National Merino Ambassadors is an initiative put together by the Australian Association of Stud Merino Breeders (AASMB) bringing together a pool of passionate young people in the Merino Industry who have generously volunteered to contribute their time and skills by helping promote the Merino.

Alex works alongside his grandfather, uncle and cousin on the family property in Redesdale, Victoria. The property covers approximately 3000 hectares and consists of a commercial superfine merino sheep and wool operation as well as the Beverley Merino Stud.

In July this year, Alex completed the Breeding Leadership week. A program, funded by AWI, where young people are selected from around the country to learn about different facets of the Wool Industry.

“In addition to developing new skills around strategic planning and communication, I got to spend a week with some awesome people from all over the country who are as passionate about this industry as I am.”

From Alex perspective, the best thing about merinos is having multiple income streams.

“Why chose between growing the best natural fibre in the world and breeding prime lambs? With merinos you can do both.”

“From a risk management point of view, not ‘putting all of your eggs in one basket’ makes great sense.”

“Retaining all of our sheep through tougher times with extensive supplementary feeding has allowed us to really capitalise on buoyant sheep and wool markets in the last couple of years. Aside from that, merinos are just the best fit for our environment. It’s no coincidence that all of our neighbours run merinos as well!”