Join us for a conversation with Robert Sewell, a third-generation grain grower from Wongan Hills and former Chairman of the Grain Pool of WA, whose career spans six decades of Australian agriculture.

Disclaimer

© 2026 Master Group (Aust.) Pty Ltd. All rights reserved.

The Engine Room is a new bi-weekly mini-series from Boots Off Log On! hosted by Agrimaster's Joint-CEOs David and Natalie Egerton-Warburton.

Each episode covers the practical financial skills and habits that help working farmers manage their books, forecast cashflow, and make smarter decisions season after season.

In this first episode, David and Natalie explore why the farm office is the engine room of your business, not an afterthought. Drawing on nearly three decades of working with farmers across Australia, Natalie unpacks why the bookkeeping and budgeting role is one of the most undervalued jobs on any farm, and what it actually takes to do it well.

They also tackle the growing temptation to outsource farm finances entirely and why staying closely involved is non-negotiable if you want to know your numbers when it counts.

Disclaimer

© 2026 Master Group (Aust.) Pty Ltd. All rights reserved.

Join us for a conversation with Jodie Redcliffe, scholar and CEO of Nuffield International Farming Scholars, about what global agriculture can teach Australian farmers about leadership and decision-making.

Jodie shares insights from her travels across international farming systems, highlighting the differences in how businesses are structured, how decisions are made, and how leaders are developed.

We explore the role Nuffield plays in building capability across the industry, the common patterns she observed across countries, and how farmers can take those lessons and apply them back home.

A practical look at how perspective, curiosity, and better leadership can strengthen farm businesses for the long term.

Disclaimer

The information provided in this podcast is general in nature and does not in any way constitute financial, investment, accounting, tax, or legal advice. You should always consult with relevantly qualified and licensed professionals for advice tailored to your specific situation and requirements. The opinions expressed are our own and do not reflect those of our sponsors or any third parties.

Join us for a conversation with Cameron Weeks from Planfarm, as we explore what happens when global disruption hits close to home in Australian agriculture.

Cameron shares how events beyond our control, from geopolitical tensions to supply chain shocks, are influencing the cost and availability of key inputs such as diesel, fertiliser, and freight.

Explore how these pressures are showing up in farm businesses, the common challenges producers are facing, and why reacting late can often be more costly than acting early.

A closer look at how farm businesses can better prepare for uncertainty, from stress-testing budgets to identifying risks early and making clearer, more proactive decisions.

Resources:

www.tiacs.org

If you or your loved ones need a yarn or support, contact TIACS by calling or texting

0488 846 988 Mon-Fri 8am-10pm AEST.

https://farmerhealth.org.au/

Disclaimer

The information provided in this podcast is general in nature and does not in any way constitute financial, investment, accounting, tax, or legal advice. You should always consult with relevantly qualified and licensed professionals for advice tailored to your specific situation and requirements. The opinions expressed are our own and do not reflect those of our sponsors or any third parties.

Join us for a conversation with Dr Mike Stephens, agricultural consultant, educator, and founder of Meridian Agriculture, a business that has spent more than four decades helping Australian farming families navigate some of their toughest decisions.

Across a lifetime working alongside farm businesses, Mike has seen firsthand how the biggest challenges rarely come down to production or technology, but to people, communication, and the decisions families make together.

Mike unpacks the patterns he sees across family enterprises, from succession tensions and leadership transitions to the growing need for clearer governance structures in modern farm businesses. As farms become larger and more complex, the role of advisers is shifting too, moving beyond technical expertise toward facilitation, strategy, and helping families work through difficult conversations.

We explore how farming businesses can strengthen their long-term resilience through clearer roles, practical governance frameworks, better communication, and a shared vision for where the business is heading.

Disclaimer

The information provided in this podcast is general in nature and does not in any way constitute financial, investment, accounting, tax, or legal advice. You should always consult with relevantly qualified and licensed professionals for advice tailored to your specific situation and requirements. The opinions expressed are our own and do not reflect those of our sponsors or any third parties.

In this episode, we chat with John Hill, co-founder of Land Watch Australia, about a problem more prevalent than ever across regional Australia: farm theft.

John shares how two brothers looking for an excuse to go pig hunting ended up building one of the country’s leading rural security companies. From early camera installs on mates’ properties to rugged, plug-and-play stations powered by solar and connected via long-range wireless links and Starlink, he explains how technology is reshaping theft prevention in some of the most remote parts of the country.

