Steve Skinner awarded the RW Vincent Award
Congratulations to Steve Skinner, who has been awarded the prestigious RW Vincent award by the Australian Registered Cattle Breeders Association (ARCBA) for his outstanding service to the Australian Cattle Breeding Industry. Steve was recognised at the Rabobank Beef Industry Awards night at Beef Australia in Rockhampton earlier this month.
Throughout his 30 year span at ABRI, Steve has played an integral role in the delivery of ABRI’s products and services to the cattle breeding industry. Steve has worked extensively with ABRI’s Australian and international beef breed society clients to maintain the integrity of their studbooks through their use of the Breed Secretariat service and/or breed registry software, and to facilitate genetic improvement within their breeds through the use of the BREEDPLAN genetic evaluation. Throughout Steve’s career, there have been numerous enhancements made to the BREEDPLAN genetic evaluation, and to the use of DNA technologies in cattle breeding. These include, but are not limited to, the introduction of new traits into the BREEDPLAN genetic evaluation, revisions to selection indexes, and the emergence of DNA technology with applications for parentage verification, management of genetic conditions and Single-Step BREEDPLAN. Steve has led ABRI through these changes, assisting breed societies and beef producers understand these new technologies and how they can best be utilised in their own businesses.
In addition to his integral role in the delivery of ABRI’s products and services for the beef sector, Steve has been a mentor to numerous others in the Australian cattle breeding industry. Throughout his career, Steve has been an advocate for young people in agriculture. He has facilitated work experience opportunities at ABRI for those completing university degrees in agriculture, and employed numerous personnel who were newly graduated and/or in the early stage of their career. He has also been an advocate for career development, having encouraged and supported his staff to continue further education (e.g. university degrees, professional development courses) while working. Many of those employed by Steve early in their careers have gone on to have their own successful careers in the Australian cattle breeding industry (for example, positions with Meat and Livestock Australia, Australian beef cattle breed societies, state Agricultural Departments and/or service provider roles).