ABC Wantok Programme for 7 August 2026.

After decades farming sheep and beef on rugged hill country, Diana and Grant Crosse made an unlikely career change, swapping livestock for olive trees near Otaki on the Kapiti Coast. The transition has brought new challenges, new skills and a whole new lifestyle, but much of their farming know-how still applies.

The latest news from Melanesia.

Farmer Sandra Campbell shows us the native trees she's grown from foraged seed, and how they're making her farm a "nicer place to be."

John Earney finds the value in rare, sometimes almost forgotten breeds of animal. The president of the Rare Breeds Conservation Society of New Zealand says that's the key to ensuring their survival - be they farm animals or native species.

A wrap of news from RNZ's rural news desk

Now it's time for Country Life or This week Country Life delves into the world of rare breeds, meets a farmer foraging seed for her native trees and heads to an olive grove on the Kapiti Coast.

The latest RNZ Pacific news and sport.

Christopher Luxon spent much of this week putting out fires of his own making. And others set by Winston Peters. RNZ's deputy political editor Craig McCulloch has more.

Tonight, on The Panel, Wallace Chapman is joined by panellists Marian Hobbs and Ben Thomas. First up, Christopher Luxon spooked his colleagues yesterday by announcing a referendum on MMP if elected. Massey University Politics Professor Richard Shaw shares his analysis. Then, major infrastructure projects that suffer from the stop-start effect of politics have lead to the waste $17.6b, according to Engineering New Zealand.