December 17, 2025 • 36 mins
Jamie Mackay talks to Shane Jones, Alison Shanks, Todd Charteris, John McOviney, and Chris Russell.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Catch all the latest from the land. It's the Country
Podcast with Jamie mckue. Thanks to Brent, you're specialist in
John Dee machinery.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
It's Christmas time. There's no need to be a free
at Christmas time. We vanished it. Good afternoon, New Zealand.
Welcome to the Country. The show is brought to you
by Brent. I'm Jamie McKay. Band aid do they know
(00:39):
it's Christmas? It's about forty years old that song? Now
anyhow today lot's happening on the show earlier this morning
and it was pretty much signaled, wasn't it on yesterday's
show when we chatted to Miles Hurrell. Fonterra has dropped
the milk price to a midpoint of nine dollars and
(01:00):
in restingly another announcement this morning, Todd McLay, Minister of
Trade and Agriculture, has announced the appointment of Nathan Guy
as a new special agg trade end boy. He starts
on January one, twenty twenty six, so straight into it
and he'll be excellent in that job. We might even
try and get him on the show tomorrow. And the
(01:22):
GDP number came out the economy grew by one point
one percent in the third quarter of the year the
September quarter, stronger than even the most optimistic forecasts. Economists
had been picking a rise of between zero point eight
and one percent for the quarter. So that's the good
news the bad will I guess the bad news is well,
(01:43):
the good news is our economy is coming right. But
the bad news is the chances of another official cash
rate in February have faded further into the distance. And
the GDP figure they were talking about for the second quarter,
perhaps revising it upwards, but instead they revised it the
other way and they've revised it to minus one from
(02:04):
minus zero point nine. Jenny Wiley has resigned from netball
end z chief executive And in the cricket let me
have a look at the cricket score for you from
the bay Oval Third Test against the Windy's. New Zealand
chose to bat, they won the toss and they are
where where are we? Forty eight without loss? Going along
(02:27):
rather nicely. Tom Lathan twenty one, Devon Conway. He seems
to be finding some form as twenty five not out
right on the show today, we're going to kick it
off with the mighty Martua the Prince of the Provinces,
Shane Jones. Very funny day in Parliament yesterday with those
closing speeches. Got a really interesting chat or I think
it will be with Allison Shanks from high performance sport
(02:51):
to a high performance ag tech company, former World champion
cyclist about her transition from track to track and cows
with Halter Todd Charter, Ravobank raps the farming year, Names
of Zagg Person of the Air. We catch up with
John mcavini, why Tomo's sheep and beef farmer and chief
executive of Steelfort who's in the business of both growing
grass and cutting it. And for the final time in
(03:13):
twenty twenty five it's our Ossie correspondent Chris Russell will
have to reflect unfortunately on the Bondai massacre. But on
a brighter note, who is the Ossie Agg Person of
the Air. It's all on the country between now on
one for the final time and twenty twenty five it
(03:43):
is Martua, Shane Jones, the Prince of the Provinces, and Shane,
you must have been sitting back in your chair chuckling
in Parliament yesterday with the end of year speeches. I
thought Prime Minister Chris Luxen was very funny.
Speaker 3 (03:58):
Yeah, no, he had some great lines secular, describing the
Greens as the Bolts Bolsheviks in business class. And obviously
he made a humorous reference to our lead, basically saying,
as you might recall, every time he posts something on
social media, Winston speaks French and reminds him of the
(04:18):
word we. But without a doubt, mate, the Speech of
the day went to Winston Peters. It was a full
throated war cry, assembling not only our own forces but
warning people standing against us that we are going to
blow the election twenty twenty six wide open.
Speaker 2 (04:38):
Well, I think it's quote whilst they're going to turn
the election on its head, what does that mean you're
going to be? Is it going to be a New
Zealand first lead coalition government?
Speaker 3 (04:46):
Shane, Well, we've got pretty hefty ambitions. I've told you
on this program before they wiped us out and sought
to keep us out after twenty the twenty twenty experience.
Of course, you say to me, well, you've boked it
upon yourself by breathing likly to descinder of us wrecking
the country. But we'll move on from those heretical statements
(05:06):
that often thrown about by your good self. In twenty
twenty three, we came back and look, we're going to
reverse history. Every time Winston and New Zealand first has
been in cabinet, it's been it's been like a desert
like experience. Afterwards, whether it was with Halen Clark knocked
out sind and knocked out Jenny Shipley, he survived and
(05:27):
went back into opposition. So this time around we're going
to ensure that we rewrite the script.
Speaker 2 (05:33):
Well, you haven't got a great track record of hanging around.
I mean, let's faice it. Winston's been sacked plenty of times.
