Building careers in beef
A FORMER Northern Territory live export manager and an aspiring feedlot manager are the two newest recruits at Women Of Lot Feeding.
Kate Watts has taken up the role of treasurer and Liz Wales is the secretary.
Kate has been close to the beef industry her whole life.
She grew up on a sheep and cattle property near Quilpie before heading to the Northern Territory to work on cattle stations when she finished school.
“I was a govie and I was cooking and working in the office,” Kate said.
“Then I did agribusiness at UNE externally and did four years of live export in Darwin. “That was lots of logistics. “I was doing the livestock logistics, organising trucks, vets, paperwork, loading the boats. It was fantastic.”
Kate now works at Allied Beef in Toowoomba as the livestock co-ordinator.
“I deal with the cattle coming in and out. And we also have two feedlots, one in New South Wales and one in Springsure.
“I like the different ways you can be involved in the (beef) industry and learning all the different aspects – working on the stations and live export and now coming down here where we have feedlots because there’s no feedlots in the NT.
“It’s a supportive industry and I just really enjoy it.
“It’s nice to be involved with rural people but still be able to live in town.”
Kate moved to Toowoomba in January 2018 and attended a WOLF meeting as a way to meet new people.
“I went to a meeting at the end of last year.
“I hadn’t had anything to do with them before and I wanted to meet more people in the industry down here,” Kate said.
“They offered a few positions and Liz and I put our hands up.
“It’s been really inclusive and a good way to meet people.
“I haven’t seen anything like that in any other aspect I’ve worked in.
“And it’s very encouraging, because it’s a very male-dominated industry.
“It’s nice to have the support from people doing the same thing that I am.”
Like Kate, Liz has been involved in the beef industry her whole life.
She was born in St George where her family had a cattle property, before moving to another property in Meandarra.
Liz now works at Kerwee Feedlot, south of Jondaryan.
“I went and studied a Bachelor of Agribusiness at UNE,” Liz said.
“When I finished I worked for ACC (Australian Country Choice) at Brindley Park.
“I worked there for two months before I got the job at Kerwee, where I’ve been there about a year.”
Liz is a trainee manager at Kerwee.
“I do three to four months in each department. Livestock, feed and milling, admin and maintenance,” she said. “I’m doing admin now and I’ve just got maintenance to go.
“I love learning everything. It’s been a challenge in each one and I enjoy a good challenge.
“But livestock was probably my favourite one, working with horses and cattle each day.”
Managing a feedlot is a dream Liz hopes to achieve one day.
“I guess working with cattle is something I grew up with and it’s a norm,” Liz said.
“I honestly couldn’t think of anything else.
“That’s the dream.”
Liz joined Women Of Lot Feeding in the middle of last year.
“The annual general meeting was coming up and the manager at Kerwee told me to go and meet some people,” she said.
“And they’re a beautiful group of girls.
“I love talking to some like-minded women, people with the same aspirations and backgrounds.”