October 5, 2025 • 5 mins
Federated Farmers president kicks off Mental Health Awareness Week on The Country. He has a few tips for rural Kiwis on looking after “the top paddock” from his own personal experience.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Looking out for our farmers on the country with Federated
Farmers proud supporters of Mental Health Awareness Week. Great to
have your company on the country and a very important
topic mental Health Awareness Week. To discuss this further. Federated
Farmers National President all around good guy Wayne Langford get owayne.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
How are you, oh, not too bad? Beautiful sunny day
and golden base today.
Speaker 1 (00:24):
You can't complain about that radio lookin. And there's an
important thing here with Mental Health Week is that you
have a role with the Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission
now that provides that rural voice to that table. That's
obviously very important.
Speaker 2 (00:39):
Yeah, it was an opportunity that was put forward by
the Minister around a year ago, actually around the summer
year ago, and so I was selecting on the Mental
Health and Wilwan Commission there obviously, Yeah, as you say,
nanny and rural voice. The rural community is the second
largest community outside of Auckland City, which is often quite forgotten.
But I'm oken on reminding people of and so so, Yeah,
(01:03):
to get a real voice around that table and to
make sure that the represented was extremely important.
Speaker 1 (01:09):
Yeah, absolutely, of course the backbone of the country. But
I don't need to go there with you on that
particular topic. So Federated Farmers obviously big supporters of Mental
Health Awareness Week. And you know it's all about visibility.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
Isn't it. It is? And you know what we're really
conscious of is that, you know, we spend a lot
of our time, you know, lobby and advocating for farmers
and really pushing the buttons there at times, and every
now and then you've just got to step back and
just make sure, as I think over says, you know
the top paddocks all right, or you know, you're looking
(01:44):
after yourself and and and so that's why we're really
keen to get in behind Mental Health Awareness Week, just
to make sure that we do do slow down and
reflect on that. It's an important topic across not only
all New Zealand, but particularly we're all New Zealand. So
it's really really cool to be a part of it.
Speaker 1 (01:59):
Yeah, yeah, nationwide, it's it's it's it's all of us
together topic without a doubt. What's the current state of
play for rural mental health support with the government. Is
it a strategy? Is it working?
Speaker 2 (02:11):
Yeah, so it's a work in progress. I'd say that
much I'd say we've gone from this phase of acknowledgement
and awareness, which is which has been fantastic. And I
mentioned a few of those that have done some great
work in that in that place, you know, Sir John
Kerr and Stugg Avery, Mike King, Tho's those sort of
people that they have got it out there and got
amongst it. Now we're moving into this next phases I
(02:33):
like to call it where we're going to say, right,
what are we going to do about this and what
does it look like going forward? And so I know
that the Royal sector came together and as you know,
I've been calling on teammate to do this for quite
some time and this is this is one example where
where we all got together really well. We had young farmers,
Royal Woman, Durian d Beef and Lamb, all all the
(02:55):
industry bodies plus plus a lot more of the primary
sector as well officially forestry and others in the room
to say hey, what can we do here? Obviously some
of it comes down to funding and being able to
do what we do. So it's great to see that
the government have got them behind us as well. And
you would have seen TESSI and at field days there
when they announced almost a million dollars a year to
(03:18):
go towards our mental health Fund which the primary sector
groups can apply for and to help them do what
they do. So that's a pretty cool results.
Speaker 1 (03:27):
Yeah, fantastic. Now long may this been the case your
personal story. It's been well documented, but it is always
positive when it is when other people become aware of it.
And I've all but got yolo tattooed onto my forehead.
But just before we wrap it up today, what a
couple of practical tips just for somebody to have a
(03:48):
better day, better week.
Speaker 2 (03:51):
Yeah. See the other time, E particularly on farm, and
things have flat out, you know, just I can't empacize
enough to get off farm just a little bit. I
went for a drive you say, with my wife, just
went out. We got a nice cream of the beach
and just and just freshen up of it, if you
know what I mean. Just just get off farm, do
something different and it just gets things gone. The other thing,
which I'm big one I was just talking to someone
(04:11):
about the other day, is its don't be shy to
go and give a made hand on his farm. It's
amazing how good farming is when you're when you're not
in charge of making all good decisions and that you know,
on your own farm, you've got to think about this,
and you got to think about that, and you've got
to do all these things. When you go and have
a mate on their farm, you're just farming. It's just
it's the thing that you're enjoy and so no doubt
(04:33):
he'll appreciate the help and and you'll get a bit
of you know, you'll get a bit of something for
your own soul out of it as well. So yeah,
I haven't been out tailing lambs for a while that
my my best man's placed out on the coast. But
I'm just saying this reminds me i'd better better ring
him up and see if he needs a hand to
knock off a few towels on his lambs this spring.
Speaker 1 (04:51):
Get out there, Get out there, Wayne Langford, Federated Farmer's
National President. This is Mental Health Awareness Week and hopeless
old romantic at nice cream at the beach. Beautiful man,
she is white. Much appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (05:02):
Thanks him.
