Agribusiness Outlook Australia 2015 Advisory Panel
Quest Events would like to take this opportunity to sincerely thank the official event advisory panel who are contributing their valuable time and expertise to ensure the agenda for this event is timely and relevant for all stakeholders working in the Australian agribusiness sector
Prof Les Copeland
Professor of Agriculture Faculty of Agriculture and Environment
The University of Sydney
Les Copeland is an agricultural biochemist with interests at the interface between food science and human nutrition. He joined the academic staff in 1974 after completing his undergraduate and postgraduate studies in the University of Sydney and postdoctoral research in the USA. Les is a member of the Research Advisory Committee of the Australian Farm Institute, Foundation Editor of the open access journal Agriculture, President of the University of Sydney Association of Professors, and a Research Integrity Advisor of the University of Sydney. He is a former Head of Department and Faculty Dean, a Fulbright Alumnus, and he was the Foundation President of the Australian Council of Deans of Agriculture. Les has extensive experience in international projects and capacity building.
Luciano González
Associate Professor
The University of Sydney
Associate Professor Luciano González has a BSc in Agronomic Engineering (Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Argentina), and MSc and PhD in Animal Production (Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona, Spain). Luciano held positions in the University of Manitoba (Assistant Professor in Sustainable Grasslands and Livestock Production Systems, Canada)and Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona (Lecturer in Animal Production, Spain).
Research interests:
A/Prof González is interested in improving profitability and productivity of livestock systems along with animal welfare, sustainability and rural life. Luciano believes this can be achieved with the development of new and innovative technologies and methodologies to improve farm management.
A/Prof González is a key member of The Livestock in Future Landscapes Program which seeks to understand how livestock interact with the environment and how these interactions determine the efficiency of production (growth, reproduction), both of individual animals and groups. New information on livestock in landscapes will be used to select animals and develop management systems that optimise the efficiency of resource utilisation and adapt to climate variability and climate change. The ‘landscape’ includes extensive grazing systems (range, pastoral), intensive high-rainfall grazing systems, mixed crop-livestock systems, and intensive feeding systems (feedlot). The Livestock in Future Landscapes Program aims to contribute new knowledge on natural resource management, sustainability, and adaptation and mitigation to climate change. Luciano also works towards improving animal welfare of production animals in relation to pain mitigation during castration and transport, and automatic detection of disease and animals under stress.
Some of the technologies under development by Luciano include:
- Remote weighing stations to measure animal production (live weight and growth rate) and welfare
- 3D scanners and lasers to measure body condition in relation to animal welfare, meat quality and reproduction
- Sensors to remotely monitor animal location and behaviour in the landscape to study animal-environment-management interactions important for grazing land management and animal welfare
- Infrared thermography to measure body temperature
Data collected by these sensors and others that monitor the environment are integrated through models to improve the precision of decision making processes and the efficiency of utilization of natural resources. Environmental sensors include weather stations, soil and water sensors, satellite imagery and optical sensors to measure vegetation type and abundance. These technologies also help Luciano to understand underlying mechanisms and function of livestock production systems.
David Moon
Managing Director and Head of Production
Moonrocks Australia
Representative for Horticulture
Australian Agricultural Advisory Council to the Minister for Agriculture
and Director
Horticulture Innovation Australia
Andrew Webster
Senior Commodity Trader
Agrifoods Australia
Andrew Webster was raised on a grain and cotton property on the Darling Downs in Queensland. After spending time away at school and university, he returned to the Darling Downs to commence roles with Queensland Cotton and Pioneer Seeds before heading back to Brisbane trading commodities for Wilmar Gavilon. Whilst there, he started and developed the export grain program before returning home to Dalby in 2013. Now, Andrew looks after the trading for Agrifoods Australia and has recently started his own business after identifying a void in the market when the Webster family looked at leasing or selling the family property. “Webster Cavanagh” is a professional property services business specialising in Rural Sales, Valuation, Leasing/ Management and Corporate & Foreign investment in Agriculture in NSW and Queensland.