When the traditional income streams are not delivering enough to the bottom line, is it time to diversify into activities that don’t rely on the cyclical nature of farm commodities? It can be hard to know what options are out there to diversify onfarm income, and how they can be integrated into your farming system. In this episode we hear about different options for diversifying, from raising goats for cashmere to horticulture and viticulture. 

Guests include:
Olivia Sanders, Business Development Manager, New Zealand Cashmere
Che Charteris, CEO, Craigmore Sustinables
Marcus Bousfield, Regional Manager for Business, ANZ

Hosts:
Rebecca Greaves, Editor, Country-Wide
Sarah Perriam-Lampp, Managing Director, CountryWide Media

NZ Cashmere’s Olivia Sanders says the time is now to get into the goat business, and shares some helpful insights for farmers who are interested in integrating goats into their farm system. She also discusses the realistic maintenance required for goats - such as when to shear, when to drench, and how to keep them contained.

Craigmore Sustainables CEO Che Charteris discusses the options for diversifying farm business through horticulture. He talks about how to manage the volatility of horticulture and viticulture, what opportunities there are with both climate change and water consents across the country, and what advice he has for sheep and beef farmers to avoid pitfalls when diversifying their land-use options. 

ANZ’s Marcus Bousfield discusses whether it’s a good time for farmers to look at diversifying their income, and what those options might be. This includes solar, agritourism, and tree plantings with a potential ETS in mind. He says the weigh up would be whether you could get more value out of having beef or sheep on that land, or if trees could bring more income in future carbon credits. 

Read more in Country-Wide Spring: 
Pest to profit with Olivia Sanders
Weighing up the options with Marcus Bousfield

Read the new Spring issue of Country-Wide Magazine here

Subscribe to Country-Wide magazine for $59/four magazines plus postage annually: https://country-wide.co.nz/shop/

SUBSCRIBE TO THE COUNTRY-WIDE WEEKLY EMAIL

When the traditional income streams are not delivering enough to the bottom line, is it time to diversify into activities that don’t rely on the cyclical nature of farm commodities? It can be hard to know what options are out there to diversify onfarm income, and how they can be integrated into your farming system. In this episode we hear about different options for diversifying, from raising goats for cashmere to horticulture and viticulture. 
Guests include:
<ol>
<li aria-level="1">Olivia Sanders, Business Development Manager, <a href="https://nzcashmere.com/">New Zealand Cashmere</a></li>
<li aria-level="1">Che Charteris, CEO, <a href="https://www.craigmore.com/">Craigmore Sustinables</a></li>
<li aria-level="1">Marcus Bousfield, Regional Manager for Business, <a href="https://www.anz.co.nz/about-us/our-company/anz-new-zealand/">ANZ</a></li>
</ol>
Hosts:
<ol>
<li aria-level="1">Rebecca Greaves, Editor, Country-Wide</li>
<li aria-level="1">Sarah Perriam-Lampp, Managing Director, CountryWide Media</li>
</ol>
NZ Cashmere’s Olivia Sanders says the time is now to get into the goat business, and shares some helpful insights for farmers who are interested in integrating goats into their farm system. She also discusses the realistic maintenance required for goats - such as when to shear, when to drench, and how to keep them contained.
Craigmore Sustainables CEO Che Charteris discusses the options for diversifying farm business through horticulture. He talks about how to manage the volatility of horticulture and viticulture, what opportunities there are with both climate change and water consents across the country, and what advice he has for sheep and beef farmers to avoid pitfalls when diversifying their land-use options. 
ANZ’s Marcus Bousfield discusses whether it’s a good time for farmers to look at diversifying their income, and what those options might be. This includes solar, agritourism, and tree plantings with a potential ETS in mind. He says the weigh up would be whether you could get more value out of having beef or sheep on that land, or if trees could bring more income in future carbon credits. 
Read more in Country-Wide Spring: 
<ul>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://country-wide.co.nz/pest-to-profit/">Pest to profit</a> with Olivia Sanders</li>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://country-wide.co.nz/weighing-up-the-options/">Weighing up the options</a> with Marcus Bousfield</li>
</ul>
<a href="https://country-wide.co.nz/spring-2024-2/">Read the new Spring issue of Country-Wide Magazine here</a>
Subscribe to Country-Wide magazine for $59/four magazines plus postage annually:<a href="https://country-wide.co.nz/shop/"> https://country-wide.co.nz/shop/</a> 
<a href="https://country-wide.co.nz/sign-up/">SUBSCRIBE TO THE COUNTRY-WIDE WEEKLY EMAIL</a>

Bringing' you the best of rural New Zealand for nearly 50 years via your mailboxes, now it’s time for our seasonal stories from the magazine to weekly updates straight to your ears.

