Category: Farmers stories
A banter over a beer
Paul and Pip Walker run a 300-cow, 90-hectare dairy farm in Pongakawa, just south of Te Puke, in the Bay of Plenty. Pongakawa can get…
Start a conversation
Kane Brisco’s into his seventh year 50/50 sharemilking at Ohangai near Hawera, in South Taranaki. He’s started his own social media page to get farmers…
A bit of a breather
Dairy farmer Daniel Hathaway recently took a couple of days off his hectic farming schedule to play in the Norwood and Miraka Charity Golf Tournament…
Managing fatigue
There are only so many hours in a day, so when life gets really busy on farm having a strategy to manage fatigue is vital.…
A Hawke’s Bay shearing legend
One Tuesday evening recently, Colin Watson-Paul was busy teaching a group of women how to shear, when, much to his surprise, a TV crew walked…
Back in the saddle
When poor health impacted Vicky O’Connor’s ability to work on farm, she picked up a camera and started her photography career again. Now she’s sharing…
Lessons learnt from gruesome accident
Bay of Plenty dairy farmer Paul Walker counts his lucky stars he only lost one finger and not his whole hand in a grisly accident…
Focusing on the positive during the drought
The recent drought was super stressful for central Hawke’s Bay farmers Megan and Howard Petersen, but their diversified farming business helped cushion the economic blow.…
The key to unlocking time off the farm
Aspen Farm’s Olivia Doonan has a great trick up her sleeve to ensure her family gets regular breaks off the farm. She books a family…
Learning to roll with it
After eight years farming, with three years sharemilking, Stu Davison has taken on a fresh challenge working as a dairy analyst. He shares what farming…
Helping kids through tough times
A new children’s book designed to generate discussion about mental health in rural communities is proving a hit with schools. ‘Use Your Voice’ tells the…
Great turnout for Farmstrong fundraiser
A speed shear event organised by the Pendarves Young Farmers in Canterbury has raised more than $5,000 for nationwide, rural wellbeing initiative Farmstrong. Bridget McFadden,… 
