Keeping ahead of the game

“Dairying is such a complex business and farmers generally have to accept a price rather than set the price, so efficiencies are really important,” he said.

“We have to keep ahead of the game. Genetic advancement and making sure they are breeding from the right cows is key to that.”

Paul’s commitment to the herd improvement industry has led to his National Herd Improvement Association of Australia (NHIA) Significant Contribution Award, recognising his “outstanding and transformative contributions” to the industry.

At 61, Paul remains passionate about exploring new frontiers in herd improvement, including calf health monitoring, extending dairy advancements to beef herds and introducing emerging technologies and review strategies to eliminate bobby calves through better genetic selections and sexed semen.

He’s already seen massive change since bucking the family trend of going to university and instead going straight from school into a job.

Although raised in central Warrnambool, Paul had horses on a nearby paddock and his father Bill had a house cow.

He liked the idea of working outdoors and secured a job with Western Herd Improvement in the mid-1980s to look after farmer data, help farmers manage their herd testing and advise on genetics and bulls for their breeding requirements.

“That was all farmers had at their fingertips at the time to make decisions on their farms,” he said.

He quickly fell in love with the work.

“I loved working with farmers,” he said.

“They were so engaged and loved the interaction. We were always very welcome because we were working to improve their cattle, their second-most important asset after their land.

“They were always interested in improving and advancing the genetics of their herd.”

Paul did some business courses and learnt insemination and when Western Herd Improvement (WHI) merged with the Warrnambool Co-op, where his father was CEO, he looked look after the rural services.

WHI was approached by farmers to start a branch in Tasmania and also two Gippsland herd improvement companies merged under its banner.

Paul was approached by the Tasmanian Dairy Industry Authority to look after their herd testing and recording business, in turn leading to a managing director role with Tasherd which became a cornerstone of genetic improvement services in the region.

Paul parted ways with WHI in 2004 and started Advanced Genetics with business partners, which included offering electronic herd testing meters, the first in Australia at the time. WHI folded within a year.

He later joined ABS and facilitated an exit of herd testing services out of the business. He worked in various roles at ABS.

“The one I enjoyed the most as business initiatives was the Australia-China connection, working with customers in China to find the best genetics out of Australia for them and opportunities for buying livestock.”

Paul then took on national sales role for ABS where he played a key role in pioneering genomic testing for international sires in Australia, revolutionising genetic selection to meet local needs.

“At one stage we had more than 50 per cent of the young Holstein bulls on the genomic list. It was about driving change as much as accepting change.”

Paul didn’t always thrive in the big corporate environment and left the company in 2019.

He later joined World Wide Sires as business development manager, the role he continues to hold today, to better promote available technology, particularly CowManager.

“I liked CowManager because it was different,” he said.

“It’s not like everyone else with the collars. Someone said to me — collars are for dogs; ear sensors are for cows and I think they’re right.”

He says the CowManager system provides an X-ray vision into cows.

“You can see their eating and rumination habits, whether they’re cycling and whether they’ve got a temperature — which is unique to the ear sensors.

“From a genetic perspective, which is my true love, it reinforces what you’re recommending for people to continue in their breeding selections, and that’s health traits, which are so important.”

Paul says the technology helps to reduce none-discretionary culling.

“Cows are usually culled because they’re not getting pregnant, mastitis, or lameness; with CowManager we could pick up those health issues earlier so they could be treated earlier.

“Added to these features, the Calf to Cow concept, monitoring the calf with an ear sensor from being a young animal, looking for any setbacks, is also a unique feature of the CowManager system.

“It helps to tighten the calving pattern by getting early pregnancies and all of a sudden you get discretionary culling, not non-discretionary culling.”

Paul says herds are 100 per cent better than when he started.

“For the most part, you don’t get a cow leaving the herd because she dropped her udder.

“Genetic gain and all the traits are accumulative. If you concentrate on something for long enough, you will improve it.”

He also recommends sexed semen for at least three weeks of mating.

Paul remains a fan of innovation and making changes to improve outcomes for farmers.

“Farmers do a great job with their animals from their experience, this just adds the extra level for something they can’t see.”

He continues to enjoy interacting with farmers, talking about the technology and seeing them get the benefits out of it.

Paul sticks by his father’s business maxim of providing something good that someone else isn’t doing that well.

After receiving the NHIA honour at International Dairy Week, Paul admits it was a thrill to be recognised by his colleagues within the industry.

“It’s not something you look for but when I look at the value we’ve added over the years, it gives you a thrill.”

NHIA CEO Sara Merckel said Paul’s career had been defined by a commitment to offering dairy farmers access to the best tools and knowledge available, ensuring a dairy farmer’s life is easier and more profitable.

“He has championed the integration of advanced herd recording, milk testing, artificial breeding services, and genetic advice, ensuring farmers in western Victoria, Gippsland, and Tasmania have access to cutting-edge solutions.”