Sarah's Country

Minister Damien O’Connor joins Sarah at the end of the show to discuss how the government can support rural GP’s with the medical challenges of Covid-19 with an influx of urban NZer’s heading to their baches.

She also discusses why farriers were left off the list of 'essential services', why saleyards had to close and how is he working with his other ministers to assist in deploying labour from stranded tourists to migrant visas to support the labour-short agriculture & horticulture sectors.

This week on Sarah's Country she discovers how PGG Wrightson’s multi-facted rural services businesses is pivoting to support farmers in everything from livestock sales to rural supplies & advice with CEO Stephen Guerin.

This week in Sarah's Country we learn from Global HQ agribusiness reporter Richard Rennie about the challenges facing the prime kiwifruit harvest with everything from labour shortages in packhouses to the taste testing facilities shutting up shop. 

Sarah also discusses with Richard about what feedback he was getting in his chats with rural internet providers on how it will cope in the New Zealand Covid-19 lockdown with tips on improving your speeds.

"This is a crisis situation we haven't seen before." - Lachie Macgillivray

This week in Sarah's Country we talk to to Lochie Macgillivray from the Hawkes Bay Rural Advisory Group who shares about the layers of mounting situations that the regions farmers face from movement control with M.Bovis and TB outbreak, to water & feed storages, livestock returned from processors due to Covid-19 all whilst being in a drought. 

If you require support please call the Rural Support Trust on 0800 RURAL HELP.

If you would like to support the Hawkes Bay Rural Advisory Group with any winter feed or support for our farmers, please contact Lochie on 027 448 6501.

The very sector that this government has been wacking with rushed regulations and politicking in panic is now relying on continuing to feed it's people and bring the purse-strings to a future of recession.

Todd Muller, National Party Spokesman for Agriculture addressed the house a fornight away which we play for you first before Sarah interviews Todd and gets his thoughts on how do we feed our first five million affordably whilst chasing the lights of premiums to plug the freefall of our economy at the same time?

We have the solutions to all of our problems, but do we have the egos to fix them?

When presented with solutions that would challenge our social standing, financial interests or instilled values we shut down from accepting the solutions that bold thinking has allowed.

This week in Sarah's Country we Mike Taitoko from the new environment fund, Calm the Farm, pairing philontrophic New Zealanders loaning farmers a 0-1% loans to transition their farming practices to repair soils and water quality.

Sarah Perriam, the host of Sarah's Country, is joined by guest co-host Blair Miller, Group Manager for Environmental Research from Lincoln AgriTech.

Sarah also uncovers the success of curiosity into regenerative farming with Hamish Bielski, discuss stock prices with China recovering from Covid-19 with AgriHQ’s Mel Croad & Suz Bremner and learn how New Zealand’s ‘lifestyle’ is what appeals when selling our produce over our ‘natural’ elements.

Guests on this week’s show:

• 1. BIG INVESTMENT BEING POURED INTO REGEN AG: Calm the Farm & Toha Foundry founder, Mike Taitoko.
• 2. SCEPTICAL SHEEP FARMER TURNS CURIOSITY INTO CASH: South Otago sheep & beef farmer, Hamish Bielski.
• 3. SELLING MORE THAN OUR ‘NATURE’ STORY: NZ Story director, Rebecca Smith.
• 4. CHINA & COVID-19 NOT DRIVING FARMGATE PRICES: AgriHQ sheep & beef analysts, Mel Croad & Suz Bremner.

To listen to the full-length interviews and participate in the conversation download the Sarah's Country app now available on Apple and Android.

The concerns about global demand for lamb and beef now stretch well into the second half of 2020.

Senior sheep & beef analyst, Mel Croad, joins Sarah in a market update say the “people have to eat” story that continues to gather momentum in the hope that it provides some insulation to the current unsettled environment.

Mel explains that the recovery of China may provide some optimise and the fall in the US dollar some buffering, however it is the intensifying pressure from the New Zealand drought.