Speaker 3 (05:40):
Well you know, there's a lot of volatility and randomness
and politics. But this time around, we all know that
he's had a tremendous run in terms of representing your
interests in mine overseas. He's widely respected of coross a
growing number of Kiwis as a cool head. I mean,
he steered us very very clearly through the pressure that
was a New Zealand to recognize Palestine. And I'm given
(06:04):
to all these extremists from time to time blight our
own parliament. So it's just a small matter of his judiciousness,
and of course he's known from time to time to
warn me and mister Jones.
Speaker 2 (06:17):
Less's more, there's a really good video doing the rounds
on a YouTube of his speech, and he literally like
the bloke's eighty years of age, and he is on
the front foot. He's coming in from the long run.
Whatever you cricket analogy you want to use, and he's
just giving it to the Greens and to party Maury.
And there seems to be a genuine animosity that even
(06:40):
if he wanted to, or even if it suited his
own purposes, Heaven helps Shane Jones, he couldn't go with
labor next year.
Speaker 3 (06:48):
No, No, the speech was absolutely clear. It was a
rolling cry, it was a war cry. You've got a
bear of mind. Winston predicted that the Multi Party would
turn into a bunch of losers. He took particular offense
at their slur that him and I and how Mali
ancestry was diluted, and it was a sort of a
distortion and a corruption of what it means to be
(07:11):
Maldi in politics. So he quoted a line in the Bible,
as you throw it onto others, it will be thrown
back at you. And boy, has that karmic experience settled
the palms on Tommy Eddie and the Malori Party. But anyway,
Lester say about those muppets on the question of the Greens,
You've got to bear in mind they've been through a
lot of chaos self inflicted themselves. But they have such
(07:31):
policies that they will drive out of existence thriving businesses
in rural News Zealand. They'll also impose a host of
unpayable debts from climate change on us, and they have
a distorted view about our place in the world that
somehow we should suck up to the extremists, the terrorists
and those other sort of finger puppets that support this
(07:56):
anti Israel cause.
Speaker 2 (07:58):
Are you disappointed had your comments about Chloe, the demonic egg, Beata,
the rent seek and kling On didn't mate quote of
the Year that went to Andrew of Ants with the
sea bomb.
Speaker 3 (08:10):
Yeah, well, just just imagine if the sea bomb had
to be nutted by a male politician or how would
have broken up. But look, I've enjoyed talking to you
during the course of the year, and my own staff
say to me, look, Shane, we really need to recodify
how you think because we don't know, and you certainly
don't know where you dream these terms up that you
(08:32):
fling around on Jamie's show. I said, wow, if it
brings a little bit of a tension and a few chuckles,
and then in a biblical way, I can say my word,
and on the seventh day arrested and my work was done.
Speaker 2 (08:44):
All right, you got one more job to do for
twenty twenty five, and that is to name your ag
person of the year. Who is it?
Speaker 3 (08:51):
Ah, Look, I've got two obviously, I've had my battles
with Fonterra. The CEO deserves major honors. And Jamie, I
might need your help. There's a farmer's first, man's David.
He came to see me and he's been through hell
there in Canterbury, spent hundreds of thousands of dollars trying
to get his resource consent renewed for water purposes.
Speaker 2 (09:13):
David Clark. David Clark is his.
Speaker 3 (09:15):
Name, David Clark. He came to my office. I've spoken
with him. That poor bug has been through help and
thats what That's what drove New Zealand first to seek
an extension of all water permits, et cetera. For farmers,
so we give them greater certainty as we wander through
the journey from the current regime to the new RMA regime.
(09:35):
And if they need more than I'd encourage them all
to come to the Select Committee because I'll have lots
of support from New Zealand. First, to replicate what we
did for the marine farming industry extending their permits for
twenty forty twenty fifty to give them certainty, we need
to do a similar thing for the copies.
Speaker 2 (09:51):
Well, Sean Jones, thanks for your contribution to your colorful
contributions throughout twenty twenty five. I hope you have a
RESTful festive season with family and friends, and remember just
be nice to any blind frogs, skinks or lizards you
come across. During the break.
Speaker 3 (10:07):
I'll do that while I'm supping on red wine, Rosie
wine and a feed of came wine. I see you by.
Speaker 2 (10:14):
See you, Shane. It's been fun and twenty five. It
was fun. By the way, yesterday in Parliament closing speeches,
I thought Luxeon was funny. I don't know whether he
writes his own and you've probably heard these before, but
he compared the Labor Party to a box of Cadbury
favorites for starters. I think all the good ones have gone,
(10:36):
and after refusing to front the COVID inquiry, I'd say
Chris Hipkins would be the flake. I think the rest
of labor are a bit like a cherry ripe. They
seem nice on the outside, but inside they're deeply, deeply red,
and then frankly they're just best left where they are.
I'm with you on the cherry rights. I don't like those.
