Two days at Wilmot: accelerating change in food, fibre and nature

Wilmot Cattle Co's field days are one of those events that feel genuinely ahead of the curve. With a theme of Accelerating the Change: Food, Fibre and Nature, the two days brought together a cross-section of people thinking seriously about agriculture's role in addressing global environmental challenges- and doing so from a production-first perspective that tends to make the conversation more grounded than it might otherwise be.

Bobby Miller, Peter Leihn and Lily Rodgers were there for the full run, and the conversations across the two days covered a lot of territory. Natural capital, emissions tracking, the relationship between productivity and sustainability, and what it looks like in practice when farmers take the lead on their own climate story rather than waiting for the supply chain to tell them what to do.

A standout moment came during the Natural Capital in Action panel, where Carmel Onions from CommBank gave Ruminati a shoutout when discussing the practical benefits of emissions recording for farmers, a reminder that the financial sector's interest in this space is real and growing, and that producers who have their data in order are increasingly better placed when those conversations happen.

The broader network in the room was strong. The team connected with Michael Taylor from Fulton Market Group, Merri King from McDonald's, Angela Hammond from Landcare Australia, Sam Duncan from FarmLab, Phil Tickle from Cibo Labs, Sam Ditchfield from Woolworths, Martijn Wilder from Pollination and Carmel Onions from CommBank: a good cross-section of the supply chain, advisory and investment world that's increasingly paying attention to farm-level emissions data.

Thanks to the Macdoch Australia team and Stuart Austin for putting it together. A well-run event in a setting that suited the conversations it was trying to have.