Founder of Agripath, Simon has over 20 years experience in agriculture with his client base encompassing irrigation, dry land farming and grazing operations.

He has Southern, Central, and Northern NSW farming systems experience. Simon’s particular strengths have been in financial analysis and planning to deliver profitable outcomes for client businesses. Simon has worked as an irrigation agronomist for Twynam Cotton at Warren, a dry land consultant agronomist for Hassall & Associates and team leader Farm Business Consulting for Hassall & Associates.

Simon has worked in many parts of Australia, giving him a broad understanding of all facets of farming in diverse environments and an excellent network of skilled land managers/farm advisors.

Peter has spent the past 30 years helping farmers to improve their farm profitability by implementing good farming systems, best practice and other ingredients of a good farming business which include crop selection, farm cost choices, labour, safety and machinery decisions. Special expertise includes conservation farming, soil and carbon management, soil fertility and the use of recycled organics such as feedlot and poultry manure.

A PhD thesis was completed on the ‘Economics and Adoption of Conservation Farming systems in Northern Australia’. Peter has spent many years as principal of Horizon Rural Management and after a break working in land management for Origin Energy has joined with Simon Fritsch and Agripath Pty Ltd. to provide benchmarking and farm profit advice to farmers in Queensland. Farm business plans, feasibility studies, farm purchase proposals and business cases for irrigation and other projects have been part of past and current consultancy work.

Peter has been involved in many training workshops for farmers. Writing about farming systems and farm profitability has been extensive over the years.

Office manager for Agripath in the Tamworth office. Kate previously worked for ABARE and with Simon in starting an independent consulting service. She has experience in cotton agronomy, Rural book-keeping and as a consultant with Hassall and Associates. Kate attended Hawkesbury Agricultural College studying a degree in Applied Science (Systems Agriculture).

Kim has been working with farm families in southern Queensland for over 20 years with the main focus being to fine tune and improve the profitability of their businesses. Kim also has experience in Western Australia where he was born and raised on mixed farming property near Geraldton.

Kim has had extensive experience with dryland cropping and livestock systems and provided business management advice on aspects such as enterprise selection, crop choices, livestock options, input costs, human resources, machinery ownership, use of contractors, finance structuring, succession planning & effective preparation for timeliness of operations.

As a graduate of Charles Sturt University, Marcus Oldham College, The Australian Institute of Company Directors and with training in facilitation, Nell joined Agripath in 2021 because she has a deep and abiding love of Australian agriculture. She firmly believes that everyone in the industry deserves access to the tools required for success in their chosen field. As such Nell regards it her responsibility to help clients to find these tools, whether that be in the form of data interpretation, investigating practical on-farm solutions or exploring family dynamics. She enjoys forming long term relationships with clients and supporting sound business management.

Working across NSW and Victoria over the past decade Nell has experience in managing livestock and cropping operations, facilitating livestock export, rangeland grazing and the finance industry. She now manages a merino breeding and cattle trading business in Central West NSW with her husband.

Scott grew up in a mixed farm operation in Central NSW and since obtaining a Bachelor of Rural Science has more than 20 years of professional experience in agriculture.

His passion remains in agriculture and lays firmly in the future business needs of Agripath clients. He has a willingness to listen, identify opportunities and integrate the long-term findings inside the Agripath regional datasets with his own diverse experience to further develop the tools, information and outcomes making a positive impact to farm businesses.

Scott has extensive experience as an agronomist in irrigated cotton, horticulture, dryland farming and pastures. He also has a deep understanding of grain markets and supply chains after appointments with CBH Group and Clear Grain Exchange. Scott also worked as a member of the Climate Branch within the NSW Department of Primary Industries. Here, he further developed his understanding of practical agriculture, market influences and his systems approach to assisting farm businesses. Scott’s experience has enabled a wide understanding of agricultural systems across large areas of Eastern and Western Australia.

Passionate about agriculture, Alastair has experience in dryland cropping, irrigated cropping and livestock operations. An eagerness to be involved in the cattle industry lead Alastair to complete a Bachelor of Rural Science with Honours at the University of New England.

Based in Tamworth Alastair started with Agripath at the end of 2021 as an Agribusiness Analyst.

