Public articles
Episode 51 – Shutting the paddock gate to cut costs
Deferred grazing could be a great option for your farm, to reduce costs, and improve soil health, with environmental benefits too, and could be as simple as shutting the paddock gate. In this episode, hear from Waikato farmer Bill Garland, who has implemented this practice on his farm, and AgResearch’s Dr Katherine Tozer, the scientist behind the research into deferred grazing. We also hear from Property Brokers General Manager Rural, Conrad Wilkshire, about what changing land use regulations could mean for the rural property market going into 2025.
Episode 50 – Is 2025 the year of the deer?
2025 could be a window of opportunity for farmers to get into the deer industry, with the sheep industry facing tough times. With new market access opportunities opening up in China and South Korea, and the benefits of mixed species farming in mind, it could be the year of the deer for New Zealand farmers. Hear from Taihape deer farmer and Chairman of the New Zealand Deer Farmers Association, Mark McCoard, and Deer Industry New Zealand CEO, Rhys Griffiths.
Episode 49 – Caring for our canine companions
In this episode we focus on the loyal working dog, and give some practical advice on how we can best care for our vital farm workers throughout their life. Hear from Professor Matt Littlejohn about a new project at Massey University that looks at the DNA and behaviour of working dogs in New Zealand, and Hunterville vet, Jaime Watters, who shares advice for providing the best care for your dogs, from a pup through to an older dog.
Better your best
It’s what’s in their nuts that counts. And the team at Melior is confident their nuts have the goods when it comes to delivering fast growing, robust venison animals.
Irish Loaves
This is one of my favourite recipes. The loaves are super moist and will last a long time in the tin thanks to the ‘Irish component’. I am a big advocate for baking two things at once – one to butter and one to freeze. And in this case, you can make two loaves turn into four little cute Christmas cakes, or one to gift and one loaf for you to slice and butter with a cuppa when you find two minutes to sit down during the silly season. Words & Photos Philippa Cameron.
Episode 48 – How to stand out as a great farming employer
Recruiting and keeping great employees is always relevant in the success of farm businesses, and is the focus of the special report in Country-Wide Summer. In this episode find out more about fair remuneration and what employees are looking for when it comes to work contracts from Federated Farmers Employment Spokesperson Richard McIntyre, and how you can attract good employees through your recruitment process from Rural Directions Manager Gretchen Parkes.
Episode 47 – How do we encourage young people into farming?
Keeping young people engaged in the farming industry is vital to the long term success of our sector. Nurturing and growing the next generation of farmers is something we should all care about. In this episode we look at the programmes that exist to upskill our future farmers, and give them the tools to have a long and rewarding career, such as Growing Future Farmers and the Trades Academy. We also dive into the current property markets around farmland prices, and whether it’s a sellers market yet.