38. Repurposing fence posts with Greg Coppell from Repost
Today on the podcast I chat to Greg Coppell from Repost. Greg and Dansy from Repost are an inspiring team, on a mission to change the world. Greg is a born and bred farm boy and when it came time to developing their own property Greg recalled repurposing old posts out of the viticulture industry with his Dad and set about doing the same thing on his place. But he didn’t stop there, with new fence post prices only going one way, he wanted to make these posts available to all farmers and help the viticulture industry solve a huge waste problem.Repost was only meant to be a part time gig for Greg and Dansy has become a full-time operation with them actually living off-farm to be able to operate the business. But Greg says there is plenty of time for farming and this is part of his legacy, both in succession and personal purpose.This is a short and sweet episode to round out season three of The Whole Story podcast, but I really want you all to take on board what Greg says about taking time and rethinking waste as a resource! Thanks for joining us today on the podcast, have a happy easter and we’ll catch you next season! Episode Resources: Repost website🎙️ Podcast brought to you by The Whole Story, with support from FMG Insurance.🌱 For further information about what we do at The Whole Story check out our Website🎵 Music by nobody, check them out on SoundCloud
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37. Electric vehicles suitable for the farm with Alex de Boer
Today on the podcast I chat to Alex de Boer from The Electric Motor Vehicle Company from the deep south of Invercargill. Alex has a varied history from farming to engineering, building to finance and is now a key part of the entrepreneurial innovation behind the electrification of farm machinery in Aotearoa NZ. For context in this podcast, since catching up with Mike Casey in Season One, I have since gone to to start up another company called Solayer focused on supporting farmers with integrated energy solutions on farm and this conversation with Alex touches on a key part of that - where once we put the infrastructure in, how can we leverage off that incredibly cheap source of energy by shifting fossil fuel machinery to electric? The lowest hanging fruit of this for me has been irrigation pumps and the small transport machines like UTV…and that’s where Alex comes in. But we don’t just talk energy and UTVs in this conversation. Alex shares with us his thoughts around sustainability in farming, along with some key developments he’s seen in his time around soil additives, wintering barns and biochar. The most exciting part of this conversation to me is the potential for UTVs to be portable power plants and this is definitely something we are looking at offering through our work at Solayer in the not to distant future. Episode Resources: The Electric Motor Vehicle website | https://electricmv.co.nzSolayer Website | https://www.solayer.co.nzTo find out more about the Agrisea products mentioned…head to their website | https://agrisea.co.nzFor more information about Biochar | https://biochar.net.nz🎙️ Podcast brought to you by The Whole Story, with support from FMG Insurance.🌱 For further information about what we do at The Whole Story check out our Website🎵 Music by nobody, check them out on SoundCloud
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36. Continuous freshwater monitoring with AquaWatch
Today on the podcast I catch up with Abi Croutear-Foy and Ebi Hussain from AquaWatch. Abi is the Managing Director coming from an international financial services background and Ebi is the Chief Science Officer coming with a background in water quality science and ecology. Both are passionate about freshwater and also about using the facts that water can tell us to empower people to make changes that matter. AquaWatch, which back at the start was called RiverWatch, was founded by father and son duo - Grant and James Muir who were watching their awa(river) literally dying before their eyes. The story of the struggle to save the river compelled James to create the documentary film "River Dog". And River Dog led Grant and James to explore ways to help reverse the decline of water quality in Aotearoa, identifying the need for clear and consistent water quality data as a starting point.The resulting products at AquaWatch include a range of software and hardware solutions that have been developed, include a “waka” that sits in a body of water that can continuously capture water quality data allowing us to take the guesswork out of freshwater monitoring and give real-time insights into the impact of climatic events and land-based activities on water quality. So grab a cuppa and enjoy listening to this episode, I for one specifically enjoyed highlighting the way that water quality touches every aspect of sustainability and highlighting why actions to improve water quality are so vitally important. Episode Resources: AquaWatch website 🎙️ Podcast brought to you by The Whole Story, with support from FMG Insurance.🌱 For further information about what we do at The Whole Story check out our Website🎵 Music by nobody, check them out on SoundCloud
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35. Seedling Investments with Seb Chapman
Today on the podcast we take a dive into the economics of pathways into farming with Seb Chapman founder of Seedling Investments. Some of you might already know Seb from being heavily involved in Future Farmers NZ and the founder of Fruitminder. Seb has a unique blend of agricultural roots and an interest in cutting-edge technology, which drives him with a vision to revolutionise agricultural problems through smart solutions.Seedling Investments is a venture that addresses a real personal pain point for Seb and after many long hours driving tractors seeding and harvesting in Australia and a journey back to tertiary education to study software engineering and economics, Seedling is the solution; a pathway into farm ownership that encourages skin in the game and offers good returns for investors, or as the tagline of the company goes: accelerating the transition of the the next generation of farmers into the next generation of farming.Seb and I are both enthusiastic entrepreneurs and we offer up a few business crumbs in here that we hope some of you will pick up and run with, we also talk a bit about macro economics and the conditions under which societies have historically thrived economically. So take a listen and reach out to Seb and the team at Seedling if you’re keen to know more. Episode Resources: Seeding Investments Website | https://www.seedling-investments.comSeb Chapman LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/sebastian-chapman-fruitminder/🎙️ Podcast brought to you by The Whole Story, with support from FMG Insurance.🌱 For further information about what we do at The Whole Story check out our Website: www.thewholestory.co.nz🎵 Music by nobody, check them out on SoundCloud
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34. Dung Beetles with Shaun Forgie
Today on the podcast I am joined by Shaun Forgie from Dung Beetle Innovations. Shaun is a self-professed insect geek, a man with an endless amount of passion the mighty dung beetle but who spends most of his days talking sh*t and shovelling sh*t to feed his millions of resident dung beetles at their breeding site north of Auckland. This conversation covers what Dung Beetles are, what they do, their importance in the ecosystem - why we need to introduce them, and the many different sustainability roles they play. We get into some specifics around the riparian management and nutrient runoff reductions, drench resistance and the impact of dung beetles in reducing pasture larval contamination, the increase in crop yields you can see as a result of having a saturation of these little critters in the soil horizon. The most harrowing part about this conversation is how our “art of procrastination” in this country may lead us to seeing an opportunity pass us by, an opportunity that many other countries around the world have cottoned onto and are seeing the economic benefits of the ecosystem services that dung beetles provide. They impact each of the 3 pillars of soil health and as we know sustainable farming starts with healthy soil, so grab a cuppa and enjoy what I think is a really engaging and passionate chat about recruiting an underground workforce to get the job done for you.Episode Resources: Dung Beetles Innovations Website | https://dungbeetles.co.nzShaun Forgie LinkedIn | https://www.linkedin.com/in/shaun-forgie-08539b24/🎙️ Podcast brought to you by The Whole Story, with support from FMG Insurance.🌱 For further information about what we do at The Whole Story check out our Website: www.thewholestory.co.nz🎵 Music by nobody, check them out on SoundCloud
Hosted by Becks Smith, a farmer, vet, social entrepreneur and mother to three young girls, this is a podcast inspiring holistic sustainability in agriculture in alignment with the Sustainable Development Goals.
Each week we discuss the Goals(SDGs) and talk to someone making progress towards them within agriculture.
We will talk about people’s funny on-farm stories, their views on the opportunities for sustainability in agriculture, and every one of them will leave us with a practical take-home sustainability tip!
Brought to you with support from FMG Insurance.
New Zealand