Queensland Wagyu Crowned World's Best Steak

A Wagyu fillet from a Queensland, Australia, cattle farm has been awarded the title of World's Best Steak 2026, surpassing entries from over 30 countries. The Senku Pure Wagyu fillet, produced by Paradigm Foods of Brisbane, received the honor at the World Steak Challenge held in Amsterdam.

The winning steak was bred by Adam and Hayley Rea, fourth-generation graziers from Central Queensland. Their entry was selected by a panel of 60 industry leaders during a blind tasting among 470 submissions. The Reas have been breeding Wagyu cattle in Torrens Creek, a remote town in Queensland, for a significant portion of their careers.

This marks the first time the Queensland farm has entered its Australian-grown beef into a global competition. "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 Rea stated. He added, "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 industry is viewing this achievement as a significant moment for Queensland's agricultural sector. Queensland is the location of Australia's largest cattle herd, and its beef industry plays a crucial role in the economies of various regional areas. Securing a world title on its debut places the entire supply chain, from producers to the final serving, in the spotlight for high-quality steak production.

"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. 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."

This victory follows Ireland's Lidl and Dawn Meats, who earned the World's Best Steak title in 2025. The Senku brand has also achieved success in other competitions, including gold medals at the Australian Wagyu Association's 2026 Wagyu Branded Beef Competition and the 2026 Sydney Royal Fine Food Show. These accolades highlight 2026 as a notable year for Senku beef, bred and finished in Queensland and now recognized with a world title.

Consumers interested in tasting the award-winning steak can order it exclusively at Fatcow, located on James St in Fortitude Valley, Brisbane.