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Richard Subtil (owner) – Omarama Station , Cassidy Grey (Zentera) on Omarama Station. Supplied After three decades building global demand for New Zealand’s finest wool, the New Zealand Merino Company is preparing for its next chapter. From March 17 the company will operate under a new name - Zentera Wool Company -a move CEO Angus Street says reflects both the changing global market for natural fibres and the company’s broader international role. Street describes the shift as

Castle Ridge Station’s Paul and Kerry Harmer after being named Canterbury Regional Supreme Winners at the Ballance Farm Environment Awards. Supplied Castle Ridge Station’s Kerry Harmer says she and her family were “blown away” to be named the Canterbury Regional Supreme Winners at the Ballance Farm Environment Awards on March 5. “We were pretty overwhelmed,” she says. “We don’t really think we’re doing anything amazing. We just do what we think is right for us and for the pla

Kerry Harmer, Paul Harmer and Ben Harmer on Castle Ridge Station, high in the Ashburton Gorge. Supplied. High in the Ashburton Gorge, Castle Ridge Station is the kind of place that doesn’t let you farm on autopilot. Frost can hit in any month. Snow isn’t off the table either. One day can be 30 degrees, the next can slide into a week of bitter cold. For Paul and Kerry Harmer, that reality has shaped a system built around flexibility, practicality, and a constant awareness of t

Beverley Forrester in the wool barn with a selection of garments – including those featured in Fashion Week. Claire Inkson When I meet Beverley Forrester at her home in Leithfield, I am greeted with a warm hug and a fresh batch of scones smothered in homemade blackcurrant jam. “I made it in December. I quite like preserving — apricots too. I’m a bit like a squirrel.” It’s such a humble, country welcome that you would never guess Forrester has just added one of the highest hon

Open days are a great way to explore and understand what agricultural tertiary pathway to pursue and how to prepare for life at university. Supplied. Many Year 12 and 13 students are beginning to map out their futures - but for those eyeing a career in agriculture, what does preparing for the industry actually look like? According to Tom Maxwell, Senior Lecturer at Lincoln University, the ag sector is hungry for capable, skilled graduates - particularly for roles such as rura

Good dogs, great yarns, and a day out worth leaving the farm for - the Hurunui Flock Tours are back, bringing the district together one paddock at a time. The top flocks from each area then go on to the Champion of Champions Day, which sees eight farms visited in one day, followed by a community prizegiving and dinner. Supplied. Each March, the hills and valleys of Hurunui come alive with the sound of dogs, utes, and good conversation as farmers open their gates for the annua

Neville Caldwell selects for growth rate, meat yield and constitution. Fertility is considered a given. Supplied. Just a few minutes inland from the Moeraki Boulders on the North Otago coast, third-generation farmer Neville Caldwell runs a Coopworth-based ram breeding operation where constitution and performance outweigh eye appeal. Caldwell established his stud about 15 years ago after attending the Gore Stud Sale and deciding he wanted more control over the quality of rams

"Farming is like being a slave to the most beautiful master," says Nadia Lim. "It consumes you. It's your home, your workplace, your life. But it's so beautiful, and it teaches you so many lessons." At Royalburn Station, perched high above Arrowtown on the Crown Range, Lim's days move with the rhythm of the land — and the happy chaos of three young boys. It's a long way from the TV studios and My Food Bag boardrooms where New Zealand first came to know her. Now, alongside her

Ingrid Smith’s Facebook page has 15,000 followers where she blends gumboots with glamour and showcases practical make-up looks and her life on the farm. Supplied On a crisp Hawke’s Bay morning, Ingrid Smith might be found crutching sheep, chasing lambs with her children, or shifting mobs across paddocks.  Her nails are neat, her lashes coated in mascara, and there’s usually a slick of long-lasting lipstick in place.  It’s all part of the brand she has built -The Made Up Farme