Belinda McGuinness has found new purpose for her dairy career after a Tasmanian study tour.
Belinda was supported by the DemoDAIRY Foundation to join the LIC Tasmanian Dairy Study Tour and returned home to work as a farm hand and calf rearer at Kolora with clear goals and ideas.
“It was an amazing opportunity and I made a lot of new friends and learned so much on the trip,” she said.
A major theme throughout the tour was breeding with purpose. “Through discussions facilitated by Livestock Improvement Corporation, it was clear that successful farms align their genetic decisions with long-term business goals — focusing on fertility, efficiency, health, and longevity rather than simply chasing production.” Belinda said.
Another strong takeaway was the focus on profit per hectare and return on investment, rather than just milk solids or litres produced. The most successful operations were disciplined in cost control and system simplicity.
Belinda also said the effective use of herd recording and performance data was impressive. “Farmers were confident in their decisions because they relied on accurate, consistent data.”
Many farms demonstrated that simple, well-refined systems often outperform complex ones. Clear processes and consistency across the team were common features.
Belinda said the opportunity to engage openly with other farmers and industry professionals was extremely valuable. “Hearing different perspectives helped challenge assumptions and reinforced the importance of continual improvement.”
“The tour reinforced that incremental improvements, guided by clear goals and supported by good data, can significantly influence long-term farm performance. It also highlighted that not every innovation suits every farm — understanding your own system and objectives is critical before adopting change.”