Macintyre Brook Lamb

Meet Sophie and Adrian McInnerney and their three children Dusty, Ned, and Banjo - the family behind Macintyre Brook Lamb!

Macintyre Brook Lamb is located 70km east of Goondiwindi on the Darling Downs. Their property is situated along the banks of the Macintyre Brook, hence their business name. For Sophie and Adrian, sustainability isn't just a practice – it's a way of life, and their commitment to ethical and environmentally conscious farming shines through in every aspect of their work. 

Read on to discover how they got started, why they do what they do and some bonus quirky facts about them.

Can you tell us a bit about your business? How did you get started?

Macintyre Brook Lamb is the realisation of our family’s dream to provide consumers with a nutritious yet delicious protein that is produced with a strong environmental conscience. Our lambs are born and raised on our beautiful property Bellhaven Brook, which is situated along the picturesque Macintyre Brook in the Darling Downs region of Queensland.  We believe the secret to our beautiful, flavoursome lamb is how we look after our land, our animals and the breed of our sheep, the Australian White. 

How do you make/grow/produce your product? What is your process?

Our key focus on our farm is regeneration of the soil through regenerative agriculture principles. These principles, include limiting chemical usage to protect microbial life, growing a diverse selection of plants to encourage biodiversity, and utilising livestock in a way that mimics nature to cycle nutrients, encourage plant growth and increase organic matter. Healthier soil means healthier plants, which equates to healthier lambs that produce a more nutritious protein and this ultimately leads to a healthier consumer.

What do you love about your work?

Providing people with a nutrient-dense protein that's produced ethically and with the environment in mind is incredibly fulfilling. Not to mention we get to do this together with our family on our beautiful farm. 

How important is making organic/sustainable products to you?

As livestock farmers, we can actually be a part of the climate change solution and we find that incredibly empowering. By implementing regenerative agriculture principles, such as rotational grazing,  we are sequestering carbon dioxide from the atmosphere into our soils. We have recently proven our farming practises are beyond carbon neutral, meaning we are sequestering more carbon on our farm than we are emitting. Sequestering carbon into our soils is a win-win scenario. It draws down carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and at the same time improves the health of our soil, which ultimately leads to improved farm resilience and productivity and we produce a more nutrient-dense protein to feed our fellow Australians!

If you could only eat one meal for the rest of your life, what would it be?

Slow-cooked butterflied lamb shoulder with roast vegetables and gravy.

Could you tell us an interesting/quirky fact about yourself?

Our children are all named after Aussie icons.. although not intentionally. Dusty (Slim Dusty), Ned (Ned Kelly) and Banjo (Banjo Patterson).

If you were a fruit or vegetable, which one would you be and why?

I'm going to say a mango because I know my husband can't resist them! ;)