LambEx26 Speakers
LambEx26 brings together people who live the realities of the sheep, lamb and wool supply chain, with a program built around producer experience and practical outcomes.
This is our most producer-driven LambEx program yet, with 20 producers confirmed across the line-up.
Speaker profiles will be released progressively between now and July, but here’s a first taste of LambEx26’s “Telling Our Stories” speakers: a mix of respected industry leaders and standout voices from beyond the sector, chosen to challenge assumptions and sharpen how you think about performance, markets, consumers and what comes next.
More producers. More stories. More to come.
If you don’t see a familiar face yet, check back soon.
Kimberly Busteed
Master of Ceremonies
Kimberley Busteed is an Australian media personality, lifestyle television presenter, brand ambassador and an in-demand event MC, consistently praised for her professionalism and versatility across diverse industries.
Currently presenting on the newly revamped national television show ‘The Great Outdoors’ on Channel 7, as well as continuing her role, into her 17th year of presenting on programs ‘Weekender’ and ‘Creek to Coast’, Kimberley’s diverse skill set extends beyond media.
As a born and bred country kid, she has always had a strong connection to the land, realising her farming dreams when, with husband Chris Simpson, they launched their cattle grazing enterprise in 2016.
As first-generation graziers, and as an owner operator, Kimberley balances her media commitments with mustering days, growing her footprint in the agricultural industry, having hosted events including the Australian Dairy Conference, Australian Meat Processor Corporation Showcase Gala Dinner, and Beef Australia to name a few, as well as working with MLA in their consumer messaging, raising awareness and sharing the Australian Good Meat Story.
Performing at Your Best No Matter What
Mick Fanning is a three time World Champion surfer whose career is defined by extraordinary resilience, competitive excellence, and a deeply personal journey shaped by family, loss, perspective, and a lifelong connection to the ocean.
Mick Fanning
Gus Balbontin
Looking at the Future Differently
Born and bred in wild Patagonia, Gus never let his small town and humble beginnings get in the way of big dreams. A healthy disregard for the status quo and a severe case of FOMO (fear of missing out) brought him to Australia at the young age of 17.
By the age of 22, he had dropped out of uni, hitchhiked South America, set up his first business and landed his dream job at Lonely Planet.
Fast forward a few years and he was leading the company globally and working with companies such as Google X, Nokia and Amazon on the latest technology, creative cultures and high performing teams.
Seeking a change from corporate life as Executive Director and CTO of Lonely Planet, Gus moved back to his entrepreneurial roots, becoming an investor, founder and mentor. Today you will find Gus building robots, developing AI solutions, making 3D printed wheelchairs and investing in climate change technologies.
While Gus is happy to speculate about the future, he brings into focus what you can control right now, to make you ready for any future.
He has a profound impact on businesses creating language, practical models and analogies that drive action as well as a personal impact, with people driving change in their own lives.
Jess Pryles
Queen of Texas BBQ: How to Cook Meat Like You Mean It
Jess Pryles is an Australian-born meat expert, live-fire cook,and author, now based in Austin, Texas.
Pryles co-founded the Australasian Barbecue Alliance and hassince gained international recognition for her expertise inlive-fire cooking and smoked meats. She created the HardcoreCarnivore brand, which includes a line of meat seasonings,and authored the cookbook Hardcore Carnivore: Cook MeatLike You Mean It. Jess has appeared as a host and judge onshows like Cooks on Fire and Beat Bobby Flay. She currentlyhosts her own show on the Outdoor Channel & Tastemade.
She also completed a graduate certificate in Meat Sciencefrom Iowa State University, further solidifying her reputationas a leading meat expert.
She continues to expand her influence through workshops, presentations, TV appearances, and her active presence onsocial media, where she inspires a growing community of fansaround the globe.
After successfully predicting $10/kg at LambEx24, whats next?
