Scene + Herd: Podcasts from Beef + Lamb New Zealand

As a Beef + Lamb New Zealand Rural Advancement Scholarship recipient, Julia Hardwick-Smith shares how the Kellogg Rural Leadership Programme challenged her thinking and is influencing decisions on her family farm. She also discusses the surprising findings from her research into triplet lamb survivability and what they could mean for sheep farmers.

Read more here:

Rural Leadership Advancement Scholarship.

Julia's full report.

100 years since New Zealand began exporting red meat to North America. It’s a relationship that’s gone from tentative early shipments to one of our most important and enduring trade partnerships.

To unpack that story and what it means for the future, we're joined by Ali Spencer and Mick Calder, who helped document this journey in Trusted, Lean and Long Game, (PDF, 4.12MB).

With scanning results arriving across the country, this podcast provides practical advice for farmers with high numbers of twin and triplet-bearing ewes. Senior Scientist from Bio Economy Science Institute (BSI) David Stevens combines the science with practical farming systems, while North Otago Farmer Julian Prices share what's happening on-farm and the questions himself and the South Canterbury Lamb Survivability Focus Group are asking.

Recorded 20 July 2026.

The red meat sector is a cornerstone of Aotearoa New Zealand. Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ) and Meat Industry Association (MIA) have just released new research that offers a robust, evidence-based assessment of the economic and social contribution of the sector, including production, processing and exporting. It is the first full measure of the sector’s economic and social contribution since 2020. Project Lead Connor McIndoe from Business and Economic Research (BERL) joins us to make sense of it all.

Read the full report here: Research shows New Zealand’s red meat sector drives nearly $50 billion in annual spending across the economy.

In this episode of Scene + Herd, B+LNZ’s Policy Staff demystify the submission process and show farmers how to turn everyday experience into compelling evidence. They outline five steps for writing clear, relevant submissions. If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed by consultation documents, this is your go‑to guide.

How to write a submission: farmer guide.