Growing up on cattle properties and then building careers beyond the farm gate, Ceres Tag founders David and Melita Smith found themselves drawn back to their roots.
Story Gabrielle Hall Photo Liam Foster
An Australian smart tag for livestock is helping bring data from the paddock to the fingertips of producers across the world. Beginning as an idea from two bush-bred entrepreneurs, Ceres Tag has since grown into a livestock intelligence system now used in more than 50 countries.
The business launched in 2021. But long before satellites, sensors and global investors entered the picture, Ceres Tag founders David and Melita Smith were just two kids growing up in the Australian cattle industry.
Melita grew up on dairy, grazing and lucerne hay properties in the South Burnett region of Queensland. David’s early years were spent on a cattle property at Buchanan, NSW. The couple say their upbringing helped shape their shared values of working together, caring for livestock and supporting their communities.
“We’ve come from two different sides of the livestock industry, where I grew up with our main focus on the growing of the livestock and having a bigger breeding operation, whereas David’s was a smaller operation that had the whole paddock-to-plate side to it,” Melita says. “We really had a passion for the whole supply chain from breeding it to growing it to getting it to a consumer.”
This story excerpt is from Issue #168
Outback Magazine: Aug/Sep 2026