Brett was raised on a cattle and sheep operation in Utah and Wyoming. He has worked in the cattle industry in Nebraska, Florida, Oklahoma and Colorado. For the past 20 years he has been running Global AgriTrends. His work there has taken him to six continents researching the global meat and livestock markets. He now advises companies around the world on global agriculture trends with an emphasis on beef, pork, lamb, and poultry. Brett received an Agribusiness MBA degree at the University of Nebraska. He and his wife Amanda live on a small farm with their kids near Preston Idaho.
Brett Stuart
Life Without Filters
Julia Jones is a New Zealand agribusiness leader who tackles the world with raw, authentic honesty. After 25 years of navigating constant change across food and fibre, finance, and strategy, she’s become known for staying steady, adaptable, and future-focused.
She turns big ideas into practical action, brings people together, and makes complex things easy to understand. Julia leads with optimism and straight-up honesty, grounded in the resilience she’s built through decades of disruption and growth, always keeping her focus on what matters most: people, relevance, and a stronger future for our sector.
Julia Jones
Jerome Leray
Artificial Intelligence in Animal Production
Jerome Leray is the founder and Managing Director of InFarm—a company built on the belief that technology should work where farmers do. With a background in commerce, mineral exploration, and geoscience and hands-on agriculture, Jerome leads the
development of AI tools that solve real problems on-farm, especially where internet access is limited or non-existent.
Recognised globally for his practical approach, Jerome has worked alongside producers, agronomists, and major industry partners like Bayer, Dell, and Microsoft to ensure that innovation stays grounded in the paddock. His strength lies in turning complex data and cuttingedge AI into tools that are easy to use and deliver results where it counts—on the land.
Whether it’s drones spotting weeds or remote livestock monitoring, Jerome’s work is helping producers boost productivity, profitability, and sustainability—without needing a tech background to benefit.
Claire Booth
Warts and all Family Success
Claire Booth is a solicitor with 20 years’ experience advising family and farming businesses across Newcastle, Goondiwindi, Brisbane and the Central West of NSW. She adds insight from co-founding a contracting business supporting mining projects in the Hunter Valley and north-west WA. In 2011 she launched BoothAg; the family now farms near Geurie NSW, producing irrigated crops (sweet corn, popcorn, potatoes, hybrid seed, grains and oils) alongside cattle and livestock trading. Since 2003 she has specialised in wills, succession, trust and tax law, with water-law expertise across Australia. Claire also serves on boards spanning agriculture, tax, water, capital and renewable energy.
Chloe Butcher-Herries
Chloe Butcher-Herries is redefining modern farming from Central Hawke’s Bay, New Zealand. Managing two powerhouse farming properties, Matthews Station and Otoro Station. She drives performance while championing sustainability and people. Winner of the 2022 Ahuwhenua Young Māori Farmer Award and top 3 finalist for the 2026 Zanda McDonald Award, Chloe is recognised as a fearless leader and sector advocate.
Chloe is extremely passionate about mentoring youth and empowering anyone willing to get involved in agriculture. Chloe blends operational grit with visionary thinking to build a resilient, future focused industry alongside her wife Makita and Daughter Āhua.
Beyond the Pub Talk: Deep dive into 3 successful farming businesses
John Yeomans
Farming in Wales: Opportunities, Challenges & Learnings
Together with his wife Sarah, John farms just over 270 acres in the rolling hills of Mid Wales. Neither John nor Sarah come from a farming background, with Sarah originally hailing from London and John from Birmingham, yet together they have built a commercially focused livestock enterprise grounded in performance, efficiency, and environmental stewardship. The Yeomans run performance-recorded Limousin and Belgian Blue suckler cows alongside Beulah (an upland Welsh breed) and Texel ewes, with a strong emphasis on data-driven decision-making and continual improvement. John actively champions farming systems that deliver both commercial and environmental outcomes, which he believes go hand in hand. Recently appointed Chair of the National Sheep Association – Wales/Cymru Region, John is widely recognised across the Welsh sheep industry for his larger-than-life, engaging personality and practical leadership. He will share insights into the current challenges and opportunities facing the Welsh farming sector, and will draw on his experience as a Nuffield Scholar, where he studied global developments in beef and lamb carcase classification.