It has one about Winston that this is Luckston's comment
(10:59):
about Winston that Shane Jones referred to. He was singing
the praises of Winston, saying he'd visited thirty one countries
or something like that, and he said Winston is actually
such a dedicated foreign minister that he's mastered French. Every
time I post something on social media, he replies, we
not a bad shot there from Prime Minister Chris Luckson
(11:21):
and the cricket Bay Oval and his elander off to
a rollicking, well rollicking start fifty five without loss after
sixteen point three overs. Latham and Conway not out twenty
five and twenty nine respectively. Up next, talking about Sport,
a woman who has transitioned from high performance sport to
a high performance ag tech company. Allison Shanks up next
(11:43):
on the Country. Tomorrow on the Country, we will announce
our ag Person of the Year. One of the popular
nominees has been Craig Piggott, Yeah, the guy who started
(12:05):
out in Rocket Lab and is of course now the
founder and chief executive of Halter. Haven't got him on
the show today, but we've got the next best thing,
a bit of a celebrity Halter person, that's what I'll
call her, Allison Shanks, world champion cyclist these days working
for Halter. Allie, great to have you on the Country.
How did you make the change? How did this come about?
Speaker 4 (12:27):
Yeah, it's a bit of a big change from sport
into egg But if I'm perfectly honest, it probably was
last year and I had that little inkling of like
maybe the grass is green, are over and aler, you know,
and I was like, far out, I can't be thinking that.
When you've worn the silver fern on your chest and
you've heard the national anthem playing for your country, you know,
(12:49):
there's a deep sense of pride. And I was just like,
how do I help to ensure New Zealand prospers as
a country and being here in the heart of the
White head ow. I guess I got drawn into that
egg space. It's like, yeah, this is where, like, this
is what New Zealand's all about. And then found Halter
and was like, man, this is such a high performing,
(13:09):
fast paced I guess a team and wanted to be
part of it.
Speaker 2 (13:14):
Well, and you've got a good background or a tertiary
education background to do a job like this. You've got
a Becom's Honors in marketing. You've also got a Bachelor
of Science and human nutrition from your Dunedin days Allison
Shanks or Ali Shanks. So I guess human nutrition's pretty
similar to cow nutrition. Mind you they've got four stomachs,
(13:35):
We've got one.
Speaker 4 (13:37):
Yeah, yeah, And I think, you know, there's suddenly been
a lot of transferable skills. I really look at it
from a performance model perspective, and so within cyclaying and
within high performance, it was very much about data analytics.
How do we understand the data and then make performance
(13:58):
decisions accordingly. And that's really what that Halter enables on
farm as well, for us to have those performance conversations.
And I think it's about data as knowledge and knowledge
is power to be able to make informed decisions. And
I suppose that's sort of the performance leans that I
bring from hyper sport into this role with Halter.
Speaker 2 (14:16):
You're now living in Cambridge, as you said, of course
that's a high performance area when it comes to sport,
but you're a delead and girl. Did you have an
egg background at all?
Speaker 4 (14:26):
No, I haven't. Actually, I guess my only touch point
into farming was you know, everyone's got an uncle, uncle
Brian and Clyde vale on the sheep and beef farm
and now my cousin Gareth is running that farm, and
so that was I guess my childhood touch point of farming.
But no, I've certainly been learning a new industry and
I am loving it. It's been such a privilege. I
(14:48):
suppose to get out and sit down with farmers face
to face, hear their farming story, understand their performance model,
understand their farming system and look at how we can
pull the different levers. I suppose of the terms of
the features that Holter provides to really unlock an O
performance on farm.
Speaker 2 (15:09):
Holter has just recently cracked Australia. I think you've signed
up your first farm because there were legislative restrictions over
there until very recently.
Speaker 4 (15:19):
Yeah, it's super exciting. Obviously we've just opened up in
Victoria and New South Wales. That's been enabled by a
legislative change. So previously, yeah, we weren't able to go
into that market.
Speaker 5 (15:32):
It's a legislative change.
Speaker 4 (15:34):
That sort of hung over from the seventies where virtual
fencing was banned and so Holter's really led the charge
over there, you know, to unlock that market and really
step into the performance space on farm in Australia. We've
called our first farm in New South Wales at the
weekend and there's a massive market over there that we're
(15:55):
excited to be able to go into in twenty twenty six.
Speaker 2 (15:58):
Yeah. And of course Holton I don't need the dairy industry,
but the beef industry. Huge opportunities there. As I said,
you're famous, world famous for winning two world titles in
the three thousand meter individual pursuit. You want a Commonwealth
Games title as well. You're all set to win in
London in twenty twelve Alie Shanks, and then they changed
(16:20):
the rules, they got rid of your event. Does it
still grind your gears?
