Episode 36 – Can farmers benefit from diversifying onfarm income?
When the traditional income streams are not delivering enough to the bottom line, is it time to diversify into activities that don’t rely on the cyclical nature of farm commodities? It can be hard to know what options are out there to diversify onfarm income, and how they can be integrated into your farming system. In this episode we hear about different options for diversifying, from raising goats for cashmere to horticulture and viticulture.
Guests include:
- Olivia Sanders, Business Development Manager, New Zealand Cashmere
- Che Charteris, CEO, Craigmore Sustinables
- Marcus Bousfield, Regional Manager for Business, ANZ
Hosts:
- Rebecca Greaves, Editor, Country-Wide
- Sarah Perriam-Lampp, Managing Director, CountryWide Media
NZ Cashmere’s Olivia Sanders says the time is now to get into the goat business, and shares some helpful insights for farmers who are interested in integrating goats into their farm system. She also discusses the realistic maintenance required for goats – such as when to shear, when to drench, and how to keep them contained.
Craigmore Sustainables CEO Che Charteris discusses the options for diversifying farm business through horticulture. He talks about how to manage the volatility of horticulture and viticulture, what opportunities there are with both climate change and water consents across the country, and what advice he has for sheep and beef farmers to avoid pitfalls when diversifying their land-use options.
ANZ’s Marcus Bousfield discusses whether it’s a good time for farmers to look at diversifying their income, and what those options might be. This includes solar, agritourism, and tree plantings with a potential ETS in mind. He says the weigh up would be whether you could get more value out of having beef or sheep on that land, or if trees could bring more income in future carbon credits.
Read more in Country-Wide Spring:
- Pest to profit with Olivia Sanders
- Weighing up the options with Marcus Bousfield
