Wagyu nutrition has a profound effect on the final product. It significantly impacts marbling, the size of cuts, and animal health, which results in lower stress, better flavour, and more vibrant meat colour. Working with the highly experienced Nutritionist Dr Robert Lawrence, King River specialises in simple, high-quality ingredients.
Operating at the Lotus Park feedlot, Rob works with the King River team to provide intuitive diets that sustain optimal health and growth alongside intentional animal welfare for reduced stress and increased quality of life.
King River Diets
King River Wagyu follow a four-step diet plan (W1-4), which caters to their needs throughout their lifecycle, from growth to full maturity.
The starter diet (W1) is for new cattle that have arrived at the Lotus Park feedlot. When they arrive, the young cattle are often tired, taking in their new surroundings and have come from a diet exclusively of grass. The starter diet mimics grass but is boosted with high amounts of fibre to gently prepare their digestive system for their new lifestyle in the feedlot. King River also uses molasses and steam-flaked grain to replenish the cattle’s energy and to entice them to practice eating from a bunk. Once they have adapted, the cattle move onto W2, the growing diet. This diet prioritises nutrition to help the cattle maximise their skeletal size before reaching maturity.
The W3 diet is most famously known as ‘finishing’. The finishing diet is critical to the development of marbling. Once the Wagyu are no longer growing their frame, their body prioritises storing fat.
Through an energy-dense diet supported by key nutrients, marbling will form in the muscles of the Wagyu until it has reached its full live weight.
At this stage, the cattle are mature, and the priority is shifted to preparing for transport, the W4 diet. These last 50 days are critical to ensuring our Wagyu are well-fed and hydrated, with enough energy to ensure they arrive at the abattoir in optimal condition.
King River Ingredients
Every feedlot approaches nutrition differently based on values and ingredient availability. As part of our commitment to health and sustainability, King River grows much of our own feed. This gives much greater oversight on how the feed is grown and processed. It also means fewer chemicals on the feed, significantly reduced diesel used to transport the material, and recycling opportunities such as cattle manure used to grow the crops. It aids in the ready availability of feed and reduces costs across the operation.
At King River, we keep the diet simple to ensure product and diet consistency, management and storage efficiency, and minimal disruption to our cattle’s well-being. As creatures of habit, we know that every change and transition can cause stress for Wagyu and depress food intake. Therefore, in all our four diets (W1-4) we use varied combinations of eight simple high-quality ingredients:
- Steamflaked grain: The steamflaking process not only makes the grain aromatic and highly appealing to the cattle, but it also helps break down the grain to increase starch availability and aid digestion.
- Wheat: Wheat is included in Wagyu diets primarily for energy.
- Forage sorghum: A fantastic source of digestible fibre. King River harvests right before the grain gets hard and then ferments it without oxygen for preservation. Easy on the stomach, this fibre is a core part of healthy digestion for cattle.
- Cotton seed: Another powerhouse ingredient, cotton seed provides protein, fibre, and cotton seed oil for energy.
- Liquid minerals: This is technically far more than one ingredient. King River prioritises the health of the cattle through a variety of macro minerals, trace minerals and vitamins.
- Molasses: Energy and potassium are the first things lost in the cattle’s body when they encounter stress. Using molasses, King River supports the cattle’s health and energy throughout their life, particularly in times of transition.
- Vegatable oil: Another energy supplement, vegatable oil pairs perfectly with grain to boost our Wagyu during the finishing diet.
- Straw: If there isn’t enough fibre already, King River also supplements the cattle with straw to ensure healthy digestion.
Animal welfare
When it comes to overall health, animal welfare in the feedlot is just as important as the ingredients in the bunk. Lotus Park is designed to keep cattle happy, healthy and calm, emphasising smooth inductions, quality water, feeding methods, and shade. Cattle are creatures of habit and become very distressed when their routine or surroundings change. Once in their home pen, King River ensures the cattle aren’t moved again until it’s time for processing. This is why proper induction is critical. During induction, our team does a thorough health intake and separates the cattle into groups by gender and size. This separation method ensures the cattle mature at the same rate as their new herd, allowing appropriate feeding throughout their life. It also helps to ensure the herds are ready for processing at the same time. We prioritise transporting cattle within their established herd to minimise stress.
Water is another core part of the Lotus Park feedlot. As Rob says, water is sometimes called ‘the forgotten nutrient’.
Did you know that Wagyu consume 60L of water daily, about 10% of their body weight?
At Lotus Park, we ensure the cattle have access to clean, high-quality water at all times to remain hydrated and support their digestion. Another way King River supports animal welfare is through a 24-hour feeding cycle. Rather than forced feeding windows, all the feed for the day is placed in the bunks for ready access. While this requires Lotus Park to have bigger bunks and a robust feed operation, the 24-hour feed cycle reduces stress on the cattle and allows for more natural, herd-like feeding patterns. Lastly, Lotus Park ensures the cattle have ample access to shade. While this may seem simple, shade is essential for the cattle to regulate their body temperature, so less energy is used to maintain their thermal neutral zone, and more energy goes into forming great marbling fat.
