Industry Advisory Committee
Damian Murphy
Chair
Damian Murphy is a dairy farmer at Dumbalk North, Victoria, milking 270 cows through four DeLaval VMS robots. He returned to the family farm in 2000 and purchased it in 2012, the same year he was awarded a Nuffield Scholarship sponsored by Gardiner Foundation to study young farmer finance schemes.
That experience led to roles with United Dairy Farmers of Victoria Policy Council, Australian Dairy Farmers National Council and the Victorian Agricultural Advisory Council. Damian currently chairs both Nuffield Victoria and NEX Business Farming Wellness. He brings a practical, innovation-focused mindset to the IAC chair role, with a strong emphasis on rigorous evaluation before adopting new technology or practices.
Ella credlin
Ella Credlin is a dairy farmer and corporate finance professional. Alongside her husband Jed, she owns and operates several farms at Ecklin South, milking over 2,500 cows. She also brings over 20 years of experience in financial strategy, analysis and governance from her career in the corporate sector.
Ella holds a Bachelor of Applied Science from the University of Melbourne, is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and recently completed Course 29 of the Australian Rural Leadership Program. She serves on the board of Food & Fibre, Great South Coast, West Vic Dairy, Australian Dairy Conference and was Programming Chair of the Australian Dairy Conference in 2026. Given Ella and Jed are both first generational farmers, her passionate is around education, career pathways and equity growth opportunities for the next generation of dairy professionals.
Brendan Rea
Brendan Rea owns and operates a 1,000-cow dairy enterprise at Allansford in south-west Victoria. Known as an early adopter of technology and innovation both on-farm and beyond, he has built a high-performing business driven by efficiency, animal welfare and continuous improvement.
Brendan serves as Chairman of WestVic Dairy, where he contributes strategic and governance expertise to support farmers across the region. He is committed to the long-term sustainability, profitability and reputation of the dairy industry, and to ensuring it remains a resilient and progressive sector for future generations.
Stuart Crosthwaite
Stuart Crosthwaite farms with his wife Sarah and is Managing Director of the Mountain Milk Co-operative, where he has made a significant leadership contribution to the local industry. He holds a Bachelor of Agriculture, a Masters of Agribusiness and a Graduate Diploma of Applied Science, and began his career in agricultural consulting.
Stuart is an innovative farmer with a strong track record of turning ideas into practice, having grown his farming operation substantially over the past 20 years. He sees the co-operative as a vehicle for building the future of dairy in his region and brings that same forward-looking energy to his broader industry involvement.
Lauren Finger
Lauren Finger is a dairy farmer from Yannathan in West Gippsland, milking 600 cows on a 216-hectare dryland farm alongside husband Simon and a small team. Their farming approach prioritises low-stress stock handling, natural selection principles and a resilient herd and forage base. Recently, they have made investments into technology and infrastructure including a new rotary dairy to help support the aim of ‘a simple system, done well’.
Lauren’s background is in veterinary science, with experience across private practice and government. She is a graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors, completed Course 25 of the Australian Rural Leadership Program and is a former Chair of GippsDairy.
JOhn Penry
John Penry is Chief Technical Officer at Aurora Dairies and former Principal Scientist at Dairy Australia. He graduated as a veterinarian from the University of Melbourne in 1990 and spent more than two decades in mixed dairy practice in Camperdown, south-west Victoria.
John holds a Masters in Dairy Medicine and Management and a PhD from the University of Wisconsin-Madison focused on milk harvesting research. He has contributed to major national industry programs including Countdown and InCalf and holds membership qualifications in ruminant nutrition with the Australian and New Zealand College of Veterinary Scientists. His expertise spans dairy animal health, milk harvesting and feedbase management.
Monique Bryant
Monique Bryant is a third-generation dairy farmer operating the family farm with her husband Mark at Kaarimba in Victoria’s northern dairy region. After completing an agribusiness degree at the University of Melbourne, she worked in dairy-focused roles at Rural Finance and Tatura Milk before purchasing the farm in 2007. Since then, they have steadily grown the business in land, water and cow numbers.
Monique brings deep industry knowledge shaped by decades of hands-on experience navigating the full range of challenges dairy farming presents. Her enduring passion for the industry and the communities it supports is central to the contribution she makes to the committee.
Donna Gibson
Donna Gibson is Gardiner Foundation’s Program Manager for Research and Innovation, having joined the team in 2022. She brings more than 20 years of experience across the dairy sector, from farming through to research and extension, including roles with Agriculture Victoria and Dairy Australia.
Donna holds a Bachelor of Environmental Science specialising in land and water from Charles Sturt University. She is passionate about the dairy industry and the communities it sustains, and brings a broad understanding of the sector’s challenges and opportunities to her work at Gardiner.