Prominent grains industry identities receive Queen’s Birthday honours
Two prominent Victorian grains industry identities are among those recognised with Queen’s Birthday Honours.
PROMINENT Victorian grains industry identities Allan McCallum and Andrew Weidemann have been recognised with Queen’s Birthday Honours.
Mr McCallum was recognised with an AO for “distinguished service to primary industry”. The farmer from Kerang has had a long association with agribusiness and agripolitical organisations.
He is a former chairman of Vicgrain Limited, deputy chairman of GrainCorp, and has sat on the board of Incitec Pivot and the Victorian Farmers Federation.
He also chairs the board of aquaculture giant Tassal — Australia’s largest producer of Atlantic salmon — and is a director of the Cann Group, the first company to be given Federal Government approval to be issued with a Cannabis Research Licence and which is in the process of building a $200 million medicinal marijuana processing facility at Mildura.
Mr Weidemann, from Rupanyup, was awarded an AM for “significant service to primary industry, particularly to the grain producing sector”.
He is the current chairman of Grain Producers Australia, a former VFF grains group president and has a long association with Birchip Cropping Group.
Among those to receive Queen’s Birthday Honours this year were former Victorian Premier Denis Napthine, West Wimmera Shire Council mayor Bruce Meyer, former Municipal Association of Victoria president Bill McArthur, Ouyen-born Barefoot Investor Scott Pape and former federal independent MP Tony Windsor.
Also recognised were NSW egg producer and Australian Eggs director Bede Burke, University of Queensland agriculture professor John Longworth, Wimmera River Improvement Committee chairman Gary Aitken, Meerlieu farmer Craig Bush and Graham Day of Allendale beef and sheep studs at Bordertown in South Australia.
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