Matthew Newman

Matthew Newman

Matt Newman, joined AbacusBio in 2023. Matt is a Senior Economist with vast agricultural production experience and affinity with New Zealand livestock sectors. Over the last 25 years Matt has developed and led Economic teams for Beef+Lamb New Zealand, DairyNZ and MPI. Matt specialises in farm systems analysis, benchmarking, forecasting and environmental impact assessments. Before …

Read more

Caeli Richardson

Caeli Richardson PhD

Caeli discovered her passion for agriculture while working on a dairy farm in Canada. She broadened her practical experience on a local swine and cash crop operation before gaining a global perspective of on-farm challenges. Incorporating practical experience into her theoretical training allows Caeli to create innovative solutions to multifaceted problems.  She brings tremendous passion and positive …

Read more

Martin Howes

Martin Howes Bs

Martin has an extensive background in corporate agriculture providing support to farms, from small to large businesses. Martin was responsible for implementing robust practices and systems to ensure high physical and financial performance and supporting managers and farm staff. Martin has been involved in managing several large farm development projects, a livestock trading farm and …

Read more

Megan Vasko

Megan Vasko MS

  Megan Vasko is a consultant at AbacusBio known for her adaptability, tenacity, and passion for digital whiteboard sessions. She’s primarily focused on programme management, namely AbacusBio’s largest collaboration to date, Bayer Crop Science. In her day to day, she takes the guesswork out of who is doing what, next. She keeps projects on track …

Read more

Tom Kirk

Tom Kirk BCom

Tom’s background in finance, economics, and statistics provide a unique perspective on which clients can tap to understand insights about the trade-offs and economic issues facing the agricultural and food systems industries. Tom joined AbacusBio in 2014, firstly as an intern and then later as a consultant based in Edinburgh. His commerce background and ability …

Read more

John Crowley

John Crowley PhD

John Crowley is the managing director of AbacusBio Canada, a subsidiary office established in 2023 in Alberta. He has a PhD in statistical genetics and over 15 years of experience in breeding and genetics, agri-business and data analytics initiatives.  John is passionate about delivering innovative and practical solutions that enhance the genetic potential, profitability, and …

Read more

Shalini Kumar

Shalini Kumar PhD

Shalini is a Consultant Project Manager and she manages several projects – both external and internal.  For our client-facing jobs, Shalini’s primary responsibility is to ensure the smooth running of the project, within the agreed budget and timeline. She does this by being involved in the projects from the start to understand the client needs …

Read more

Loame Kok

Loamé Kok (Van Zyl) BSc

Loame first came to AbacusBio as an intern, while pursuing a genetics degree at the University of Otago. She is highly driven and brings her creative, pragmatic mindset towards her work at AbacusBio. At AbacusBio, she is involved in several projects looking at the development of practical packages to support the development of new plant products, …

Read more

Nathalie Howes

Natalie Howes PhD

The opportunities presented to Natalie while growing up on-farm in the sheep, beef, and dairy industries, is what motivates Natalie to deliver impact to the agricultural sector. With an affable personality and grassroots core, Natalie works closely with clients to strategically apply scientific principles that deliver commercially relevant solutions. While based in AbacusBio’s Dunedin office, …

Read more

Sam Harburg

Sam Harburg BAgrSc MBA

Sam is an all-rounded agricultural expert. He brings to you his deep technical expertise in livestock breeding, genetics, and production. Having gained an MBA from Deakin University in Australia, he also possesses a strong skillset in corporate agricultural management and economic analysis. Originally from Brisbane, Australia, Sam offers practicality and versatility in his quest to …

Read more

Bruno Santos

Bruno Santos PhD

Bruno focuses on promoting and disseminating breeding strategies to increase efficiency and sustainability in livestock and plant production. Bruno has a global understanding of the agricultural sector, combined with his expertise in development of breeding objectives, and practical application of genetic improvement principles. His approach is to deliver expertise with passion, customer centric focus and …

Read more

Fiona Hely

Fiona Hely BAppSc(Hons)

Fiona is a logical thinker and a great problem solver. You will find that she has a good listening ear and is able to successfully help you piece the puzzles together to resolve challenges and meet your data needs. Fiona specialises in the design and simulation of breeding programs and optimisation, bringing to clients her …

Read more

Peter Fenessy

Peter Fennessy PhD

Peter is constantly curious, which may explain why he loves science so much. He loves digging into a problem and whilst he is technically very capable, he also looks at the world with a glint in his entrepreneur’s eye. Peter is a champion of science being practical and understanding the science and the commercial landscape …

Read more

Tim Byrne

Tim Byrne PhD

Tim has over 15 years of experience as an applied scientist and a consultant. His work mantra is simple: good scientists need to deliver impact, not just solutions. A broad thinker and an in-depth leader, Tim can help you identify investment and technology opportunities and successfully integrate them into businesses to thrive. He currently heads …

Read more

Jude Sise

Jude Sise MApplSc

Jude is an accomplished problem-solver with ideas and she has the tenacity to bring them to life. Her analytical mind, excellent attention to detail, and commercial acumen make her an outstanding consultant at AbacusBio. Jude specialises in genetics, modelling, and software development. She is also skilled in  communicating complex information clearly, which streamlines and enhances …

Read more

Peter Amer

Peter Amer PhD

Peter is a world-class scientist, renowned for his multi-faceted approach to designing and developing effective breeding programs. He has a talent for creating practical innovative solutions that apply to a range of complex issues, whether it be technical, commercial, or political. It is not surprising that his problem-solving capabilities are widely sought around the world. …

Read more