Focus on ‘controllables’
Focus on ‘controllables’
Sheep and beef farmers should focus on "controlling the controllables" to navigate tough financial times, Dunedin agribusiness professionals say.
Shawn McAvinue
Programme starting to grow in Otago
Programme starting to grow in Otago
Taieri teenager Finn Wilson, along with his heading dog Chick, is the first student to enrol in a two-year programme providing practical experience on a sheep and beef farm in Otago.
Herd happier, healthier in composting barn
Herd happier, healthier in composting barn
Southland dairy farmer Scott Bixley gave his father an ultimatum — invest in a composting barn or "I’m out".
Alternate working dog sale planned
Alternate working dog sale planned
A call is being made for vendors to sell their working dogs at a charity event near Gore next month.
Huge response to Year of the Farmer
Huge response to Year of the Farmer
The ODT and Rural Life have been overwhelmed by the support and enthusiasm for the 2023 Year of the Farmer initiative, which celebrates the South Island’s food and fibre producing champions.
Composting barn tour
Composting barn tour
About 80 people attended a composting barn tour in Central Southland last week.
Contest renewed interest in sport
Contest renewed interest in sport
Shane Sanders, of Little Valley Station in Central Otago, talks to Shawn McAvinue about winning the clay target shooting competition at the New Zealand Young Farmers national tournament in Timaru.
Southern men dominate at awards
Southern men dominate at awards
Two southern men took home half of the spoils on offer at the Groundspread New Zealand awards.
Roadshow spreads word of Nudies
Roadshow spreads word of Nudies
A crew from a Wairarapa hill country sheep and beef farm were in the South last week, as part of a national run to showcase their ram breeds including Nudies.
Shedding sheep grow in popularity
Shedding sheep grow in popularity
More commercial sheep farmers in the South are running breeds which shed their fleece, a South Otago stud owner says.
Herd happy in composting barn
Herd happy in composting barn
Dairy farmers Scott and Maree Bixley were losing sleep when they were calving outdoors during wet springs in Central Southland.
Dog sale cancelled over lack of entries
Dog sale cancelled over lack of entries
A lack of entries has forced the cancellation of the 66th annual Gore Dog Sale today, an auctioneer says.
‘I was just toddling along the road and — bang’
‘I was just toddling along the road and — bang’
The survival of 79-year-old Taieri dairy farmer John Thornton after a quadbike he was riding was hit by a car on the open road is astounding doctors.
Second set of career goals needed for hardworking pair
Second set of career goals needed for hardworking pair
A Chilean couple who met working in the New Zealand dairy industry have been smashing their career goals in the South.
Lecture to outline career
Lecture to outline career
Prof Craig Bunt will talk about his more than 30-year career in agriculture at a public lecture in Dunedin tomorrow.
Shawn McAvinue’s swede soup
Shawn McAvinue’s swede soup
Southern Rural Life reporter Shawn McAvinue’s family visited from the North Island recently and he wanted to showcase some of the fantastic fare farmers...
Award-winning cow had ‘thrilling’ performance
Award-winning cow had ‘thrilling’ performance
A cow owned by South Otago dairy farmers Stephen and Judith Ray has been posthumously crowned the 2023 Valden Cow of the Year.
New barn ready for calving season
New barn ready for calving season
Good things take time, including finding the right composting barn to build, a dairy farmer in Eastern Southland says.
Shelter keeps cows warm; just ‘don’t get them fat’
Shelter keeps cows warm; just ‘don’t get them fat’
During a tour of wintering barns last week, Shawn McAvinue was at the two tour stops in Eastern Southland to hear why dairy farmers were investing in the infrastructure.
‘No shortage’ of questions for composting barn research
‘No shortage’ of questions for composting barn research
Research on composting barns was limited but there was no shortage of questions, a scientist says.