Investing in every livestock producer
[as published in the Stock Journal]
By Travis Tobin
After one of the toughest periods many South Australian livestock producers can remember, there are genuine reasons for optimism.
Over the past few months, South Australia has hosted three flagship livestock events: the SA Sheep Expo, LambEx and the SA Junior Heifer Expo. Together they attracted hundreds of producers, students, volunteers, businesses and industry leaders, representing thousands of hours of commitment and significant investment in the next generation of our livestock industry.
That matters.
The drought has tested farming businesses across the state. Many producers have faced difficult decisions around destocking, feed costs, cashflow and rebuilding. Recovery will not happen overnight.
Yet, throughout those challenges, our industry has continued to invest in people, leadership, innovation and capability. That says something important about the confidence producers, industry and the broader value chain have in the future of South Australia’s livestock sector.
While these events celebrate different species, they share a common purpose: developing skilled producers, showcasing innovation, encouraging best practice and ensuring our industry is well positioned to seize future opportunities.
Spend time at any of them and another theme quickly becomes apparent.
Whether producers run Merinos for wool, prime lamb enterprises, breeding or trading cattle, Boer goats in the Adelaide Hills or mixed livestock businesses across the state’s cropping regions, they are increasingly talking about the same issues.
How do we strengthen biosecurity? Improve drought resilience? Adopt new technology? Meet community expectations while remaining productive and profitable? Navigate increasingly complex environmental and market requirements?
These challenges don’t stop at a fence line because a producer runs sheep instead of cattle, or goats instead of sheep. They affect every livestock business.
That is particularly true in South Australia, where many producers operate multiple enterprises or adjust their livestock mix as seasonal conditions, markets and business priorities change. The ability to adapt has always been one of agriculture’s greatest strengths, and our policy settings should support that flexibility.
Species-specific research, extension and industry development remain essential. The success of the SA Sheep Expo, LambEx and the SA Junior Heifer Expo demonstrates exactly why those investments should continue.
But when governments are making decisions about biosecurity, traceability, drought preparedness, water, natural resource management, transport, emissions, workforce or animal welfare, producers deserve coordinated livestock policy that reflects how modern farming businesses operate.
That is why Livestock SA advocates across sheep, cattle and goats. It is not about replacing species expertise. It is about ensuring producers have a stronger voice on the policy issues that increasingly affect every livestock enterprise.
Confidence is returning. Markets are improving, seasonal conditions are beginning to ease across many regions and producers are looking towards rebuilding. And we must match that optimism with policy that enables investment, innovation and choice.
The future of South Australia’s livestock industry will not be determined by whether producers run sheep, cattle or goats. It will be determined by whether they have the freedom to pursue the enterprise that best suits their land, climate and business goals.
Because investing in the future of livestock means investing in every livestock producer