Proud to celebrate the grit and the smarts it takes to farm as well as good ol' fashioned country culture with The Country-Wide Podcast.

Hosts: Rebecca Greaves - Editor of Country-Wide

For more information & to subscribe to Country-Wide, visit www.country-wide.co.nz

Bringing' you the best of rural New Zealand for nearly 50 years via your mailboxes, now it’s time for our seasonal stories from the magazine to weekly updates straight to your ears.
Proud to celebrate the grit and the smarts it takes to farm as well as good ol' fashioned country culture with The Country-Wide Podcast.
Hosts: Rebecca Greaves - Editor of Country-Wide
For more information &amp; to subscribe to Country-Wide, visit www.country-wide.co.nz

The Country-Wide Podcast

Bringing' you the best of rural New Zealand for nearly 50 years via your mailboxes, now it’s time for' our seasonal stories from the magazine to weekly updates straight to your ears.

Proud to celebrate the grit and the smarts it takes to farm as well as good ol' fashioned country culture with The Country-Wide Podcast.

Hosts: Editor of Country-Wide, Rebecca Greaves and CountryWide Media’s Managing Director, Sarah Perriam-Lampp.

To subscribe to Country-Wide, visit www.country-wide.co.nz

Bringing' you the best of rural New Zealand for nearly 50 years via your mailboxes, now it’s time for' our seasonal stories from the magazine to weekly updates straight to your ears.
Proud to celebrate the grit and the smarts it takes to farm as well as good ol' fashioned country culture with The Country-Wide Podcast.
Hosts: Editor of Country-Wide, Rebecca Greaves and CountryWide Media’s Managing Director, Sarah Perriam-Lampp.
To subscribe to Country-Wide, visit <a href="http://www.country-wide.co.nz">www.country-wide.co.nz</a>

Episode 36 - Can farmers benefit from diversifying onfarm income?

Could solar farming be the next value-add option for New Zealand farmers? Agrivoltaics, which results in dual use of farmland between solar farming and traditional farming, is gaining traction as a viable way of diversifying income.



Hear what’s already happening in this space, including the Lincoln University energy farm project, how Lodestone Energy is partnering with farmers to expand their solar farm network, and listen to farmer Hamish Hills, who researched, financed and installed his own solar setup on his Golden Bay dairy farm.  



Guests include:
Dr Shannon Page, Energy Farm Project Lead, Lincoln University
Richard Pearce, Chief Operating Officer, Lodestone Energy
Hamish Hills, Golden Bay Dairy Farmer

Hosts:
Rebecca Greaves, Editor, Country-Wide
Sheryl Haitana, Editor, Dairy Exporter

Lincoln University has unveiled plans for an energy farm project, to demonstrate how productive land can be optimised to produce high value horticulture crops, while also producing high scale solar energy. 

Dr Shannon Page of Lincoln University discusses how the project will be able to provide 18% of the power needed for the University annually, as well as providing opportunities for teaching and learning, with both the solar and horticulture elements. 

Lodestone Energy is a renewable energy company based in New Zealand, and is developing their agrivoltaics system with farmers to expand their portfolio of solar farms. This would result in farms having dual use of the land for both solar and traditional farming practices.  

Chief Operating Officer, Richard Pearce, says solar farming provides the opportunity to repurpose farmland to integrate energy production and farm production more effectively. He discusses the benefits for farmers, and what they’re looking for from farmers. 

Golden Bay farmer Hamish Hills started looking at introducing solar to his dairy operation three years ago, going operational at the beginning of last year, and says it complements their dryland operation well.

He took it upon himself to find out how he could implement solar on his farm, and had good support in doing so. He discusses what other farmers should think about if they’d also like to introduce solar on their farm. He says selling the power is the most challenging element. They are currently looking at expanding their solar operation. 