Learning from one of the best in the west
Dawson Bradford Jr and his wife Lisa run Hillcroft Farms, a vertically integrated, three-generation family operation spanning 5,000 hectares. Alongside his parents Dawson and Greta and their children Jack, Michael and Chelsea, Dawson leads a commercially driven meat-production business including a 1,500-sow farrow-to-finish piggery, broadacre cropping, a feed mill, and both commercial and stud Ultrawhites. Known as the birthplace of the Ultrawhite breed, Hillcroft places a strong focus on performance, genetic recording and EBVs to maximise genetic gain. Off-farm, Dawson is a Director of Australian Pork Limited.
Dawson Bradford Jr
Dave Packer
MLA
AMPC Carcase Showcase Results from all angles: MLA, Processors & Producers
David has been with MLA for almost nine years, previously managing the Producer Adoption program, and now the Meat Standards Australia Program Manager (6 years). Prior to MLA, David spent 11 years in the livestock animal health sector in both R&D and commercial roles. David holds a Bachelor of Rural Science and a PhD in meat science.
David has worked hands-on, across the livestock and cropping sectors, and is the managing partner of a breeding and backgrounding operation in the New England region of NSW. David's experience allows him to have scope and understanding from research through to on-farm and supply chain implementation.
Rob Davidson
WAMMCO International
AMPC Carcase Showcase Results from all angles: MLA, Processors & Producers
Rob Davidson is the Producer Relations Manager at WAMMCO, with over 20 years’ experience across multiple roles within the organisation. His work has included livestock procurement, producer extension, genetic and nutritional consultancy, on-farm and plant-focussed research, manager of WAMMCO’s annual lamb carcase competition and he currently also acts as the AMPC funded WAMMCO Innovation Manager. He works closely with producers to deliver practical outcomes that benefit both the grower and the cooperative. Prior to joining WAMMCO, Rob worked at the University of Western Australia, spending 13 years delivering industry-funded on-farm research on lamb nutrition, genetics and meat eating quality.
Will Barton
Gundagai Meat Processors
AMPC Carcase Showcase Results from all angles: MLA, Processors & Producers
Will Barton has been the Chief Executive Officer at Gundagai Meat Processors (GMP) since 2014. During his time at GMP, Will has led a multi-million dollar facility expansion project and secured Tier 2 Export Certification. He is passionate about shaping the future of the industry and has been an active member of various committees including the Sheep Sustainability Steering Group, National Agricultural Labour Advisory Committee and the Objective Measurement Adoption & Commercialisation Committee. He was also part of the Red Meat Memorandum of Understanding Taskforce in 2019.
In 2021, the Barton family established Gundagai Lamb, which is a new and exciting lamb brand, backed by the family’s 100+ years of meat industry experience.
Sophie Barnes
Panel Session - Telling Our Story
Sophie Barnes grew up in the UK with no connection to farming until discovering sheep at age 17. That single moment sparked a lifelong obsession, and after a few years of farming her own sheep, she sold everything and moved halfway around the world to New Zealand to learn "from the best". Today, Sophie works as Business Services Manager at neXtgen Agri, a livestock genetics consultancy serving sheep and beef farmers. In this role, she focuses on bridging the gap between genetic science and practical farming, helping producers make informed breeding and management decisions.
Chad Taylor
Mumblebone
Breakfast Session: Weaving Futures
With six generations of sheep breeding in the Taylor family, Chad and Louise have combined traditional farming experience with cutting-edge breeding technologies to produce the modern Mumblebone Merino.
Using advanced tools to drive measurable genetic gain, Mumblebone is now well established as an industry leader in aligning high-performance production goals with the increasingly-discerning needs of their customer.
Mumblebone’s industry-wide recognition speaks to the company’s unerring focus on innovative breeding and their quality team to bring it all together.