Join us as we unpack the real-world steps farmers can take to protect their properties, strengthen biosecurity and animal-welfare monitoring, and build practical security systems that work out in the paddock.

Disclaimer

The information provided in this podcast is general in nature and does not in any way constitute financial, investment, accounting, tax, or legal advice. You should always consult with relevantly qualified and licensed professionals for advice tailored to your specific situation and requirements. The opinions expressed are our own and do not reflect those of our sponsors or any third parties.

In this episode, we chat with Dr. Robert Godfree, Senior Research Scientist and author of Drought Country, about what history can teach us about Australia’s harshest dry spells and how they continue to shape farming and life on the driest inhabited continent on Earth.

Bob shares how his background in forest ecology and a childhood spent on a northern New South Wales farm led him to explore the long arc of drought in Australia, from the settlement drought of the 1790s to the Federation drought and beyond. He explains why cultural memory around drought fades every generation, how lessons are forgotten and relearned, and what this means for farmers preparing for the future.

We also dig into how early settlers and Aboriginal knowledge intersected (and were often lost), how drought shaped Australia’s economy, expansion, and mythos, and why the next frontier of resilience may come from farmers who understand both the lessons of the past and the climate models of the future.

Disclaimer

The information provided in this podcast is general in nature and does not in any way constitute financial, investment, accounting, tax, or legal advice. You should always consult with relevantly qualified and licensed professionals for advice tailored to your specific situation and requirements. The opinions expressed are our own and do not reflect those of our sponsors or any third parties.

Join us for a conversation with Kim Tyrer, CEO and winemaker at Galafrey Wines in Mount Barker, one of Western Australia’s pioneering family-owned wineries.

At just 25, Kim took the reins of the business following her father’s sudden passing. What began as a crash course in survival evolved into a 20-year journey of learning, leadership, and building a resilient vineyard renowned for its dry-grown vines and award-winning Riesling.

Kim shares how she turned early chaos into clarity, why trusting herself became her greatest business lesson, and what it really takes to run a vineyard in regional Western Australia.

We unpack the realities behind the romance of wine, from managing people and relationships to balancing creativity, business pressure, and family life. Kim shares what it takes to build something lasting on the land, and why trusting your own judgment is often the most important decision you’ll make.

Disclaimer

The information provided in this podcast is general in nature and does not in any way constitute financial, investment, accounting, tax, or legal advice. You should always consult with relevantly qualified and licensed professionals for advice tailored to your specific situation and requirements. The opinions expressed are our own and do not reflect those of our sponsors or any third parties.

Join us for a conversation with Dennis Voznesenski, Australian agricultural economist and author of War and Wheat, his bestselling book on navigating markets during global conflict.

Dennis unpacks the major forces driving today’s grain and cattle markets, from war-driven supply disruption to tighter credit conditions, rising freight costs, and the long-term shift in global consumption led by global giants like China, India and Russia.

We review the signals that both Australian and global growers should be watching now: demand trends, geopolitical alignment, and the freight and currency dynamics that quietly determine your farm-gate price.

Please note: “War and Wheat: Navigating markets during global conflict” was written solely by the author in a personal capacity and does not represent the views or positions of any organisation.

Disclaimer

The information provided in this podcast is general in nature and does not in any way constitute financial, investment, accounting, tax, or legal advice. You should always consult with relevantly qualified and licensed professionals for advice tailored to your specific situation and requirements. The opinions expressed are our own and do not reflect those of our sponsors or any third parties.

In this episode of sit down to chat with Bianca Tarrant, co-founder of Our Cow, an Australian direct-to-consumer meat company that is reshaping how Australians buy meat and how farmers get paid.

What began with one steer sold on Facebook during the drought has become a $30 million enterprise supporting more than 100 farms and 50,000 customers.

Bianca takes us through her journey from FIFO work in mining to building one of Australia’s fastest-growing ag start-ups, sharing lessons on scaling, cash-flow juggling, and staying true to the values of fairness, sustainability, and transparency.

We explore the power of asking questions, the experience of being a woman leading in ag, and how Our Cow proves that doing right by farmers and customers can also make strong business sense.

Disclaimer

The information provided in this podcast is general in nature and does not in any way constitute financial, investment, accounting, tax, or legal advice. You should always consult with relevantly qualified and licensed professionals for advice tailored to your specific situation and requirements. The opinions expressed are our own and do not reflect those of our sponsors or any third parties.