Speaker 3 (16:25):
Oh?
Speaker 4 (16:25):
You know, yeah, I suppose it's that little chip on
your shoulder, but those yeah, it's those things that are
like totally out of your control. And I mean London
was still amazing experience with that woman's team pursuit.
Speaker 5 (16:38):
But I don't know.
Speaker 4 (16:39):
I suppose it's about adaptability, isn't it and reinventing yourself
and yeah, you look back on that, but hey it's
one chapter and yeah, onto the next thing.
Speaker 2 (16:50):
Now, well you've certainly reinvented yourself. Allison Shanks. Great to
catch up, good luck. I know you'll go great guns
just like you did on the cycling track and the valodrome,
you'll do equally well. Worth Halter, You've got a great product.
Good luck and we'll eagerly await to see if Craig
Piggott is our ag Person of the Year on tomorrow
show Go well Allie.
Speaker 4 (17:08):
Thanks Jamie, and Merry Christmas.
Speaker 2 (17:11):
And Merry Christmas to you. Allie Shanks. What a champion, Yeah,
London twenty twelve London Olympics. She was the world champion,
all set to win a gold medal and then they
took the event off the calendar. Yeah that would annoy you,
wouldn't it. Yes, tomorrow we'll announce our ag Person of
(17:31):
the Year. But up next it is who is it
up next, Todd Charters. We're going to year to the
chief executive of Rabobank. Of course, the big farming story today,
no surprise, Fonterra has dropped the price of milk to
a mid mid point of nine dollars. We'll talk about
that and whether interest rates are going to stay down
or whether they're going up. Some of the long term
(17:51):
fixed rates are going up before the end of their
John mcavinie and Chris Russell. It's all on the country.
And Michelle's going to wander in here and we'll update
the cricket for you as well. And I'll do that
right now. Bear with me. Fifty seven without loss a
third test at the Bay Oval in Mount Monganoi. Here's
(18:17):
another great supporter of the country wrapping his farming year.
His name is Todd charteris chief executive of a Rabobank
who bring you the best of the country every Saturday
morning on News Talk ZB between six and seven. Thanks
for that, Todd. Hey, let's just start with the news
of today. Fonterra dropping the milk price or the midpoint
(18:37):
to nine dollars. No surprise, this milk price could end
up starting with an eight.
Speaker 6 (18:43):
Yeah, goodating And Jamie, you look at his no surprise
obviously nine consecutive drops and GDT the option and there's
just the world's just a wash with milk at the moment.
And so yeah, looks it's I guess it's disappointing, but
it's it's quite realistic. And the good good thing is
it's happening early in the season, so people can plan
(19:04):
and do so accordingly. So yeah, look, it's under pressure,
there's no doubt about it. But I think it's the
right signal from frontier to the market.
Speaker 2 (19:11):
Economics one o one supply and demand the other interesting
story and this pertains to you guys who lend money.
Interest rates those longer term fixed strates are going up.
Can the Reserve Bank governor the new one I've forgotten
the name, talk them down?
Speaker 6 (19:27):
Yeah, well look, yeah, I haven't met her yet. We're
catching up in February, which are good. But yeah, look,
certainly the Reserve Bank's trying to talk talk them down
a bit. But yeah, the market responded to the Reserve
Bank announcement a few weeks ago, and we have seen
some sort of increases on those longer term rates, but
let's see where they settle. I think it's very sensitive
(19:49):
to commentary in the marketplace, so let's just see where
they settle. I do think, you know, OCR is going
to stay down for some time, so to see where
those wholesale rates end up.
Speaker 2 (20:00):
As we review the farming year twenty twenty five, really
encouraging were those soapy numbers that came out the Situation
and Outlook report for primary industries. You know, it's worth
what sixty two billion for the year ended thirtieth of
June twenty twenty six, heading up the sixty three billion.
It's absolutely brilliant of the sector. Food and fiber now
(20:22):
accounts for eighty three percent of all in Z goods exports.
Speaker 6 (20:27):
Yeah, it's outstanding, isn't it? And something that I think
everyone associated with the primary sector should be proud of,
right from the farm gate right through everyone who's involved.
So you look absolutely outstanding and just great to see
and really underpinning that confidence that we see coming through
and now of goodly confidence surveys, and long may that continue.
(20:48):
I mean, notwithstanding obviously we're just spoken about the dairy price,
but look at the commodity outlooks look outstanding and so
as I say, long may that continue.
Speaker 2 (20:59):
Well, fruit and beef. Trump's taken the tariffs of those,
there's a couple obviously we can throw in another red
meat and lamb. Have they've had stunning years?
