Wandoan district agent Joe Keppel of Nutrien has called it a day and retired, aged 76 years, after a career spanning 56 years, but says he would do it all again.
Well, Joe calls it retirement, but when Queensland Country Life caught up with him earlier this week, he said yes "I have retired, but I am still doing a day here and a day there, and it will be like this for the next 12 months".
Dubbed "one of the nicest blokes in the livestock industry business", Joe carved his career around the settlement of the brigalow ballads drawn in the late 1960s in the Dawson Valley.
"I started out working with the grandfathers and today my clients are those original settlers' grandsons," he said.
"These founding settlers did it very tough as the beef crash was to follow in the early 1970s, and some went farming if their country was suited, while the others battled it out the best way they could."
Joe joined the pastoral firm Mactaggarts in 1966 in Rockhampton and cut his cut under the them manager the late Max Worthington for the next seven months.
"I then transferred to Wandoan, and later opened the Mactaggart's Taroom branch in 1968."
Next, it was back to Wandoan joining Australian Estates, and working through the AML&F merger through to the Elders venture.
Joe joined Dalgety Winchcombe team in 1990, as Wandoan branch manager, again the company underwent the many name changes to Nutrien.
In 2018, he handed the branch manager's reins over to Dane Pearce, opting to be the senior livestock salesman and real estate representative.
"Training an agent today is a bit different than my day due to technology," he said.
"But, I still say the hands on visits are a big advantage and you need to make contact in person and meet your clients on their home ground.
"An agents needs to know his client, and vise versa, then you can engage in the technology of email chains."
On the subject of technology, Joe said he was never a great office person who often struggled with the changing systems.
"I was really lucky to have very efficient administration staff along the way," he said.
Joe is the first to admit that the technological advances in the livestock sector have been all for the better.
"We have seen significant changes like live weight selling and carcase feedback, and these have been much better for the producer."
Joe said he always wanted to be an agent, and given this choice again he would do it again.
"Maybe some things I may do a little differently - but it has been a good life for me," he said.
Fellow agent Dane Pearce, now North Queensland stud stock manager for Nutrien, said he has nothing but respect for Joe.
"He was a very good mentor and always gave valuable advice," Dane said.
"I always valued and respected Joe's opinion as he would let find out your own way.
"He has a presence and a great sense of humour and he certainly relates and connects to the younger people in the company."
Dane differs with Joe's ability to adapt to modern technology.
"He certainly mastered his iPhone and can shoot off an email in no time," Dane said.
Helen Walker
Helen is the Toowoomba-based journalist who loves nothing better than covering anything horse sport related, however she covers all commodities and personality yarns. Over the years she has lived in Brisbane, Rockhampton, Longreach and Roma filing stories for the 'bible of the bush'. Contact 0459 827414.
Helen is the Toowoomba-based journalist who loves nothing better than covering anything horse sport related, however she covers all commodities and personality yarns. Over the years she has lived in Brisbane, Rockhampton, Longreach and Roma filing stories for the 'bible of the bush'. Contact 0459 827414.
