Cobden’s Fiona Hanks has joined the ranks of the female dairy elite with her commitment to the industry recognised at the International Dairy Week dinner, where she was awarded the Power of Women in Dairying Bette Hall Award.
Not just a familiar face at IDW, Fiona is well-known across the wider industry for her passion for the industry and her encouragement and support of the next generation of dairy farmers.
She said it was an honour to receive the award.
“I knew Bette Hall when I was young kid and I admired her back then — to receive this award in her honour really means so much to me,” Fiona said.
“Obviously, it was a shock on the night, but I have had some time to reflect, and to have my peers recognise me as a worthy recipient is still overwhelming.
“I am blown away because I never really put myself in that type of category before.”
Fiona’s love for the industry began at a young age after growing up on the family dairy farm in the Western District.
She attended Marcus Oldham studying agribusiness and her first job was working for Coprice.
She then spent a decade in the AI industry.
Deciding to operate her own freelance business, Fiona then jumped on board the IDW team.
“At the time, I ran into Robyn Barber who was running IDW, and she was looking for some help to raise the profile of the event and the rest is history — Facebook was only new back then,” Fiona said.
She has watched IDW grow from its early beginnings to the international event it is today.
“While it is important to come together in the industry for competition, and it is certainly always great to win a ribbon, it is important to remember all the great things our industry has to offer, and the Australian dairy industry has certainly come a long way, particularly when it comes to breeding and showing,” she said.
“The level of professionalism across the industry is now world-class.”
Dairying has brought Fiona connections across so many levels.
“I value the many friendships I have made — not just here in Australia, but around the world.
“We all share the same common interest of a love for cows, whether that be in the show or sale ring, preparing cows, the AI industry or as a farmer.”
Fiona said other highlights had been working with and spending time with many industry greats, including Matt Templeton, who sadly passed away just after IDW 2025.
“Together Matt and I did a presentation for the Youth Camp at Noorat — I get a lot out of helping the youth of this industry, and it has been a major part of my life for a long time.”
She said it was also important to continue to acknowledge the contribution women make across the dairy industry.
“When I first started in the industry it was heavily dominated by males, but over the years, more and more women have become involved and taken up roles, including leadership roles, which is so great to see,” Fiona said.
Power of Women in Dairy Committee member Jade Sieben said after reading Fiona’s nomination form from Bec Robertson, it was easy to declare her this year's winner.
“I have never met a person quite like Fiona,” Jade said.
“She is so selfless to our industry, I know she says she gets a lot out of it, but I would argue she gives way more than she gets, I’m not sure when she actually sleeps,” Jade said.
And of course, Fiona is involved in the POW Committee, so keeping her nomination a secret did take some clever thinking.
“We did manage to keep it from Fiona, but I am sure the minute she heard my speech, she would have thought something was up,” Jade laughed.