Women in Dairy discussion groups from across Gippsland came together to celebrate the industry at the Traralgon Vineyard in mid-December.
The fully booked event, organised by discussion group members and GippsDairy, provided Gippsland women with an opportunity to meet, hear from inspirational women, and network.
“We put a call out to see if women would like to come and network together and meet new women that all dairy farm in Gippsland and we had over 140 responses,” Sarah O’Brien, a Macalister Irrigation District dairy farmer and Women in Dairy discussion group member, said.
Celebrating the industry was the key theme of the lunch.
Attendees heard from a panel of four local dairy farmers, including Nicole Saunders (an MID farmer who is diversifying her dairy business), Emily Pendlebury (a new dairy entrant), Amy Cosby (a South Gippsland farmer and Associate Professor in Agricultural Education and Extension at CQUniversity), and Rosemary Atherton (a West Gippsland farmer and Dairy Ambassador 2022).
The panel session was facilitated by consultant and South Gippsland dairy farmer Gillian Hayman.
The aim of the lunch was to shine a light on dairying women in Gippsland, celebrate their successes and to acknowledge the hard work they do to produce quality milk.
“I think it is really important for women to know that they’re not just doing what they do every day by themselves in isolation, we’re all in this together,” Sarah said.
The generosity of the industry was a standout on the day, with sponsorship and also gift donations. Local businesses and dairy farmers donated lucky door prizes, hampers and gifts, ensuring no-one left empty handed.
“It was a wonderful event, we had a lot of fun, and there were really great, inspirational dairy farmer speakers,” dairy farmer Lucy Young said.
GippsDairy hopes to make the celebration of women in dairy an annual event.