Zanda McDonald awardee puts people at centre of successful agribusiness

MLA congratulates the 2025 winners of the Zanda McDonald Award – Australian red meat producer Jack O’Connor and New Zealander, Maegen Blom, from the aquaculture industry.

Jack sees the award as a shared achievement and is keen to give credit to his tight-knit farming family who run their multigenerational cropping, wool and prime lamb farm, ‘Oxton Park’, in Harden, NSW.  

It was this support and the desire to continue his family’s legacy that drew him back to the family farm in 2018 and take up a General Managing role at Oxton Park.

Wanting to set a good example for his son Freddie, was what pushed him over the line to apply just a few days before the deadline.

People front and centre

Coming from a family business where people and relationships come first, it’s no wonder that Jack sees success in agribusiness as the right combination of people and timing.

“Our business is no different – we are passionate about building the right team – it’s really diverse and is made up of a range of people with unique strengths and passions.

“Everyone is very respectful of each other’s areas of expertise. We still have hard conversations, and we welcome them, but fundamentally it’s built upon trust and that’s very important,” Jack said.

“We have very much grown up with this belief – the generation above us has begun to successfully transition into retirement gradually by the time they are 65, which means we can smooth the transition of certain roles and responsibilities.

“The influence of Chris Duff in particular, from Delta Agribusiness as our chairman for many years, has been instrumental for our business and he is a great mentor.

“My experience with family business succession and general company structure was probably one of the cornerstones in my presentation for the Zanda McDonald Award, which I like to think I can speak confidently on. But by no means is ours perfect – it’s no different to any other part of the business that needs constant improvement,” Jack said.

Trust and support

Jack describes a culture of knowledge sharing and open communication at Oxton Park.

“We don’t just share the good stuff – we always like to encourage everyone to share their mistakes because that’s where we believe the biggest learnings come from.”

The family’s strategies for success include surrounding themselves with the right people. This includes partnering with advisors and ensuring they hire staff not only for their skills but also for the right attitudes.

“We promote upskilling and want our staff to be able to develop their passions. We all need to do the repetitive jobs sometimes, but to ensure we retain and attract the best people, you need to think bigger picture – make sure everyone is always feeling challenged and bring them along on a career journey,” Jack said.

Living the life

Among those who work on the land is a love of the farming lifestyle.  

“You won’t ever meet a producer or grower who isn’t passionate. We live and we breathe what we do. It’s not just a nine-to-five job,” Jack said.

Jack sees work life balance, however, as vital and fundamental to the family business.

“We’ve always tried to be on the front foot with flexibility in our workplace. Family and friends come first so it’s making sure everyone keeps that perspective day-to-day.”

Jack encourages his staff to make the most of community life.

“In the Harden community there are so many great sporting clubs and groups – it brings people together. There are outreach groups such as an active farmers group who meet one morning a week. Mental health is so important – it’s not just about the things we produce,” Jack said.

Where it all began

Jack’s family encouraged him to explore his options and develop a career away from the family farm. He chose to study economics with a major in agribusiness at university and his early career included time working at MLA with the Markets team. Later, he worked for a not-for-profit in Uganda, helping to develop farming businesses that supported local primary schools to be financially sustainable.

“During my time in east Africa where rice and beans are the staple – financial constraints, electricity and access to markets can be some of the main reasons people don’t eat meat.

“It’s a luxury in many areas so you definitely don’t take it for granted. A nice goat curry was for a special occasion,” Jack said.  

“It gives you a new perspective on how fortunate we are in other parts of the world to have access to things day-to-day that you wouldn’t even notice. But also, what we as a country and society can learn from others. It’s not always one way traffic.”

Future focused

Cyclone Alfred may have put the brakes on Jack’s attendance at the Award’s annual Impact Summit on the Gold Coast – which needed to be postponed until later in the year – but it certainly won’t slow him down for long. He’s keen to make the most of the personalised development package and mentoring trip across Australia and New Zealand.

Jack would like to broaden his view to include other industries and learn from their processes, structures and marketing strategies.

“After a few chats with the New Zealand awardee, Maegen, her passion for business development in our industries is so evident. Her ideas around a few areas are very inspiring so we’re going to be casting the net pretty wide.

“She’s such an impressive person so I’m very excited to be sharing the journey alongside her,” Jack said.

Hear Jack’s thoughts on winning the award on the Humans of Agriculture podcast: Jack O'Connor - 2025 Zanda McDonald Award Winner from Australia