Livestock Export, ESCAS & Dairy Farm Consulting

Service 01

Livestock export & import support

For exporters, importers and buyers

I work on the client side of live export consignments and advise Asian buyers of Australian livestock on what to buy, when to buy, and who to buy from. That includes support from contract and selection through to loading and delivery, for both large and small stock.

With two years in South Asia marketing dairy, sheep and goat genetics, 14 years as President Director of Elders Indonesia running cattle import and feedlot operations, and seven years overseeing dairy heifer imports into Indonesia’s largest dairy farms, I understand exactly what the buyer at the other end needs – and what it costs everyone when they don’t get it right.

How I can help

End-to-end client management from contract and selection through to loading and delivery
Animal welfare and ESCAS (Export Supply Chain Assurance Scheme) compliance – first importer globally to secure ESCAS approval, key role in its development, and practical experience implementing stunning in Indonesia to keep trade open
In-market customer support on the exporter’s behalf, to help secure and retain contracts through practical, on-the-ground assistance and clear communication with buyers

Practical advice on both sides of the water. Proven results in keeping trade, compliance and relationships on track.

Enquire about export support

Quality Brahman heifers under an open grazing model, Indonesia–Australia Commercial Cattle Breeding program, South Kalimantan

Service 02

On-farm productivity & enterprise design

For beef and dairy farms, owners and managers

Your farms are factories: what you put in is what you get out. There are no shortcuts. Cutting ration costs or chasing the latest “magic” supplement won’t drive sustainable productivity.

Feed cost per litre of milk or feed cost of gain needs an end-to-end view and a commitment to doing things properly, 24/7. The detail matters.

I’ve worked as a stockman, supervisor and senior manager, across everything from smallholders to integrated corporate systems. I can smell trouble and spot opportunity – in the paddock, in the dairy and in the numbers.

Typical focus areas

People, training and discipline – skills, structure and expectations from bottle-washers to the boss
Farm design, infrastructure and process – layouts, facilities and equipment that help (not hinder) performance
Management communication and alignment – clear, consistent expectations and definitions of “good” on the ground
KPIs and financial drivers – realistic, actionable KPIs and early warning on the real drivers of performance

I’ve helped build large and smallholder supply systems – including a network of more than 1,000 farmers supplying over 120,000 litres of milk a day – based on integrity, competence and respect for the farmers’ time and money.

From cattle under oil palms in four metres of rainfall to five head under a roof, the principles are the same: what you put in is what you get out. I help you design and run systems that reflect that.

Enquire about productivity

Richard Slaney checking feed quality with a farm manager in the dairy at Greenfields, East Java

Service 03

People development – human capital

For farm and processing teams at all levels

As a young fella I was lucky to have several great mentors. Some were war veterans and barely literate, but their message was simple: if you put time into people, they will pay it back many times over. It’s about respect, empathy and responsibility.

We show respect for our workers and staff by training them properly, communicating clearly and creating a workplace where their effort matters.

I hear the same concern from owners and senior management in Australia and Asia: “How do we keep our good people? How do we stop losing our key staff?”

The answer is not a distant HR department or another policy document from a corporate office. Building and keeping capable people is a core responsibility of our managers and supervisors on the ground. They need the skills to build and develop their own workers and staff.

Remember what old Lenny Foreman said to me:

It’s every ringer’s job to make a good horse…
it’s every head stockman’s job to make a good ringer…
and it’s every manager’s job to make a good head stockman.

That’s people development in one sentence. Our job in management is to build the next level of capability underneath us. Training isn’t a tick-box or a HR function – it’s core business for every supervisor and manager on the place.

Training / people development is a skill and it comes in many forms. Poor training wastes time and money; good training builds competence, confidence and loyalty – and it pays you back with less mistakes and better performance on the ground where it matters.

Relevant experience

Delivered 150+ beef feedback workshops to over 2,000 cattle producers and livestock agents across Australia – foundational in rolling out objective measurement and feedback systems the beef industry now uses daily
Re-developed and delivered beef and sheep meat product identification courses for the Australian meat processing industry – still the primary requirement for QA certification, largely unchanged since the early 1990s
Designed and delivered workshops for smallholder dairy farmers in Asia, adapted to local conditions and literacy levels
Led development of investor learning modules, herd-management software and cattle-breeding financial models for the Indonesia–Australia Commercial Cattle Breeding Program
Hold an Industrial Trainers Certificate, combined with hands-on beef and dairy experience across Asia, to design and run practical, on-farm workshops

I help your people understand both the “why” and the “how” – so they can take ownership, solve problems and lift performance long after I’ve left.

Enquire about people development

A pasture development training workshop being delivered to farmers in Indonesia