Speaker 6 (21:08):
Oh? Absolutely, And it's great to see. And you know
it's you know, because it hasn't hasn't always been plain
sailing and certainly in sheep meat. So so you know,
if we can get a few good years and you
know people farms will reinvest and continue to invest in
what they do. And I think that's great and we
(21:29):
see that as saying as confidence results.
Speaker 2 (21:32):
Okay, Todd charteris chief executive of Rabobankoho is your twenty
twenty five agg Person of the Year.
Speaker 6 (21:38):
Oh look, look, you know it's obviously been a top year.
We spoke about that, so there's a lot of competition,
for sure. I do want to mention a couple of names.
I do want to give an honorable mention to the
agri Business Director Kerry Allen, who I thought really stepped
up when the Education Ministry suggested that agribusiness should be
dropped from the school curriculum. So well to carry I
(22:00):
thought it was excellent leadership there and we're a big
supporter of every business from schools. But for me, I've
actually thought about it more as a team and it's
to all those people for the Ministry of Primary Industries
who work hard every day to protect our borders and
buy security systems. They're just so important for our farmers
and growers. So you know, well done to Ray Smith
(22:21):
who's the Director General Bear. I really enjoy working with Ray.
I think he leads that team brilliantly. So I call
out Ray Raysmith and the whole team at MPI.
Speaker 2 (22:30):
Todd charteris wrapping the farming year that was. Thanks for
your support, Thanks for the support of everyone at Rabobank,
especially David Johnson who does the hard yards in the
back office. You have a good break. I'll catch you
back next year.
Speaker 6 (22:42):
Hey, thanks Jamian, thanks for all that you do in
the whole team of the country. Excellent work and just
finding a massive shout out to all of our farmers
and growls out there and you, well, we're all so
proud of you. Keep up with good work and have
a good break. Chairs.
Speaker 2 (22:55):
What a great comment. Thank you. Tod Yep you're all
heroes out there, back bone of the economy. Thank you
Liz for texting it and telling me, reminding me actually
that Alie Shanks, Allison Shanks did a few years as
a beef and lamb ambassady as she was one of
the Iron Maidens. And you can't argue with Ray Smith
and MPI we potentially or probably will be the first
(23:18):
country in the world to eradicate m bovis. So well
done to the team at MPI. Michelle's up in here.
I think she's found a twisted sister Christmas song. Surely not.
We'll have Royal News and Sports News, will update the
cricket day one of the Third Test from the Bay Oval. Oh,
(23:45):
welcome back to the country where am I trilium gone
on my headphones trying to update cricket scores from the
Bay Oval to play underway and adelaide again for day
two of the third Ashes Tests, the days everywhere. Okay,
I think this is a boguan twisted sister Christmas song
from Michelle.
Speaker 1 (24:04):
Let's ask her the country's world news with Coup Cadet,
New Zealand's leading right on lawnlower brand. Visit steel Ford
Dot Cotians for your local stockist.
Speaker 2 (24:14):
Twisted Sister do Christmas song? Surely not?
Speaker 7 (24:17):
They did a whole Christmas album in two thousand and six. James, Oh, well,
this is actually the darkness. So I couldn't find Twisted
Sister in time for the start of the show. Unfortunately.
I know you're very disappointed.
Speaker 2 (24:27):
Okay, what's in Rawal news?
Speaker 7 (24:28):
Okay and Rawal news. The Minister of Trade and Investment
and Minister for Agriculture, Todd McLay has announced the appointment
of Nathan Guy as New Zealand's Special Agricultural Trade in Envoy.
He is currently the chairman of the Meat Industry Association
Independent Chair of Apiculture New Zealand And. Nathan Guy is
going to replace Hamish mar who has held that position
since twenty twenty three. Nathan will start up role on
(24:50):
the first of January and.
Speaker 2 (24:52):
He'll be great in their job. Thank you.
Speaker 1 (24:53):
Michelle Sport on the country with AFCO one hundred percent
key we owned.
Speaker 2 (25:00):
I'm looking at a tally and looking at a computer screen.
I can't multitask play underway in the Adelaide Oval. We've
just lost it. They're still eight down for three hundred
and something or other day, one of the third Windys
Tests Bay Oval, Mount Monganii and New Zealand is seventy
one without loss. And as you heard at the top
(25:21):
of the our Jenny Wiley, the beligue to Jenny Wiley,
has resigned as chief executive of Netbourne, New Zealand. Up next,
we're off to Waititomo. Here is another great supporter of
the country. We're going to get his wrap of the
Farming Year twenty twenty five. His name is John mcavinie.
He's a Waititoma sheep and beef farmer. When he's not
(25:42):
doing that, he's the chief executive of Steelfort John for
the North Island, the Upper North Island. Great rain overnight.
That's great for the cockies. It's also great for a
bloke like you who sells lawnmowers.
Speaker 8 (25:55):
Yeah, well, when you're either eating grass or cutting grass
at both ends of that. So you know, I'm very pleased.
