Brisbane-founded and owned beef brand, Senku’s Pure Wagyu fillet – bred and raised on a Central Queensland farm, has been announced as the World’s Best Steak, taking the top global title at the World Steak Challenge in Amsterdam, run by UK publisher William Reed since 2015.
The Senku Pure Wagyu fillet, produced by Brisbane-based Paradigm Foods, was judged by 60 industry leaders in a blind test against 470 entries from more than 30 countries.
The animal was bred by Torrens Creek cattle producers Adam and Hayley Rea, fourth generation Central Queensland graziers, and finished at Sapphire Feedlot on a bespoke, purpose-built grain program.
It was Paradigm Foods' first entry into the competition and puts the Queensland paddock at the centre of the global beef industry.
“This is the first time we have ever entered the World Steak Challenge, and we've come away with the top title, judged blind against the best in the world,” said Nick Thompson, general manager of Paradigm Foods.
“That tells you what Australian producers are capable of. This is not luck – it’s the result of decades of breeding work by graziers across Central Queensland who don't get the recognition they deserve.
“Our job at Paradigm Foods is to find the very best of what Australia grows and put it in front of the world's best chefs and toughest judges. Last night those judges agreed with us, and I hope every producer in Central Queensland feels some ownership of this result, because it belongs to them as much as it does to us.”
A win for Queensland agriculture
Adam and Hayley Rea said they had been breeding Wagyu in Torrens Creek for most of their working life.
“To have an animal we raised on our own country end up on the best tables in the world and now be named the best steak in the world, full stop, on the very first attempt, is beyond anything I set out to achieve,” Adam said.
“This is a win for Central Queensland as much as it is for us. We do it because we believe in the cattle, not because you expect a night like this.”
The result is being described within the industry as a significant moment for Queensland agriculture. The state is home to the largest cattle herd in Australia, and the state's beef sector underpins regional economies from the Gulf to the Darling Downs.
A world title of this standing, won on debut, puts that supply chain – from grazier to feedlot to plate – on record as producing the finest steak judged anywhere in 2026.
“Finishing cattle to this level takes time, patience and a program built specifically around the animal, not a generic ration," said Andrew Shearer-Smith of Sapphire Feedlot.
“There are no shortcuts to marbling like this. To have a steak our team finished named the best in the world, in Paradigm's first year entering the competition, is an enormous moment for everyone here, and honestly, we're still getting our heads around it.”
Global title returns back to Australia
The win returns the World's Best Steak title to Australia after Ireland's Lidl and Dawn Meats took the honour in 2025.
The World Steak Challenge title caps a standout 12 months for Senku. In April, the brand won gold in the Purebred Wagyu class at the Australian Wagyu Association's 2026 Wagyu Branded Beef Competition, and gold in the Open Beef class at the 2026 Sydney Royal Fine Food Show.
Taken together, the results place Senku among the most awarded Wagyu programs in the country this year, all of it bred and finished in Queensland, and now backed by a world title won on debut.
Availability of Senku’s Pure Wagyu fillet is strictly limited – however, will be soon available to experience in Brisbane at Fatcow on James Street, Fortitude Valley in the coming days.