Read more about solar farming opportunities in Country-Wide Magazine

Read the new Spring issue of Country-Wide Magazine here

Subscribe to Country-Wide magazine for $59/four magazines plus postage annually: https://country-wide.co.nz/shop/

SUBSCRIBE TO THE COUNTRY-WIDE WEEKLY EMAIL

Could solar farming be the next value-add option for New Zealand farmers? Agrivoltaics, which results in dual use of farmland between solar farming and traditional farming, is gaining traction as a viable way of diversifying income.
 
Hear what’s already happening in this space, including the Lincoln University energy farm project, how Lodestone Energy is partnering with farmers to expand their solar farm network, and listen to farmer Hamish Hills, who researched, financed and installed his own solar setup on his Golden Bay dairy farm.  
 
Guests include:
<ol>
<li aria-level="1">Dr Shannon Page, Energy Farm Project Lead, <a href="https://www.lincoln.ac.nz/">Lincoln University</a></li>
<li aria-level="1">Richard Pearce, Chief Operating Officer, <a href="https://lodestoneenergy.co.nz/">Lodestone Energy</a></li>
<li aria-level="1">Hamish Hills, Golden Bay Dairy Farmer</li>
</ol>
Hosts:
<ol>
<li aria-level="1">Rebecca Greaves, Editor, Country-Wide</li>
<li aria-level="1">Sheryl Haitana, Editor, <a href="https://dairyexporter.co.nz/">Dairy Exporter</a></li>
</ol>
Lincoln University has unveiled plans for an energy farm project, to demonstrate how productive land can be optimised to produce high value horticulture crops, while also producing high scale solar energy. 
Dr Shannon Page of Lincoln University discusses how the project will be able to provide 18% of the power needed for the University annually, as well as providing opportunities for teaching and learning, with both the solar and horticulture elements. 
Lodestone Energy is a renewable energy company based in New Zealand, and is developing their agrivoltaics system with farmers to expand their portfolio of solar farms. This would result in farms having dual use of the land for both solar and traditional farming practices.  
Chief Operating Officer, Richard Pearce, says solar farming provides the opportunity to repurpose farmland to integrate energy production and farm production more effectively. He discusses the benefits for farmers, and what they’re looking for from farmers. 
Golden Bay farmer Hamish Hills started looking at introducing solar to his dairy operation three years ago, going operational at the beginning of last year, and says it complements their dryland operation well.
He took it upon himself to find out how he could implement solar on his farm, and had good support in doing so. He discusses what other farmers should think about if they’d also like to introduce solar on their farm. He says selling the power is the most challenging element. They are currently looking at expanding their solar operation. 
<a href="https://country-wide.co.nz/here-comes-the-sun/">Read more about solar farming opportunities in Country-Wide Magazine</a>
<a href="https://country-wide.co.nz/spring-2024-2/">Read the new Spring issue of Country-Wide Magazine here</a>
Subscribe to Country-Wide magazine for $59/four magazines plus postage annually:<a href="https://country-wide.co.nz/shop/"> https://country-wide.co.nz/shop/</a> 
<a href="https://country-wide.co.nz/sign-up/">SUBSCRIBE TO THE COUNTRY-WIDE WEEKLY EMAIL</a>

Episode 35 - Is solar a bright future for farming?

Farmers looking to implement a value-add business onfarm might want to consider looking into agritourism - with options such as self-contained holiday homes, glamping, and sunflower fields just to name a few. What you might consider ordinary on your farm, might just be extraordinary to an overseas or domestic customer. 

But where do you get started? And does it really bring in enough revenue to make it worth it? Hear from three experts and farmers in both the consultancy and agritourism space, covering where to start, what to consider, and what the rewards are. 

Guests include:
Renee Hogg, Owner & Consultant, Inside New Zealand Ltd.
Abbe Hoare, Farmer and sunflower entrepreneur, Mangamaire Sunflower Field
Annabel Craw, Farmer, Ridgecliff

Hosts:
Rebecca Greaves, Editor, Country-Wide
Lucinda Diack, Chief Publishing & Production Officer, CountryWide Media

Consultant and Owner of Inside New Zealand Ltd. Renee Hogg discusses ways farmers can look into diversifying their onfarm business, especially in the area of agritourism. She explains what farmers need to consider when getting started, and how to overcome obstacles holding them back. 

She says there doesn’t have to be a huge amount of financial investment to get started, but there does need to be a solid plan and marketing. It can also be a good opportunity to extend the brand to the entire farm, which can help the business in other ways. 