Amy Bell
CSIRO
Breakfast Session: Genomics
Amy’s research focuses on resilience in Merino sheep, particularly the biological and genetic factors that enable animals to cope with challenges in commercial production environments.
Her work aims to develop tools that help identify resilient animals early in life, supporting more informed and sustainable selection decisions. Evidence from other livestock industries shows that selecting solely for production can compromise long-term health and fitness, and Amy’s recent multi-year project in Merinos highlights the importance of balancing these traits.
By understanding the relationships between production, health and fitness, her research supports improved productivity, resource efficiency and animal welfare across Australian sheep systems.
Peta Bradley
MLA
Breakfast Session: Genomics
Peta Bradley is the Manager of Sheep Genetics at Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA) and has worked across the Livestock Genetics team for nine years. She holds a Bachelor of Rural Science from the University of New England and is based on her family’s property near Armatree in Central West NSW, where they run a commercial and seedstock sheep enterprise.
Peta is passionate about helping producers access Australia’s world‑leading genetic evaluation service to drive on‑farm progress. Outside of work, she enjoys a variety endurance and ice swimming challenges.
Sally Martin
SheepMetriX
Breakfast Session: Genomics
Growing up on a grazing property on the Monaro, I developed a passion for livestock and agriculture. I pursued a Bachelor of Agricultural Science at UWS Hawekesbury followed by postgraduate studies at University of New England and Sydney University specialising in Genetics and Animal Breeding and Project Management.
My career has taken a number of paths, working with NSW DPI for 20 years, before establising my own consultancy business, SheepMetriX, in 2011. Based in Young NSW, SheepMetriX supports sheep and goat producers across Australia and internationally, with a focus on assisting clients capture and utilise data to make informed decisions around breeding program design, genetic selection, reproduction performance and grazing management.
I have been closely involved in delivering major industry extension and research initiatives, with a strong emphasis on translating science into practical, on-farm solutions in the sheep genetics space.
I currently serve on several industry boards and committees, including National Livestock Genetic Consortium Taskforce, Sheep Genetics Advisory Committee, Future Flock Advisory Pannel, Precision Sheep Management Project, Measured Goat Project, NSW eID Implementation Reference Group, Peter Westblade Scholarship and Monaro Farming Systems group.
Bea Litchfield
Hazeldean
Breakfast Session: Becoming the Business That Everyone Wants to Work For
Bea Litchfield is a Director of Hazeldean, a sixth-generation Merino and Angus seedstock business known for its commitment to industry-leading genetics and long-term commercial performance. With experience across both practical stud operations and agribusiness, Bea leads Hazeldean’s strategic direction with a strong focus on people, land and livestock. She is committed to profitable, commercially relevant breeding, and to advancing innovation and technology within the family business. Bea with her husband Ed, has 3 young boys, 5, 3 and 1 to keep them on their toes and enjoys working horses and dogs when she can.
Breakfast Session: The End Game
Sherri Symons is a fifth-generation farmer, wool classer, and founder of WoolGrow Australia. Working from her family farm in South-West Victoria, she has helped bring wool pellets and wool-based soil products into the Australian market, using coarse crossbred wool in new and practical ways. With years of hands-on experience in shearing sheds and agriculture, Sherri is recognised for her practical approach to innovation and her commitment to creating new value for an often-overlooked fibre.
Sherri Symons
WoolGrow Australia
Breakfast Session: The End Game
Nikki Atkinson is the founder and designer of Horrocks Vale Collections, an Australian label creating fine Merino wool wedding dresses and special occasion wear. After selling her Adelaide bridal boutique, she married a wool grazier and now designs from the property in the Flinders Ranges, blending couture craft with agriculture. With 27 years’ experience as a bridal couturier, Nikki reimagines Merino as a luxury alternative to polyester, valued for drape, softness and comfort. Passionate about slow fashion, she champions the generational work of wool-growing families. Recently, her UK bridal fair showcase drew attention for its originality and sustainability.
Nikki Atkinson
Horrocks Vale Collections