PROSPECTIVE veterinarians and future sheep industry participants gained greater understanding of the wool sector last week thanks to Esperance wool broker Vicky Hempsell.
Ms Hempsell, who works for Primaries of WA, hosted visits to Primaries’ wool store in Bibra Lake, Perth, and the Australian Wool Testing Authority laboratory and Western Wool Centre, where wool is sold at auction, for university students studying animal science.
University of Western Australia and Curtin University students took the tour on Wednesday and five Murdoch University students joined Ms Hempsell on Thursday.
They hope to graduate as veterinarians, work with stud sheep and genetics or in animal research fields.
Most are Perth-based and only a few had practical experience with sheep, with even fewer knowing about wool before the tour.
Ms Hempsell, a revelation herself as a bright 26-year-old woman working in an industry primarily populated by middle-aged men, said the idea of hosting tours came from last month’s Sheep Industry Business Innovation Sheep Camp.
Organised by agVivo events and held annually at Rylington Park, Boyup Brook, the weekend camp teaches city students the practical applications of sheep handling, husbandry, biosecurity and welfare and outlines career options.
“For students who came off farms a lot of it is simply knowledge they grew up with, but for city-based students sometimes the reason why farmers do certain things at certain times with their stock is not immediately obvious,” Mr Hempsell said.
“Some of the students were asking me about what I do so I thought the best way to explain the career options in wool was to show anyone who was interested.”
“It took a bit of organising to fit in around their study schedules but it came together (last week) with two groups of uni students,” she said.
Murdoch student Tessa Williams, who had previously studied at WA College of Agriculture, Denmark, said she had worked as a roustabout in shearing sheds but knew little about wool and career opportunities before taking the tour.
“I’ve worked in lots of wool sheds but I never really knew much about what happened to the wool after it left the shed,” she said.
Another Murdoch student, Jamie Nykiel, found the tour “fascinating”.
“I really didn’t think it would be that technical,” she said of the wool industry.