Meet Danielle!

A true ‘Ag kid’, Danielle spent her childhood between the campus of Dookie Ag College, where her parents worked and lived for a time, and her family dairy farm near Numurkah where she “grew up in the pit of the dairy, drinking ice cold milk from the vat while the next lot of cows came in”.

Not surprisingly, Danielle went on to study ag science herself, obtaining her Masters in ruminant nutrition while at DPI and a PhD in lactation physiology in New Zealand before settling in Gippsland. She has spent the last two decades applying her knowledge to various roles across the local dairy industry.

''A farm upbringing and a good education have let me wander about doing lots of different and rewarding jobs working with high calibre country people'', Danielle says. 

She’s not kidding. Her experience includes 13 years at Gipps Dairy, where she ran the business, secured funding and managed projects for industry. Then it was onto more great times with the Ag-Challenge Consulting team and positions with the Australian Association of Ruminant Nutrition, Food & Fibre Gippsland, and most recently a stint lecturing Veterinary Bioscience at Federation University. 

Danielle is now with Lely Center Gippsland part-time as a member of our Farm Management Support team, along with colleagues Jordan, Casey and Woody. 

''Last year Greg Cole invited me into Lely. I was excited because I honestly believe robots are the next step improvement in dairying'', Danielle says. 

''With robots doing the repetitive milk harvesting task, valued staff can focus on other jobs. They've already impacted succession planning discussions and have saved wear and tear on bodies. They create the headspace for people to focus on the main profit levers of farming like home grown feed.''

​Danielle says that coming to Lely allowed her to ''return to my comfort area of working with local dairy people''. 

''I run the farmer group meetings which are lots of fun because everyone loves a chat and learning about the different ways robots fit into farm routines. ​

''I’m still amazed that most of the population don’t appreciate farming and the smarts needed to produce food. Farmers need to be an accountant, vet, agronomist, mechanic, CEO, as well as stewards of the environment.''

Danielle believes it’s also becoming increasingly important for farmers to demonstrate good animal welfare practices to their customers. 

''Dairy welfare is already good because industry best practice is based on solid science. Robots will improve welfare even more with voluntary cow movement and quicker detection of health issues.

''The future is all about technology and data. Robots will take off big time and it's exciting to be at the forefront of technology adoption.''

When she’s not out talking to farmers or getting back to the family farm in the Riverina, Danielle and her family spend their time taking full advantage of the local area. 

''We’re a busy family with everyone involved in footy, cricket, hunting, fishing and camping. We’re often at Ellinbank Football and Netball Club and I go to Phillip Island a lot for my board role at Phillip Island Nature Parks, which includes fun things like watching the little penguins and spotlighting eastern barred bandicoots.

''Gippsland has got it all; mountains, rivers, beaches and great farming land. And it’s close enough to Melbourne that you can duck to the MCG for the day to see the mighty Lions!”