Looking out for our farmers on the country with Federated
Farmers proud supporters of Mental Health Awareness Week. Great to
have your company on the country and a very important
topic mental Health Awareness Week. To discuss this further. Federated
Farmers National President all around good guy Wayne Langford get owayne.
Speaker 2 (00:19):
How are you, oh, not too bad? Beautiful sunny day
and golden base today.
Speaker 1 (00:24):
You can't complain about that radio lookin. And there's an
important thing here with Mental Health Week is that you
have a role with the Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission
now that provides that rural voice to that table. That's
obviously very important.
Speaker 2 (00:39):
Yeah, it was an opportunity that was put forward by
the Minister around a year ago, actually around the summer
year ago, and so I was selecting on the Mental
Health and Wilwan Commission there obviously, Yeah, as you say,
nanny and rural voice. The rural community is the second
largest community outside of Auckland City, which is often quite forgotten.
But I'm oken on reminding people of and so so, Yeah,
(01:03):
to get a real voice around that table and to
make sure that the represented was extremely important.
Speaker 1 (01:09):
Yeah, absolutely, of course the backbone of the country. But
I don't need to go there with you on that
particular topic. So Federated Farmers obviously big supporters of Mental
Health Awareness Week. And you know it's all about visibility.
Speaker 2 (01:23):
Isn't it. It is? And you know what we're really
conscious of is that, you know, we spend a lot
of our time, you know, lobby and advocating for farmers
and really pushing the buttons there at times, and every
now and then you've just got to step back and
just make sure, as I think over says, you know
the top paddocks all right, or you know, you're looking
(01:44):
after yourself and and and so that's why we're really
keen to get in behind Mental Health Awareness Week, just
to make sure that we do do slow down and
reflect on that. It's an important topic across not only
all New Zealand, but particularly we're all New Zealand. So
it's really really cool to be a part of it.
Speaker 1 (01:59):
Yeah, yeah, nationwide, it's it's it's it's all of us
together topic without a doubt. What's the current state of
play for rural mental health support with the government. Is
it a strategy? Is it working?
Speaker 2 (02:11):
Yeah, so it's a work in progress. I'd say that
much I'd say we've gone from this phase of acknowledgement
and awareness, which is which has been fantastic. And I
mentioned a few of those that have done some great
work in that in that place, you know, Sir John
Kerr and Stugg Avery, Mike King, Tho's those sort of
people that they have got it out there and got
amongst it. Now we're moving into this next phases I
(02:33):
like to call it where we're going to say, right,
what are we going to do about this and what
does it look like going forward? And so I know
that the Royal sector came together and as you know,
I've been calling on teammate to do this for quite
some time and this is this is one example where
where we all got together really well. We had young farmers,
Royal Woman, Durian d Beef and Lamb, all all the
(02:55):
industry bodies plus plus a lot more of the primary
sector as well officially forestry and others in the room
to say hey, what can we do here? Obviously some
of it comes down to funding and being able to
do what we do. So it's great to see that
the government have got them behind us as well. And
you would have seen TESSI and at field days there
when they announced almost a million dollars a year to
(03:18):
go towards our mental health Fund which the primary sector
groups can apply for and to help them do what
they do. So that's a pretty cool results.
Speaker 1 (03:27):
Yeah, fantastic. Now long may this been the case your
personal story. It's been well documented, but it is always
positive when it is when other people become aware of it.
And I've all but got yolo tattooed onto my forehead.
But just before we wrap it up today, what a
couple of practical tips just for somebody to have a
(03:48):
better day, better week.
Speaker 2 (03:51):
Yeah. See the other time, E particularly on farm, and
things have flat out, you know, just I can't empacize
enough to get off farm just a little bit. I
went for a drive you say, with my wife, just
went out. We got a nice cream of the beach
and just and just freshen up of it, if you
know what I mean. Just just get off farm, do
something different and it just gets things gone. The other thing,
which I'm big one I was just talking to someone
(04:11):
about the other day, is its don't be shy to
go and give a made hand on his farm. It's
amazing how good farming is when you're when you're not
in charge of making all good decisions and that you know,
on your own farm, you've got to think about this,
and you got to think about that, and you've got
to do all these things. When you go and have
a mate on their farm, you're just farming. It's just
it's the thing that you're enjoy and so no doubt
(04:33):
he'll appreciate the help and and you'll get a bit
of you know, you'll get a bit of something for
your own soul out of it as well. So yeah,
I haven't been out tailing lambs for a while that
my my best man's placed out on the coast. But
I'm just saying this reminds me i'd better better ring
him up and see if he needs a hand to
knock off a few towels on his lambs this spring.
Speaker 1 (04:51):
Get out there, Get out there, Wayne Langford, Federated Farmer's
National President. This is Mental Health Awareness Week and hopeless
old romantic at nice cream at the beach. Beautiful man,
she is white. Much appreciate it.
Speaker 2 (05:02):
Thanks him.
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