Article by Zoe Skinner and Kristy Shadbolt (Agricultural Science students)

The Meat Business Women: Communication Skills for the Future, Perth Workshop, was hosted by the Commonwealth Bank on Wednesday the 9th of October, with 21 women in attendance. Murdoch University students Zoe Skinner and Kristy Shadbolt were fortunate enough to receive sponsorship from Harvey Beef to attend the workshop, alongside industry professionals. This workshop aimed to create opportunities for women working in the red meat industry in Western Australia to network, share insights, and learn together.

The workshop began with an update from Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA), presented by Samantha Jamieson, on the community sentiment research 2024. This updated us on the current attitude that the Australian consumer has towards the red meat industry so we could understand the reality of current consumer sentiment. It was encouraging to see that the majority of Australians feel positively about the red meat industry, with the percentage of Australians increasing their red meat consumption at its highest level, and those reducing consumption at the lowest level since the research began.

Following this, Deanna Lush (Ag Communicators) presented the Center for Food Integrity, Engage Program’s shared values communication training. The workshop was designed to equip attendees with the skills and confidence to effectively communicate with both consumers and customers. Research has found that connecting through shared values is three to five times more powerful in building trust than just sharing facts. Some of the key takeaways from the workshop included leading with shared values to build relationships with consumers based on trust. Being your authentic self helps you find common ground and gain trust and respect, which helps foster understanding and facilitate more effective communication. With two-thirds of Australians having little to no connection to the agricultural industry, we find ourselves in an exciting yet challenging position to communicate positively with consumers, to promote and properly educate them about the industry. This workshop was aimed to help bridge the gap between producers and consumers by upskilling the attendees with values-based communication.

Zoe Skinner (1st year Bachelor of Agricultural Science student, Murdoch University), describes that the workshop provided her with key insights into the importance of gaining consumer trust and respect. The workshop illustrated that without the foundation of trust, the consumer won’t be receptive to your facts or evidence about the industry. Zoe explained that “having the opportunity to be in a room surrounded by like minded passionate women in the industry, whilst having relevant topical conversations”, was a truly invaluable experience. Zoe got the opportunity to gain many connections, having conversations with a range of professionals across all aspects of the red meat industry, the whole way through the supply chain.

Kristy Shadbolt (2nd Year Bachelor of Agricultural Science, Bachelor of Business student, Murdoch University) found the insights gained from values-based communication has given her the confidence to engage in difficult conversations surrounding the red meat industry.  Also, having the opportunity to sit and talk with the representatives from Harvey Beef has encouraged her passion for the industry and impacted her career direction. Kristy also greatly enjoyed talking with Megan Trezona (Craig Moisten Group), Lauren Smith (AMPC), and Elizabeth Verhugen (Margam Farms) during the breaks and greatly appreciated their support and encouragement. Kristy said, “The workshop was truly eye-opening and has equipped me with tools that will undoubtedly serve me in my future career”.

The day concluded with a presentation by Georgia Perosin and James Price about social media and the key insights from MLA. This presentation aimed to provide us with a step-by-step guide to effectively use key social media platforms such as Facebook, LinkedIn, Instagram and TikTok. This was highly informative as we were able to see real statistics from MLA on how to get the most out of social media, and improvements we could be making to ensure that our businesses and the red meat industry were being positively portrayed and promoted online.

Zoe and Kristy would both like to extend their wholehearted gratitude to Harvey Beef for their sponsorship, which provided them with this valuable experience, gaining further insight into the industry. They both feel excited about the future and hope to pursue careers in the red meat industry.