THREE-TIME premiership player, and 2011 premiership winning captain for the AFL team Geelong, Cameron Ling was keynote speaker for WestVic Dairy’s Dairy NiteMooves awards’ night at the Noorat Recreation Reserve on May 24.

Mr Ling who retired shortly after guiding the Cats to their premiership win in 2011 inspired the audience with his message of effective leadership on and off the field and post football, having been quickly snapped up as an expert commentator for the Seven Network.

Mr Ling addressed a crowd of around 180 dairy farmers and service providers who came together for the announcement of the industry’s winners and to enjoy a great night out in a relaxed and positive atmosphere.

WestVic Dairy chair, Jacqui Suares, opened the evening which kicked off with the announcement of the winners of the Farm Photo Awards and 2023 Honour Board inductees.

The first announcement of the evening saw Sarah Jane Rea awarded the Farm Photo Award Runner Up prize.

Lachlan Tindall took out the top spot for the Farm Photo Award, with his winning photo showing a chilly morning on his dairy farm near Casterton.

Following this, John Dalton and Andrea Vallance were announced as the 2023 Dairy Honour Board inductees, with their outstanding commitment to the industry and local community noted by the judges.

Both have had long and committed dairy careers, with John sitting on many boards including in recent times on the supplier panel of Fonterra.

Andrea has been instrumental in setting up the amazing Ag program offered by Timboon P212 and is currently the chair of the DemoDairy foundation.

Importantly, both are dedicated advocates for dairying, and are active in encouraging young people into the industry.  

Master of Ceremonies, Tom Newton from MaxCare guided the audience through the night with his down to earth, relatable sense of humour, interviewing a panel of three past Great South West Dairy Awards winners.

Jorge Massa (2017 Employee of the Year), Kevin Wines (2018 Farm Business Managers of the Year along with his wife Claire) and Mark Billing (2022 Honour Board inductee) shared their experiences applying for the awards.

They also provided an insight into what they’ve been up to since their wins with all three continuing to thrive within their dairy businesses.

Local band, The Vulkans, closed off the night with some fabulous music enticing keen dancers to the floor for a boogie while offering others in the room an opportunity for some casual networking with others in the dairy industry.