The future lambscape Alex Ball Program Manager, Meat & Livestock Australia

State of the industry today Flock size is recovering Good returns over past 5-7 years Strong sense of achievement Confidence is high Land use competition Next phase of change about to begin

Relative real price trends

Wool and lamb income (real)

The challenges The customer The people The sheep Leading the supply of premium lamb to the world Nutritional and quality value Environmental footprint Water efficiency Welfare compliance/requirements Labour – the handbrake to growth Increased competition for resources Information management More complex terms of trade Genetic/genomic evolution Managing key diseases Balancing yield and eating quality Optimum ewe size

In 10 years time Value and productivity doubled over the past 10 years New generation of producers Three generations of sheep to affect change Only 5-10 million more sheep – can this happen again?

The industry in 10 years 60% of product to export markets High cost product, high cost compliance Essential to mixed farming enterprises Limited intensive feeding for eating quality National and international welfare standards Natural resource management targets Community and consumer driven

The sheep in 10 years Eating and nutritional quality - integral to all breeding programs

Consumer Tested over 2 years 200 sires 1,477 lambs tested (+ Dorpers) Short loin and topside as a grill From a Fail to a 5* product All at $38 kg From a Fail to a 5* product All at $38 kg

The sheep in 10 years Eating and nutritional quality - integral to all breeding programs Breeds morphed into Brands 150% lambing and 95% survival 500 grams per day growth rates 45 kilograms at 8-10 months Genomic selection imbedded Non-visual traits dominating selection

Improving productivity EweSingleTwinChange in Efficiency Weight60kg Lambs12 Lamb weight55kg45kg Total weight55kg90kg Weight /kg ewe 0.91 kg1.5 kg65% Weight /dse34.3 kg37.5 kg9%

Management in 10 years More complex, more opportunities Focused on pastures and pasture utilisation Focussed on resource allocation Water and resource allocation (kg/ha/ml h 2 0) 90% of decisions based on info from remote monitoring tools

People in 10 years More sheep, less people, more complex decisions Manage and use information Embrace technology Linked to product and brands

The producer “action” pattern Knowledge 20% Decisions (Tactical and Strategic) 70% Data (easy) 10%

Change now for the future 15 Consumer and community satisfaction – know what they want, when and why

Change now for the future 17 Consumer and community satisfaction – know what they want, when and why Perform to market requirements Measure everything Resource management Invest in technology Invest in yourself to transform Information into decisions

The future lambscape