Abbe Hoare utilises her 90 hectares of farm land to grow sunflowers which has become an important stream of their onfarm income. She explains how they looked at value-add options, but were put off by the idea of maintaining a glamping business - especially when it came to making beds! Instead, they now provide a private picnic business in their sunflower field, and even host elopements too. 

Annabel and Hamish Craw are sixth generation sheep and beef farmers near Little Akaloa on the South Island’s Banks Peninsula. They have two accommodation properties on their farm, and have integrated them into areas of regenerating bush, to make the most of showing off the natural biodiversity onfarm. 

Annabel discusses how they made the agritourism business fit into their farm business, and how they’ve managed to make it financially rewarding. 

Read the new Spring issue of Country-Wide Magazine here

Subscribe to Country-Wide magazine for $59/four magazines plus postage annually: https://country-wide.co.nz/shop/

SUBSCRIBE TO THE COUNTRY-WIDE WEEKLY EMAIL

Farmers looking to implement a value-add business onfarm might want to consider looking into agritourism - with options such as self-contained holiday homes, glamping, and sunflower fields just to name a few. What you might consider ordinary on your farm, might just be extraordinary to an overseas or domestic customer. 
But where do you get started? And does it really bring in enough revenue to make it worth it? Hear from three experts and farmers in both the consultancy and agritourism space, covering where to start, what to consider, and what the rewards are. 
Guests include:
<ol>
<li aria-level="1">Renee Hogg, Owner &amp; Consultant, <a href="https://www.insidenewzealand.co.nz/">Inside New Zealand Ltd.</a></li>
<li aria-level="1">Abbe Hoare, Farmer and sunflower entrepreneur, <a href="https://www.sunflowerfield.co.nz/">Mangamaire Sunflower Field</a></li>
<li aria-level="1">Annabel Craw, Farmer, <a href="https://www.ridgecliff.co.nz/">Ridgecliff</a></li>
</ol>
Hosts:
<ol>
<li aria-level="1">Rebecca Greaves, Editor, Country-Wide</li>
<li aria-level="1">Lucinda Diack, Chief Publishing &amp; Production Officer, CountryWide Media</li>
</ol>
Consultant and Owner of Inside New Zealand Ltd. Renee Hogg discusses ways farmers can look into diversifying their onfarm business, especially in the area of agritourism. She explains what farmers need to consider when getting started, and how to overcome obstacles holding them back. 
She says there doesn’t have to be a huge amount of financial investment to get started, but there does need to be a solid plan and marketing. It can also be a good opportunity to extend the brand to the entire farm, which can help the business in other ways. 
Abbe Hoare utilises her 90 hectares of farm land to grow sunflowers which has become an important stream of their onfarm income. She explains how they looked at value-add options, but were put off by the idea of maintaining a glamping business - especially when it came to making beds! Instead, they now provide a private picnic business in their sunflower field, and even host elopements too. 
Annabel and Hamish Craw are sixth generation sheep and beef farmers near Little Akaloa on the South Island’s Banks Peninsula. They have two accommodation properties on their farm, and have integrated them into areas of regenerating bush, to make the most of showing off the natural biodiversity onfarm. 
Annabel discusses how they made the agritourism business fit into their farm business, and how they’ve managed to make it financially rewarding. 
<a href="https://country-wide.co.nz/spring-2024-2/">Read the new Spring issue of Country-Wide Magazine here</a>
Subscribe to Country-Wide magazine for $59/four magazines plus postage annually:<a href="https://country-wide.co.nz/shop/"> https://country-wide.co.nz/shop/</a> 
<a href="https://country-wide.co.nz/sign-up/">SUBSCRIBE TO THE COUNTRY-WIDE WEEKLY EMAIL</a>

Episode 34 - Is agritourism a viable income stream onfarm?

Tough times in New Zealand and globally have taken their toll on the luxury goods market, and New Zealand’s merino sector is no exception. 

In this episode, we hear from those who know merino best, and how they’re planning to overcome challenges related to financial recession, and overseas regulations, that demand higher quality and processing accountability. We also look at how new technologies in the AI and genetics space could help enhance merino quality. 

