NT's young beef ambassador is a vet on the move

The 30-year-old, involved in preparing and monitoring beef, dairy and wild-caught buffalo for export, plus a host of biosecurity planning and management roles, has just been recognised for his beef industry leadership.

In front of more than 700 guests at the Rabobank Beef Industry Awards dinner at Beef 2024 he was named Young Beef Ambassador.

The title recognises young, forward-thinking and high-achieving people working in the sector.

"There's a lot of cattle, a lot of country and a lot of potential in the north, and the element of excitement about the rewards," said the young vet who headed straight to the Top End after leaving university three years ago.

Dr Vaughan's particular leadership style and vision have become evident in his own animal health business, Charles Vaughan Veterinary Service, which services northern Australia's the pastoral and export sectors; his job at Australian Cattle Enterprises (ACE), and biosecurity projects undertaken in South East Asia.

He has fast become an industry advocate, last year representing the NT Live Exporters Association in Vietnam at the Australian Beef Cattle Symposium.

"Successfully managing these multiple roles across a large and geographically-challenging area shows just how proactive and effective Charles is as a leader," said Rabobank's Australian chief executive officer, Mark Weissing.

"This award is judged on the nominee's effective and progressive approach to successful business management, and their potential as a leader and contributor to the beef industry.

"Considering Dr Vaughan's impressive track record so far, it will be fascinating to witness his journey into the future."

The northern Victorian farm boy turned frequent flyer to all parts of Australia and Asia spends much of his time sourcing cattle across about half the continent.

He travels from Fremantle in southern Western Australia to the Territory's Barkly Tablelands and Central Queensland.

Internationally, he goes with cattle on live export ships and works with feedlots and livestock businesses in Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, the Philippines, East and West Malaysia, and Brunei.

Recently, Dr Vaughan developed biosecurity plans and assisted in foot and mouth disease management in Indonesian feedlots during the 2022 outbreaks.

He also completed a self-directed volume of testing to ensure Australia's freedom from lumpy skin disease last year during trade disruptions as part of an ongoing challenge to protect Australian agriculture from exotic animal disease incursions.

Currently he assisting in the management, procurement, operational support and logistics for ACE's 18,000 head backgrounding program on the NT floodplains.

The program focuses on procurement of cattle during times of high supply and diminishing nutrition, staging them across three properties.

The stock are fattened on pastures in the northern dry season, before being shipped to South East Asian feedlots.

"In the past year, the company has transported about 60,000 head of Australian cattle to South East Asian markets," Dr Vaughan said.

"My role with ACE sees me involved in everything from selecting cattle that meet export specifications to handling the mountains of paperwork, organising stockmen, fodder, and veterinary kits on vessels, and physically loading the boat at the port."

He also works with indigenous communities, exporting feral-caught buffalo.

His job even extends to companion animal desexing programs in indigenous communities.

ACE has exported close to 10,000 buffalo to South-East Asia in the past two years.

In doing so it has provided opportunities for traditional owners and NT producers to connect with global markets eager to receive this quality protein offering.

Dr Vaughan said the lure of opportunity had drawn him north and he anticipated a big future for the beef industry "above the 26th parallel".

"Northern Australian producers supply an extensive range of cattle markets, both export and domestic, and maintain a world-class reputation for being a superior, safe and reliable producer of high-quality Australian livestock," he said.

"Beef production remains a vital trade in the Top End and continues to encourage development in rural communities and boost incomes.

"It creates employment opportunities, increases export revenue and supports economic growth."

But there was still room for the beef sector to improve, through efficiencies, welfare practices, nutrition and land management or consumer satisfaction.

"All stakeholders, from first-year ringers working on stations, through to Australian butchers and Vietnamese feedlot workers, should make it their duty to be animal advocates and focus on promoting the great story Australian beef production has to tell," he said.

"I would like to see continued conversations and promotion of industry best practice to ensure the best animal welfare outcomes and best economic return for all beef industry stakeholders."

Dr Vaughan's enthusiasm for the industry was nurtured in a mixed farming environment growing up at Nathalia and later studying veterinary science at Charles Sturt University, Wagga Wagga.

At university he concurrently managed a rural retail business and spent weekends and holidays contract mustering and harvesting, then had stints in cattle feedlots in Canada, and on pastoral stations in the northern Australia's Gulf and Kimberly regions.

Now, as part of Dr Vaughan's Young Beef Ambassadorship, he will attend the next Rabobank Executive Development Program, designed to develop strategic planning mindsets and commercial management skills among progressive primary producers and farm industry participants.