Paula, raised on a property near Moonie QLD offers a unique set of skills to Agripath. As a USQ graduate with a Master of Professional Accounting Extended (MPAE), brings over a decade’s practical experience in accounting and financial counselling having worked with a client base from a wide range of primary production enterprises in QLD and northern NSW.

Joining the Chinchilla office in April 2022, Paula is passionate about rural issues and enjoys getting on farm to see what can’t been seen on paper.

Aidan is an agricultural analyst at Agripath based in the Tamworth Office. Aidan is a graduate of the University of New England with a Bachelor of Rural Science degree.

Aidan was born and raised on his family’s beef cattle farm on the North Coast of New South Wales where he developed a passion for agriculture. Aidan has gained experience with a range of agricultural systems including, commercial and seedstock cattle operations, sheep production, dryland cropping and irrigated cropping systems. Aidan has a passion for assisting clients to better understand their farming business, through the use of data analytics and interpretation to fine tune their operation, building long-term profitability.

Claudia’s passion for agriculture stems from growing up on her family’s cropping and cattle property on the Liverpool Plains, NSW.  She completed a Master’s of Agribusiness at Marcus Oldham whilst helping her family manage their property from 2018 – 2022.  After a stint at the GRDC as an economic analyst, Claudia joined the Agripath team based in Orange in 2023. 

Claudia is passionate about supporting farmers to make better management decisions to drive growth and profitability in their business!

Based in the Tamworth Office Will is an agricultural analyst at Agripath. Will graduated from of Marcus Oldham with a Bachelor of Business (Agribusiness). Will has experience in both northern and southern grazing systems.

Will has a passion for agriculture and enjoys helping pinpoint opportunities for farm businesses to help meet their financial and non-financial goals.

Mitch is an agricultural analyst at Agripath based in the Tamworth Office. Mitch completed a dual Agriculture & Business degree from the University of New England in Armidale.

Mitch was born and raised on his family’s cropping and sheep property south west of Tamworth where he developed a passion for agriculture. Mitch has gained experiences in cropping systems throughout the eastern seaboard, working for several producers and research groups throughout NW NSW & Victoria. Mitch’s expertise in data analytics enables him to help clients gain valuable insights into their farming operations. By interpreting data effectively, he empowers them to make informed decisions that enhance efficiency and drive long-term profitability. His commitment to understanding each client’s unique challenges ensures tailored solutions that support sustainable growth in their farming business.

Drew Hawkins is a passionate agribusiness professional who began his 25+ year career as an agronomist and Merchandise Manager, where he developed a deep understanding of agricultural science and practices in QLD and NSW. He then transitioned to marketing cotton with Namoi Cotton, where he honed his skills in agricultural marketing and sales.

After a brief career break to play rugby in Scotland for two and a half years, Drew returned to Australia and entered the field of agribusiness banking. For 11 years, he worked as an Agribusiness Banker in Northern New South Wales and the Riverina, providing financial services and support to the agricultural sector.

Prior to joining Agripath as a Senior Consultant, Drew managed a machinery dealership, where he successfully implemented a strategic growth program. In his current role at Agripath, Drew focuses on enhancing client profitability in Southern New South Wales and parts of Victoria. He specialises in dryland and irrigated cropping as well as livestock enterprises, bringing his broad experience and expertise to help clients achieve their business and strategic goals.

Drew’s passion for agriculture is only surpassed by family, with his wife, Sally, an Agricultural Conveyancer, and their 2 boys, who are active with rugby, soccer, tennis, golf and waterskiing. 

Flora is currently working in the Tamworth office whilst completing her university placement from the UK. Flora is in her 3rd year at Harper Adams University studying BSc Agriculture with Farm Business Management and has moved over to Australia to both expand her knowledge on different agricultural systems, and further involve herself in the business aspect of the industry.

Although not from a farming background, Flora has grown up on mixed cropping and livestock farms around Northamptonshire and is especially interested in livestock, having worked closely with sheep back home.

Will grew up working alongside Simon and Kate on the family farm and now with Agripath. Initially studying agriculture through the University of New England, the focus switched towards developing a digital data platform and IT services for the Agricultural sector. Will has experience in working on several farms throughout NSW with exposure to livestock, irrigation and rainfed cropping. Will is passionate about delivering a industry leading data platform for Agripath clients.