Meredith Dairy’s marinated goat cheese has become one of Australia’s most recognisable food products. But behind that famous jar is a far bigger story about farming, family, innovation, sustainability and what it really takes to build an Australian food business with global reach.

In this episode of Straight To The Source, Tawnya Bahr sits down with Angus Cameron, the next generation helping steer Meredith Dairy, to get beyond the cheese and into the realities of running one of Australia’s best-known family-owned dairy businesses.

Meredith Dairy began after Sandy and Julie Cameron turned to sheep and goat dairying in the early 1990s as traditional farming economics became increasingly difficult. Today, the vertically integrated business farms, milks and manufactures its products on its 4,500-acre property in Meredith, Victoria, controlling its supply chain from paddock through to finished product.

Angus talks about growing up inside the business, stepping into a second-generation family operation and the responsibility that comes with taking an established Australian food brand into its next chapter.

And then there is the question most consumers never ask: what happens to the male goats?

Dairy farming inevitably produces animals that cannot enter the milking herd, raising much bigger questions around whole-animal utilisation, waste, animal welfare and how we place value on food. It is one of the less comfortable realities sitting behind dairy production, and one chefs and consumers rarely get to see.

The conversation also digs into sustainability beyond the buzzwords. At Meredith Dairy, grains grown on the farm feed the dairy animals, straw becomes bedding, cheese whey is fed to cattle and manure is returned to the soil, while the business continues to invest in renewable energy, water conservation, recycling and land management.

For chefs, there is another lesson here. Knowing an ingredient means understanding more than flavour and functionality. It means understanding the farming system, the people, the animals, the waste streams and the decisions made long before that ingredient lands in your cool room.

Meredith Dairy products are now sold across Australia and internationally, with Angus working across marketing and export as the family business continues to grow beyond its Victorian farm gate.

This is a conversation about Australian goat cheese, but it is really about something much bigger: how you build a food business that can scale without losing sight of the farm it came from.

In this episode, Tawnya and Angus explore:

• How Meredith Dairy grew from a Victorian family farm into an internationally recognised Australian food brand
• The story behind Meredith Dairy’s goat cheese and yoghurt
• Growing up inside a family farming business
• What succession really looks like when the next generation steps in
• The realities and pressures of farming in Australia
• The uncomfortable question of what happens to male goats in a dairy system
• Whole-animal utilisation and why chefs should be part of that conversation
• Sustainability beyond marketing language
• Turning farm by-products into useful resources
• Maintaining quality while growing production
• Taking an Australian regional food brand into international markets
• What Angus believes the next chapter of Meredith Dairy could look like

This episode is proudly presented by Seaway Logistics, local experts in global trade.

Learn More & Connect with Seaway Logistics

• Website: https://www.seaway.com.au/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/seawaygroup

About Meredith Dairy 

Meredith Dairy is one of Australia’s leading family-owned sheep and goat dairies, founded by Sandy and Julie Cameron in Meredith, Victoria. Sandy brought a veterinary and animal husbandry background to the farm, while Julie, a trained nurse, helped build the business from the ground up alongside him.

What began as a move to diversify from traditional farming has grown into a vertically integrated dairy business producing acclaimed goat and sheep milk cheeses and yoghurts.

Today, the next generation is stepping forward, with their son Angus Cameron increasingly involved in the business and helping shape Meredith Dairy’s future while staying true to its focus on quality, sustainability, innovation and strong Australian farming.

• Learn more about Meredith Dairy: https://meredithdairy.com 

About Straight To The Source

Straight To The Source brings you closer to the chefs, producers, growers and makers across the entire food chain, the people shaping where food is headed and why it matters. Hosted by food experts Tawnya Bahr and Lucy Allon.

Follow, rate and review Straight To The Source to help more people discover the stories shaping Australia's food and hospitality industry.

You can find us:
• Straight To The Source Podcast: https://lnk.to/jBCTBE
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/straight_to_the_source/
• Website: http://straighttothesource.com.au

Tawnya Bahr: 

• LinkedIn:  https://www.linkedin.com/in/tawnyabahr/ 
• Instagram: @tawnyabahr  
• Email: tbahr@straighttothesource.com.au

Lucy Allon:

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• Instagram: @lucy_allon 
• Email: lucy@straighttothesource.com.au

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