Shawn McAvinue

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...

A cow owned by South Otago dairy farmers Stephen and Judith Ray has been posthumously crowned the 2023 Valden Cow of the Year.

Good things take time, including finding the right composting barn to build, a dairy farmer in Eastern Southland says.

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.

Research on composting barns was limited but there was no shortage of questions, a scientist says.

A happy, well-settled migrant is a productive employee who is more likely to remain loyal, a Southland immigration adviser says.

A cautionary tale about a bad boss was shared at a South Island Dairy Event workshop.

A happy, well-settled migrant is a productive employee who is more likely to remain loyal, a Southland immigration adviser says.

Staff must feel valued, Southland dairy farmers Stefan and Annalize du Plessis say.

About 30 people attended a DairyNZ social wintering event at the dairy farm of Maurice and Suzanne Hanning in Central Southland.

The strong wool system needs rewiring, starting with farmers improving the quality of their clip, an advocacy group for the fibre say.

The number of hens and custom-made coops continues to rise as an egg business expands on a dairy farm in Central Southland.

Cows creating compost in a former cheese factory and heifers and sheep feasting on swedes were stops on a tour of winter grazing systems in Southland.

Life is busy for Taieri dairy farmer Ryan Sutherland.

A call is being made for the classes of the Otago-Southland Hoof and Hook Beef Competition to be split between traditional and exotic breeds to attract more competitors.

The community is set to come together for a good cause in Northern Southland on Friday.

Cows creating compost in a former cheese factory and heifers and sheep feasting on swedes were stops on a tour of winter grazing systems in Southland.

Dairy farmer Ryan Sutherland bought his family's farm on the Taieri earlier this month. He talks to Shawn McAvinue about the benefits of composting barns and the value of life experience. 

More than 70 black bulls were on offer at the 23rd annual Fossil Creek Angus bull sale in North Otago last week.