Sonia Ryan

The key aspect of my role is turning the large volume of information we collect about farms, animals, disease, and testing into meaningful reports that our subject matter experts at OSPRI can use to make informed decisions. These insights help us improve our operations and protect New Zealand’s farms from disease.

I believe good data management is essential to biosecurity. The reporting and analysis I do supports our internal teams focused on disease management and test planning, enabling them to make better decisions for New Zealand’s farmers, processors, and the wider community.

My work also assists the traceability team by helping them identify changing livestock trends and predict where to focus their efforts to ensure national animal traceability compliance.

I produce data sets for industry partners and the Ministry for Primary Industries, who use this information to refine and enhance their own processes.

Before joining OSPRI, I worked in a similar reporting role in the disability support sector. I really enjoy working at OSPRI and being part of a diverse data team, which includes members ranging in age from their 20s to their 60s — a valuable breadth of knowledge and experience to draw from.