Suz Bremner, editor of Livestock Eye agrees joining Sarah to talk about not much lift soon for lambs due to the dry and South Island lambs also coming on stream.

Where Covid-19 is effecting the rural community is the prevention of non-essential farmers attending the local weekly gatherings that are a fabric of social interaction in rural NZ.

Stock firms are reporting that there is no intention to shut down saleyards in the near future, however online stock trading interest has increased.

When you have a market such as Germany that pride themselves on being the most environmentally conscious consumers in the world, we need to bring more than the 'clean green' to the table, says NZ Story director, Rebecca Smith.

Our laid back lifestyle that is one of being active in nature and the freedom our children have to play are aspects that are more far reaching to build on the German's perceptions of New Zealand.

This week NZ Story, funded by NZ Trade & Enterprise, MBIE & other organisations released their Germany perception research.

Sarah discusses with Rebecca about her learnings about treating every trading partner differently when marketing our product to them.

Sarah also takes up the opportunity to ask Rebecca about how marketing will fix the record low strong wool prices with her role as Chair of Wools of New Zealand.

For more information visit : www.nzstory.co.nz

The term regenerative is causing much discussion in farming and science circles with comments like ‘we are already regenerative anyway in New Zealand’ or ‘the lower yields from regenerative agriculture mean less profitability’.

The farming system that can restore our soils structure and carbon levels and realign our mindsets to a whole ecosystem approach.

Hamish Beilski joins Sarah on the show to discuss how he was a conventional farmer turned regenerative for over 4 years now, Hamish Beilski farming with his wife Amy in equity partnership in South Otago shares his honest experience and changes to his approach to farming aligning healthy with his bank balance.

Hamish discusses the passionate argument he had with a certain Australian that set him off on this path, and that after traveling the world and reading case studies he came to the conclusion that he couldn't argue with what she was saying.

He also discusses how setting up a grazing plan and grazing management is key to grow more grass and help keep animal performance at peak.

For a list of resources that Hamish discusses : https://www.quorumsense.org.nz/resources

“Its not a pissn’ contest’ - the words from meat boss, Rob Hewett, as we discuss the millions of dollars poured into duplicated technology solutions competing for the time of the farmer to enter data into a gazillion different softwares that don’t talk to each other.

Data on food will soon be worth more than the food itself and New Zealand agriculture companies are too busy patch protecting to collaborate over the big data problem. 

The poor uptake by farmers has nothing to do with being technologically illiterate, its because it is not practical to fit into their busy working days and deliver value back to them. 

This week in Sarah's Country we hear from Rob Hewett from Silver Fern Farms following his presentation at the B.linc event ‘Food Transparency & Trust’.

Sarah Perriam, the host of Sarah's Country, is joined by guest co-host Melissa Baer (with the curly hair), Agriculture and Food Technology Specialist for Webtools and Canadian organic beef farmers daughter.

Sarah also discusses how far along New Zealand farming is than the rest of the world for having a chance of reaching our UN Sustainable Development Goals, question whether our industry is not structured to encourage more diverse farming operations and get the Minister’s thoughts on our attitudes towards protecting our valuable soils this winter.

Guests on this week’s show:

• 1. IS THE INDUSTRY STRUCTURED FOR MIXED USE FARMING: Leaft Foods co-founder and prominent business leader, Maury Leyland-Penno.
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• 2. AGRICULTURE ROLE IN MEETING UN GOALS: Massey University Lecturer and Masters in UN Sustainable Development Goals, Samantha Leonard.
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• 3. FOOD TRANSPARENCY IN A DIGITAL AGE: Co-Chair of Silver Fern Farms, Chair of Farmlands & Director of Turners & Growers, Rob Hewett.
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• 4. DROUGHT RELIEF & WINTER GRAZING: Minister of Agriculture, Damien O’Connor.

To listen to the full-length interviews and participate in the conversation download the Sarah's Country app now available on Apple and Android.