Ironbark Herefords' Isabella Spencer goes from fashion to the feedlot

Ms Spencer studied fashion design and business at university before establishing a career in brand strategy and wholesaling which involved managing Australian and New Zealand markets for a number of luxury European labels.

Returning home during the drought, Ms Spencer now manages the on-property feedlot, which was established nearly two years ago as a means of diversifying the business.

She soon realised many of the skills honed during her years in the fashion industry were easily transferable to running the feedlot, in particular those involving client management and meeting budget targets.

Along with her brother, Ben, Ms Spencer researched and visited other feedlots before committing to a design which has a capacity of just under 1000 head and produces a niche destined for a leading Australian supermarket.

While she started purchasing cattle from saleyards, Ms Spencer said the feedlot was now moving towards exclusively using Ironbark blood, which helped ensure the quality of the end product.

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The move also had other added benefits, such as reduced animal health issues.

"We've seen an increase in the average Meat Standards Australia index since we moved to killing majority of our own genetics, and I don't get any P8 fat deductions feeding our own cattle," she said.

Having Ironbark cattle also played a major part in carbon neutrality, which Ms Spencer said involved having the most efficient cattle possible.

"I think it's the way the industry's going, it's just the market and I think you either get on board or you get left behind," she said.

"You hear everyone talking about carbon credits and different ways the industry's going and I think, well, at least we're already involved in it and doing something."

Ms Spencer was continually pushing for efficiencies across the whole operation, whether it was with machinery or feed rations.

There was a lot of research coming out of the United States on feedlot productivity and efficiency that she tried to implement.

The move to Ironbark blood also brought further opportunities for long-term commercial clients, she said.

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