We've got sort of good rain here in the last
forty eight hours. And I was at the farm last
week and we've got a lot at tucker out there
and it looks fantastic and we've just shorn over eight
thousand lambs and they're on the beautiful tacka. So you
(26:16):
know it should be really good for the you know,
we should be good right through to all the end
of Christmas. Now and those rains, I don't know MAT's
they head out there, probably fifty sixty mil. And I
was talking to the son and all last night and
Mada Manna and they've had sort of fifty mills on there,
so he had all was well for a very good
you know, grass growing period from now to Christmas.
Speaker 2 (26:37):
Happy days if you're a sheep and base farmer at
the moment, John.
Speaker 8 (26:41):
Yes, yeah, Look, you know, we we're sort of thinking
we haven't sold any lambs yet, and Chris, we've got
all this tucker on at the moment, so we think
we might just hang on to them and draft, which
we don't normally do. But you know, when the shears
was up at eleven backs, you know, it makes you think,
(27:01):
doesn't it. You know, we probably better if we've got
the feed, let's feed them and take advantage of that schedule.
Speaker 2 (27:07):
One of the big stories, and it's terribly sad and
tragic story in twenty twenty five was Tom Phillips. And
last year I think it was October of twenty twenty
four he was spotted with us kids walking around your farm.
In fact, I think were your grandsons that spotted them.
Speaker 8 (27:23):
Yeah, well it was last October or thereabouts, and yeah,
they were up there and my grandson Andre took those
photos and he you know, they were only sort of
twenty meters away from them, and they talked to the
kids and didn't say a hell of a lot. They
just sort of kept walking. But yeah, and it's a
(27:43):
tragic and you don't like anything like that to happen,
but you know, I think it's a pretty good outcome actually,
And you know, I really feel for those kiddies that
have been sort of segregated for four years out there.
It can't be good for them. And you know, I
don't know how they're going to assimilate into the New
(28:06):
Zealand society again, so I'm not sure, but you've got
to feel for them. And yeah, it's just it's passed
now and it's yesterday's news, so you know, we move on,
I suppose.
Speaker 2 (28:18):
On a happier note. John mcavenny, White, Timo Sheep and
Beef Farmer, chief executive of steel Fort, We've got one
of your cub cadet right on Moers to give away
in January when we come back the Lex five four seven.
I've done the video, I've driven the thing around. It's
worth six four hundred bucks. And as we said at
the beginning of this yarn, when it rains and the
grass grows, it's a good time to sell lawn mowers.
(28:40):
How has the industry been this year?
Speaker 8 (28:44):
As far as steel Force is concerned, Our fiscal year
ends at the end of December, and we look like
we're going to be about twenty percent up on last year.
So you know, that's a pretty good result as far
as I'm concerned. They talk about green shoots, well, we're
certainly getting a few of them at the moment. It's
been a good spring. We've had new products, as I said,
you know, I've mentioned previously with this new Victor product
(29:06):
that we've got, and we've got these robotic mowers and
we've sold close to one thousands of those nationwide. I
never thought they'd sort of do as well as they do,
but they've a lot of people are buying those now.
So yeah, we're very very comfortable where we are, and
you know, with the recent reign, and as I say,
we'll be good right through for Christmas now.
Speaker 2 (29:25):
So watch out for that promo coming to a radio
show near you. In fact, this one in January the
LX five four seven cub cadet right on to give
away worth six four hundred dollars. Finally, and I've got
to be quick on this one, John mcaveny, because I'm
running out of time. I always run myself short on
the last week of the year. Who is your ag
person of the Year.
Speaker 8 (29:45):
Well, I'm probably a bit different from what yours are, Jamie.
There's a lot of people out there that you know
in the frontiers and the zespres and the silver food
farms and alliances, and then all the CEO gets all
the accolade. But you know, in my it's there are
people like Jane Smith, who you know, she is fantastic,
(30:06):
that girl. She does a great job promoting the agricultural industry.
So I'm between her and I think Chris Bishop is
the other one that I really enjoyed with Arima. I
watched him, not that I do it a lot, but
I watched him on TV the other day on the
you know where they do the Parliament on TV, and
(30:26):
you know, he puts up with a lot of crap
on there, and you know when he's answering these questions
and he was sort of just shaking his head and
not knowing quite how to answer some of the questions
that come from the Greens Party in particular. So I'm
either Jane Smith or Chris Bishop, one of the two.
I'm very happy I put a male and a female
in the athoiot good on.
Speaker 2 (30:45):
Yep, there we go, John Maker of any Merry Christmas
to you and Gav and all the Steal four team
and we'll, as I say, give away the ride on
mower in January, have a good break.
