Our story is steeped in family history, from humble beginnings to where we are today. Here’s a glimpse of how we got here.

In 1908, Alfred John Bush, fresh from his apprenticeship with Marshall & Sons in Broken Hill, began his career as a butcher in Newcastle, working for Harry Lucerne, owner of several local butcher shops. By 1909, he opened his own shop. By 1921, Alfred owned 12 shops and moved his family to Homebush, where he founded the wholesale butcher business, AJ Bush & Sons.

With the help of his four sons—Norman, Albert, Jeffrey, and Lance—the business flourished, becoming a dominant force at the Homebush State Abattoir in the 1940s and 50s. Livestock were brought to the Flemington stockyards by rail, and stockmen drove animals across Parramatta Road to the abattoir.

In 1940, Alfred retired, passing the reins to his sons under a partnership agreement. Tragically, the eldest son, Norman, who was regarded as an ‘outstanding figure in livestock matters’, died in a plane crash in January 1947 aged 40. His brother Jeffrey was severely injured, and Jeffrey’s young daughter Helena aged 9 was also killed in the accident.

Alfred Bush passed away in 1951, remembered as a “Captain of his industry.” He was also a pioneering motorist, introducing commercial motor transport to Newcastle, and later an avid horticulturist.

The following decades saw the business grow into a powerhouse, expanding into meat retail, stock treatment, smallgoods production, and rendering. The 1960s and 70s brought new plants in Yanco (1963), Rockdale (later Prospect in 2017, then moved to Bulli 2024), Rouse Hill (1956), and Murarrie QLD (1972), with a state-of-the-art facility relocated and built in Beaudesert, Queensland, in 1994. After a major fire in 2001, the Queensland plant was fully rebuilt.

Today, our retail division, Bush’s Meats, continues to operate from Sydney and the South Coast, with head office at our original location in Homebush.

In 2021, the Company ventured into property development and have recently built a block of residential units with our commercial office located on the ground floor in Homebush. We are about to embark on a new development in Homebush by the end of 2024.

Still family-owned and run, we remain proud of our legacy.

This is our story—many chapters have been written, but the best is yet to come. Our family history is still unfolding.