Let’s Hope The Weather Holds

I speak to Corina Jordan, chief executive of New Zealand's Fish & Game.

She tells me about shotguns that kick, training deer and pheasant dogs, the work Fish & Game does to rehabilitate create and save habitat for fish and game birds, what type of horse she wants for hunting, taking time out to get outside, the type of people Fish & Game has in its arsenal of talent, hunters as examples for other hunters, conservation, utilisation, social license of hunters, the role influencers play in the industry, broken bones and scars and much more.

Artist, fly fisherman, fly guide and conservationist Johann du Preez talks about fishing mad spots like Sudan, Sette Cama and Guyana.

We talk about conservation, tropical diseases, having your passport taken, sucking as a client, the Indifly Corps, creating livelihoods for small communities and of course his amazing art and the techniques he uses.

Follow him on instagram @johanndupreez_art https://www.instagram.com/johanndupreez_art/

For indifly go to https://www.indifly.org

In this episode I talk to Navigate founder Anna Benny about her view that precision fermentation is a threat to the New Zealand dairy industry.  

We talk about how changing climate policies play a role in the possible disruption of the dairy industry.

We talk about why meat possibly won't face a big disruption from novel proteins.

We praise milk for its nutritional properties.

We talk about how she is perceived in the industry as a result of sounding the alarm bell to possible threats.

We theorise how the dairy market will look in future.

We talk about regenerative farming.

She talks about her views about what will happen on her farm in future.

Ferreter James Curry tells me how he uses ferrets to catch rabbits in New Zealand where rabbits are an introduced pest.

He talks about how he got into ferreting, training ferrets, how an obsession became a job, getting permits to transport ferrets, that are also an introduced pest and why his ferrets are named after psycho killers.

Find him at www.jimsbunnyhunters.com 

I speak to Prof. Emmanuel Bobobee from Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology, Kumasi in Ghana.

We talk about his cassava harvester, the challenges smallholder farmers face with cassava production, the need for governments in Africa to support mechanisation and processing.

We talk about the perception of cassava and perceptions about smallholder farmers. 

General manager for the New Zealand Game Animal Council Tim Gale speaks to me about the days when his dad used to supply deer farms with wild caught hinds.

He gives me tips on training a dog to hunt deer.

We lament that we don't get out enough.

He tells me about his horse wrangling and hunting guide days overseas.

We discuss working with people with opposing views and diplomacy.

We discuss the challenges the council face and the challenges deer, tahr and chamois face.

In this episode I speak to Fish and Game field officer Cohen Stewart about research done in Southland in New Zealand about how native eel thrive in hunter created duck ponds.

Cohen talks about how the study came about, the methods they used, and their findings.

He also talks about his passion for hunting deer over his German Short Haired Pointer, how he joined Fish and Game, and how he began fishing.

All music by Jacques van Wyk

Andrea Mattioli quickly became a legend under fly fisherman in Auckland when he began working at a local shop Rod and Reel.

When the shop closed everyone missed his no nonsense approach, humour and willingness to talk fishing for hours.

In this podcast he tells me about growing up in Italy and fishing in the traditional 'al tocco' style since he was a kid.

He tells me how in the region where he grew up the biggest decision a kid makes is picking between soccer or motorbike racing, he chose racing.

We talk about catching marble trout in Italy.

He tells my about the connection he feels with fish when he catches them on dry fly.

We talk about fishing for Instagram.

And how he now fishes while carrying his 11 month old son on his back.

All music by Jacques van Wyk

I speak to editor and founder of Project Upland magazine A.J. DeRosa about bird hunting in the USA, his dogs, how he started the magazine despite being told it won't work and how punks can also hunt.

He talks about hunters getting involved in politics, how to use climate change to get funding to secure more bird habitat, how denying climate change is not helping, how being a hunter does not automatically make you a conservationist.

He gives me tips about buying my first bird dog, he talks about working for the police and about electronic dance music, his favourite shotguns and more

Have a look at https://projectupland.com

All music for the podcast by Jacques van Wyk.

In this episode I speak to Pelham Jones, president of the Private Rhino Owners Organisation about what it takes to conserve rhinoceros in South Africa, the sale of almost 2000 rhinoceros by John Hume, the human and animal toll rhino poaching takes, why South Africa is not allowed to legally sell rhino horn, how the sale of rhino horn is similar to trading deer antler in the way New Zealand does, we talk about sustainable utilisation,  why CITES opposes trade, the Asian black market for rhino horn and more.

We also talk about how to see when rhino are stressed, litigations against the South African government, how rhino populations in South Africa grow by over 7% per year despite natural losses and poaching, all thanks to private owners, how private rhino owners own more than 60% of rhino in the world and carry a massive conservation burden.

All music by Jacques van Wyk.