Guests include:
Angus Street, CEO, NZ Merino
Mark Ferguson, Co-Founder & Director, neXtgen Agri
Craig Smith,  General Manager, Devold New Zealand

Hosts:
Rebecca Greaves, Editor, Country-Wide
Sarah Perriam-Lampp, Managing Director, CountryWide Media

Angus Street has been CEO of NZ Merino for almost a year now, and discusses how tough times across the globe have affected the merino and wider sheep market. He says in its 26 year history, this is the first time the company will make a loss. 

He says going forward they’re taking a multifaceted approach to regenerating business globally for merino products, with delivering value to their growers at the core of it. He also discusses how the geopolitical landscape overseas is impacting New Zealand trade, including evolving regulations coming out of Europe. 

Mark Ferguson discusses new technologies coming into the sheep breeding sector, including how AI technologies are already being integrated into farm systems. This includes tools such as facial recognition, to monitor for issues such as fly-strike.

He also discusses what’s next for the merino world, including utilising breeding genetics that haven’t previously been used, such as breeding out dags, and focussing on reducing cost, rather than increasing production. 

Craig Smith is the General Manager of Devold New Zealand, which creates merino wool products that are sold in markets such as Europe. He discusses how they’ve leaned into making sure the whole product is sourced ethically, and where environmental obligations fit into their ethos of providing quality goods. 

He discusses how EU regulations have started asking for the whole story behind a garment, including making sure workers are properly paid and looked after across the manufacturing process, and the welfare of the sheep themselves. 

He discusses how quality has been a big challenge over the past season, and the impact reduced quality of wool can have on the quality of the end product. 

Subscribe to Country-Wide magazine for $59/four magazines plus postage annually: https://country-wide.co.nz/shop/

SUBSCRIBE TO THE COUNTRY-WIDE WEEKLY EMAIL

Tough times in New Zealand and globally have taken their toll on the luxury goods market, and New Zealand’s merino sector is no exception. 
In this episode, we hear from those who know merino best, and how they’re planning to overcome challenges related to financial recession, and overseas regulations, that demand higher quality and processing accountability. We also look at how new technologies in the AI and genetics space could help enhance merino quality. 
Guests include:
<ol>
<li aria-level="1">Angus Street, CEO, <a href="https://www.nzmerino.co.nz/">NZ Merino</a></li>
<li aria-level="1">Mark Ferguson, Co-Founder &amp; Director, <a href="https://www.nextgenagri.com/">neXtgen Agri</a></li>
<li aria-level="1">Craig Smith,  General Manager, <a href="https://www.devoldnewzealand.co.nz/">Devold New Zealand</a></li>
</ol>
Hosts:
<ol>
<li aria-level="1">Rebecca Greaves, Editor, Country-Wide</li>
<li aria-level="1">Sarah Perriam-Lampp, Managing Director, CountryWide Media</li>
</ol>
Angus Street has been CEO of NZ Merino for almost a year now, and discusses how tough times across the globe have affected the merino and wider sheep market. He says in its 26 year history, this is the first time the company will make a loss. 
He says going forward they’re taking a multifaceted approach to regenerating business globally for merino products, with delivering value to their growers at the core of it. He also discusses how the geopolitical landscape overseas is impacting New Zealand trade, including evolving regulations coming out of Europe. 
Mark Ferguson discusses new technologies coming into the sheep breeding sector, including how AI technologies are already being integrated into farm systems. This includes tools such as facial recognition, to monitor for issues such as fly-strike.
He also discusses what’s next for the merino world, including utilising breeding genetics that haven’t previously been used, such as breeding out dags, and focussing on reducing cost, rather than increasing production. 
Craig Smith is the General Manager of Devold New Zealand, which creates merino wool products that are sold in markets such as Europe. He discusses how they’ve leaned into making sure the whole product is sourced ethically, and where environmental obligations fit into their ethos of providing quality goods. 
He discusses how EU regulations have started asking for the whole story behind a garment, including making sure workers are properly paid and looked after across the manufacturing process, and the welfare of the sheep themselves. 
He discusses how quality has been a big challenge over the past season, and the impact reduced quality of wool can have on the quality of the end product. 
Subscribe to Country-Wide magazine for $59/four magazines plus postage annually:<a href="https://country-wide.co.nz/shop/"> https://country-wide.co.nz/shop/</a> 
<a href="https://country-wide.co.nz/sign-up/">SUBSCRIBE TO THE COUNTRY-WIDE WEEKLY EMAIL</a>

Episode 36 - Can farmers benefit from diversifying onfarm income?

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