Speaker 8 (30:55):
Reciprocate exactly those thoughts Jamie thinks not always good to
talk and have a good Christmas breakment.
Speaker 2 (31:08):
The last week on the Countries for our favorite correspondence.
This bloke is probably my favorite correspondent because he's my
most long standing been on the show since nineteen ninety four.
Possi correspondent Chris Russell and Chris, it would be remissive
me not to talk to you, and I've avoided it
largely this week because it's so tragic and depressing. The
Bondi Beach massacre as a Sydney height this must be
(31:32):
so distressing to you and everyone in Australia.
Speaker 5 (31:36):
I think it absolutely and almost you know, Australia likes
to think of himself as being above them, beyond all
that sort of thing. But of course, when no one's
immune from it, and especially this radicalization that's obviously occurred
with these guys were particularly the young fire. But the
big effect that's been talked about in the agricultural world
(31:57):
is the potential effect on gun control. And you know,
some sort of knee jerk reaction to what farmers and
feral pest controllers are now allowed to use in the
never ending battle against the pigs, cats, rabbits. Boxes all
required different caliber, different numbers of weapons, close, long range,
(32:21):
et cetera. And yet if there's some sort of blanket
rule board in that says that they can't have more
than say three weapons, and they you know, and they
start restricting. There's some ideas which I think are a
good idea, like, for example, you have to be an
Australian citizen to get a license. That's a great idea,
But they've got to make sure that they don't throw
the baby out with the bath water. In terms of
(32:42):
feral animal control, of this. The problem is that forty
percent of the licenses Jamie are being held in the cities,
and the average number of guns that these people in
the cities have is five, which clearly people in the
cities they need five weapons other than for maybe their
own sort of edification. And in so we're going to
see some changes, but let's hope that they just keep
(33:04):
in mind that for some people they're a tool of
trade and a very necessary one.
Speaker 2 (33:08):
Jamie sympathies go out to your nation, Chris. Feed lots,
let's talk about of farming are at one hundred percent capacity.
We just can't get enough beef.
Speaker 5 (33:19):
Yeah, well absolutely, and of course that's having a big
effect on store cattle, where they're paying five dollars a
ka for store animals to put in these feed lots.
We've got about a million and a half spaces in
feed lots. They're all absolutely full. And of course China's
extra demand during the period when they had the registered
those American beef suppliers that really boosted it. But that
(33:44):
everything still seems to be going up. And of course
underlying that is America, our biggest customer now taking all
the off cut meat at the record numbers every month.
I've lost track with how many records we set this year.
So feed lots are doing well and it's hard to
become a feed lot in Australia. The environmental controls is significant.
(34:04):
I remember visiting a guy in Queensland who's one fence
was one foot in the old money inside the limit
of how fai had to be from his neighbour's fence,
and that stopped the entire feed lot. So it's a
very hardening to own a feed lot for thefuly with
large numbers and the ones that are there absolutely flat out.
Speaker 2 (34:23):
At the moment, who is your agg person of the
year and this is your Australian Egg person of the
year because we're announcing as on tomorrow's show, who are
you going well?
Speaker 5 (34:32):
I've got a joint award here to doctor Peter Kirkland,
team leader and doctor Paul Hicks, a virologists for the
foot and mouth disease vaccine program they developed here in
Sydney at the Elizabeth MacArthur Institute. They've managed to use
FAY technology is used in COVID vaccine for this time
to foot and mouth. Of course we couldn't bring the
foot and mouth vaccine that's used worldwide because it's based
(34:56):
on live virus and that's prohibited from import into Australia.
We had to sit here. We send a lot of
it to Indonesia, but we can't use no orin tattle. Well,
this one, once it's registered, will be able to the
tests in Germany. We're extraordinary live you know, uninfected cattle
mixed up with infected cattle. None of them that have
been actually in vaccinated with this actually got sick with
(35:19):
foot in mouth. So to me, he's potentially saved US
fifty billion dollars in costs if we ever had even
one outbreak here in Australia. And for he he's the
unsung hero of agriculture this year. Jamie.
Speaker 2 (35:31):
Chris Russell, thanks for your contribution throughout twenty twenty five.
For catch you back next year mate, for your thirty
second year in a row and really enjoying will enjoy
day two of that third Ashes test at the Adelaide
over one of my favorite sports grounds in the world.
Catch you next year, mate.
Speaker 5 (35:48):
Yeah, no worries and happy Christmas for all our listeners
and look forward to it.
Speaker 2 (35:52):
Good on you, Chris, Yes, Adelaide Oval play underway on
day two, three hundred and sixty five for nine. The
tail ends in there, Scottie Boland and Nathan Lyon, let's
have a look at New Zealand seventy three without eighty
two with our lost Latham and Conway going along famously there.
