Richard Green |Time to think differently about our food and fibre value chains
In this episode of Ideas That Grow, Bryan Gibson, Farmers Weekly managing editor, talks to Richard Green, farmer, director and 2025 Value Chain Innovation Programme alum. Richard discusses his background and his Value Chain Innovation Programme experience, and offers keen insight into why understanding value chains and value chain models is so important for anyone wanting to take advantage of the opportunities New Zealand Inc. and farming have to integrate our value chains and think globally.
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16:27
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16:27
Thomas Holmes | Insight into arable’s future in Canterbury
Thomas Holmes is an arable farmer and a 2024 Kellogg Scholar. In this podcast he talks to Bryan Gibson, Farmers Weekly managing editor, about his family farm’s evolution, overseas experience, his Kellogg research report and his Kellogg experience.Thomas unpacks his report’s ‘what next’ view of arable farming in Canterbury. He discusses profitability challenges, diversification, and integration with other sectors. Thomas advocates collaboration, mindset change, and leadership from younger farmers to adapt to climate, market, and technological shifts.
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17:32
Richard Dawkins | A farmer’s rural leadership journey
In this episode of Ideas That Grow, Bryan Gibson, Farmers Weekly managing editor, talks to Richard Dawkins, 2023 Kellogg Scholar and Marlborough sheep and beef farmer. He is also the new meat and wool chair for Federated Farmers.Richard discusses his family’s diverse 602-hectare farm operation, which includes sheep, cattle, forestry, and viticulture. He shares his experiences abroad and how returning home reignited his passion for farming. He also talks about his Kellogg Rural Leadership Programme journey and research on lamb and ewe mortality, emphasising the need for better data and body condition scoring.The discussion also covers leadership, collaboration, and the importance of timing when engaging in personal development.
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Hugh Ritchie | Leadership, innovating in arable – and Nuffield
In this podcast, Hugh Ritchie, 2000 Nuffield Scholar and Hawke’s Bay farmer, shares his leadership journey and insights with Farmers Weekly managing editor Bryan Gibson.Hugh discusses growing Drumpeel Farms into a diverse 2000-hectare operation, the impact of his Nuffield experience on his personal growth, and on irrigation and strip tillage and the need for better water infrastructure.He emphasises collaboration, global learning, and the importance of leadership development as vital to strengthening NZ’s food and fibre future.
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14:12
Jenni Vernon | Underestimating the power of face-to-face communication
Jenni Vernon, 1994 Nuffield Scholar, farmer and director, talks to Farmers Weekly managing editor Bryan Gibson about her leadership journey, her Nuffield experience, research, and on not underestimating the power of face-to-face communication in a sometimes-disconnected social media age.
Kia ora, you’ve joined the 'Ideas that Grow’ podcast - brought to you by Rural Leaders.In this series we’ll be drawing on the insights from innovative rural leaders, to help plant ideas that grow, so our regions can flourish.Ideas That Grow is presented in association with Farmer's Weekly. All guests are arranged by Rural Leaders, whose mission is to grow world class leaders through the Nuffield NZ Farming Scholarship and Kellogg Rural Leadership programme.
New Zealand