 head, John's third son Harry went on to manage the stud.

Harry was a born Stud Master while at the same time very mindful of what was required to form a commercial operation that was financially viable. Throughout those years the stud achieved some rather remarkable feats - whether it was in the show ring or the sale yard.

If the stud’s success was to be measured by the stock judges in show rings, then walls full of supreme champions ribbons would indicate the technical soundness of the sheep being presented. The real stamp Fernvale sires made on the industry was in the sale ring. Some good examples of this would be at the Stud fairs in Gore where, in 1988, seven rams averaged $18,714 and topped the sale with a price of $35,000 and in 1999 nine rams averaged $13,500 and also topped the sale with $27,000. At one stage, Harry even took rams to the World Sheep and Wool Congress in Edmonton, Canada. There he topped the sale and achieved the Supreme Champion award.

Now in 2016, Fernvale has a base breeding flock 1750 Romney and 650 Suffolk ewes run in conjunction with a commercial operation of 32,000 stock units. The type of sheep being breed would be best descried as a medium, heavy-boned, open faced, commercial type Romney - well suited to either hill country or intensive pastoral operations.

Stud breeding in the 21st century now requires a very large tool box and we employ every type of technology and know-how available. Computers integrated with advanced software for data collection, SIL for trait analysis and sire referencing, eye muscle and CT scanning to trace meat yields are a few of the tools used in conjunction with a number of key stud policies, to produce productive commercial sires that have the ability to enhance genetic gains within commercial flocks.