Federated Farmers Podcast
Federated Farmers Podcast
The Federated Farmers Podcast is your weekly guide to the issues affecting rural New Zealand. Join us as we unpack the policies, challenges and big ideas shaping life on farm. With frank conversations from farmers, advocates and experts, we break down what matters and why, so you can stay informed, prepared and heard. Hosted by Ben Chapman-Smith, Federated Farmers' communications manager, who gr…Social links:
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Farming with drones – are they actually useful? | EP 107
East Coast farmer Blair Crawshaw has been using drones for eight years, putting them to work mustering stock, finding missing animals and pests, and checking for problems across his steep Motu farm, Tawa Hills Angus. In this episode, we get practical about how farmers can actually use a drone on fa…
20:44
What if the meatworks came to the farm? | EP 106
When a friend asked Logan Wait to provide some meat for an event post-Covid, he realised there was a problem: he had the animals, but no easy way to get meat from the farm to the people who wanted it. That question led him to found Earth First, New Zealand’s first certified mobile abattoir of its k…
31:43
Why our pest problem is bigger than hunting | EP 105
South Canterbury farmer Lesley Roy has taken more than 1,500 wallabies and 40 pigs off her farm this year – but despite that huge effort, the numbers are barely changing. With pigs destroying pasture and eating lambs, and wallabies continually damaging fences and fowling paddocks, Lesley says pest …
45:45
The Kate Acland story: embracing the uncomfortable | EP 104
Kate Acland has built a career out of figuring out what to do when the original plan stops working. From starting a wine business in her 20s and navigating the GFC, to moving into farming and building a diverse operation at Mt Somers Station, Kate has repeatedly had to adapt, take risks and back he…
40:28
Why this farmer is leasing his way to farm ownership | EP 103
For Taranaki sheep and beef farmer Nick Brown and his wife Sophie, farm ownership is definitely the goal – but they're taking a different route to get there. Rather than putting their capital into buying land, the couple are leasing 800 hectares and focusing their money on the productive assets tha…
31:48
From crazy idea to new farming industry | EP 102
From warm cups of sheep milk in China to influencers livestreaming from New Zealand paddocks, the global demand for sheep milk is creating a surprising new opportunity for Kiwi farmers. In this episode, Spring Sheep CEO Thomas Macdonald and Commercial Manager Operations Olivia Smith take us inside…
41:02
Quinn and Samantha Morgan: What good farm leadership looks like | EP 101
For Quinn and Samantha Morgan, farming is about much more than cows and grass. They’re in it to create more opportunities for their family and the people who work alongside them. From helping their team build skills and get off-farm experience to involving them in the financial side of the busines…
37:48
Christopher Luxon unscripted | EP 100
In this special 100th episode of the Federated Farmers Podcast, the Prime Minister sits down for a personal, wide-ranging conversation about the experiences and people that shaped him long before politics. From growing up in Christchurch and Auckland to building an international business career wi…
50:51
Jared Crawford – the sharemilker who bought a brewery | EP 99
Running a 2000-cow dairy operation across 524 hectares is a big enough challenge, but Jared Crawford and his wife Sara decided to add another by buying a craft brewery and restaurant. As lower-order sharemilkers for FarmRight near Geraldine, Jared and Sara have built a high-performing dairy busine…
42:25
Gisborne farmers turning pines into pasture | EP 98
In a region where plenty of productive farmland has disappeared into pine trees, two farming couples are doing something uncommon – turning a forestry block back into a working farm. Sam and Gemma Hain, and Matt and Kate Long, have just taken ownership of a 400ha property planted almost entirely i…
18:32