Tash and I recently attended the 2026 Kidman Springs Field Day, which brought together a great crowd of producers, researchers and industry representatives for two days at Victoria River Research Station.

Kidman Springs is always a great event to attend. It’s a valuable opportunity to get out and about, seeing the research happening in the paddock and having the people behind the projects there to explain what they are finding, answer questions and hear directly from producers.

I kicked off the first morning with an NTCA update, covering some of the key issues and priorities we have been working on across the region. From there, the program covered a huge range of topics including biosecurity, FMD and LSD updates, native pastures, breeder herd performance, diversification, calf loss, pain relief, genetics and emerging technology.

I also had the pleasure of facilitating the “Managing the People” panel with Connie Wood from Wave Hill Station, Margo Gugger from Cave Creek Station, Jake Hicks from Auvergne Station and Amelia Velar, CEO of the NT DAF. While much of the Field Day was rightly focused on new technology, research and advancements, we still need good people to make it all happen. People management is something I’m really passionate about and it was great to be able to open that discussion to the floor. Every business approaches it a little differently, so it was great to hear some very different perspectives and practical lessons around recruitment, retention, leadership and getting the best out of your team.  Thank you to the panellists for joining me and being super honest about the highs and lows of people management.

A highlight was seeing the eShepherd virtual fencing project in action. The collars are being assessed for their use in managing grazing distribution and keeping cattle around new watering points to excluding cattle from particular areas and assisting with mustering. It is exciting technology, but even better to be able to see how it is actually performing under northern conditions, and so far so good.

The paddock tour had plenty more to see, including long-term vegetation monitoring, fire and grazing management, legume establishment, selected Brahmans and a spray drone demonstration.

Day one wrapped up in true VRD style – a drink in hand, a spectacular sunset from one of the region’s great vantage points, followed by a delicious dinner and plenty of good company.

It was a great couple of days that encouraged plenty of good conversations. Field days like Kidman Springs are a great opportunity to witness how much research is happening in our regions and the value of bringing researchers and producers together to make sure that work remains practical and relevant to northern cattle businesses.

A big thank you to the NT DAF team and everyone involved in pulling the event together. Kidman Springs never disappoints, and it was great to be back.