Tomorrow we will announce our AG Person of the Year
(36:15):
and Michelle, you've got to name yours.
Speaker 5 (36:17):
I do.
Speaker 2 (36:17):
I hope it's going to be exciting.
Speaker 7 (36:19):
It's always exciting, a dynamic on a journey of learnings
and pivoting with me, Jamie.
Speaker 2 (36:23):
Oh no, stop it, Okay, So we've got to cast
one thousands tomorrow. It's going to be pretty loose for
the final show of the year, but we will name
our AG Person of the Year. Just got to decide
who it is. We'll see you tomorrow, catch.
Speaker 1 (36:40):
You all the latest from the land. It's The Country
Podcast with Jamie McKay. Thanks to Brent, you're specialist in
John Deere construction equipment.
Catch all the latest from the land. It's the Country
Podcast with Jamie mckue. Thanks to Brent, you're specialist in
John Dee machinery.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
It's Christmas time. There's no need to be a free
at Christmas time. We vanished it. Good afternoon, New Zealand.
Welcome to the Country. The show is brought to you
by Brent. I'm Jamie McKay. Band aid do they know
(00:39):
it's Christmas? It's about forty years old that song? Now
anyhow today lot's happening on the show earlier this morning
and it was pretty much signaled, wasn't it on yesterday's
show when we chatted to Miles Hurrell. Fonterra has dropped
the milk price to a midpoint of nine dollars and
(01:00):
in restingly another announcement this morning, Todd McLay, Minister of
Trade and Agriculture, has announced the appointment of Nathan Guy
as a new special agg trade end boy. He starts
on January one, twenty twenty six, so straight into it
and he'll be excellent in that job. We might even
try and get him on the show tomorrow. And the
(01:22):
GDP number came out the economy grew by one point
one percent in the third quarter of the year the
September quarter, stronger than even the most optimistic forecasts. Economists
had been picking a rise of between zero point eight
and one percent for the quarter. So that's the good
news the bad will I guess the bad news is well,
(01:43):
the good news is our economy is coming right. But
the bad news is the chances of another official cash
rate in February have faded further into the distance. And
the GDP figure they were talking about for the second quarter,
perhaps revising it upwards, but instead they revised it the
other way and they've revised it to minus one from
(02:04):
minus zero point nine. Jenny Wiley has resigned from netball
end z chief executive And in the cricket let me
have a look at the cricket score for you from
the bay Oval Third Test against the Windy's. New Zealand
chose to bat, they won the toss and they are
where where are we? Forty eight without loss? Going along
(02:27):
rather nicely. Tom Lathan twenty one, Devon Conway. He seems
to be finding some form as twenty five not out
right on the show today, we're going to kick it
off with the mighty Martua the Prince of the Provinces,
Shane Jones. Very funny day in Parliament yesterday with those
closing speeches. Got a really interesting chat or I think
it will be with Allison Shanks from high performance sport
(02:51):
to a high performance ag tech company, former World champion
cyclist about her transition from track to track and cows
with Halter Todd Charter, Ravobank raps the farming year, Names
of Zagg Person of the Air. We catch up with
John mcavini, why Tomo's sheep and beef farmer and chief
executive of Steelfort who's in the business of both growing
grass and cutting it. And for the final time in
(03:13):
twenty twenty five it's our Ossie correspondent Chris Russell will
have to reflect unfortunately on the Bondai massacre. But on
a brighter note, who is the Ossie Agg Person of
the Air. It's all on the country between now on
one for the final time and twenty twenty five it
(03:43):
is Martua, Shane Jones, the Prince of the Provinces, and Shane,
you must have been sitting back in your chair chuckling
in Parliament yesterday with the end of year speeches. I
thought Prime Minister Chris Luxen was very funny.
Speaker 3 (03:58):
Yeah, no, he had some great lines secular, describing the
Greens as the Bolts Bolsheviks in business class. And obviously
he made a humorous reference to our lead, basically saying,
as you might recall, every time he posts something on
social media, Winston speaks French and reminds him of the
(04:18):
word we. But without a doubt, mate, the Speech of
the day went to Winston Peters. It was a full
throated war cry, assembling not only our own forces but
warning people standing against us that we are going to
blow the election twenty twenty six wide open.
Speaker 2 (04:38):
Well, I think it's quote whilst they're going to turn
the election on its head, what does that mean you're
going to be? Is it going to be a New
Zealand first lead coalition government?
Speaker 3 (04:46):
Shane, Well, we've got pretty hefty ambitions. I've told you
on this program before they wiped us out and sought
to keep us out after twenty the twenty twenty experience.
Of course, you say to me, well, you've boked it
upon yourself by breathing likly to descinder of us wrecking
the country. But we'll move on from those heretical statements
(05:06):
that often thrown about by your good self. In twenty
twenty three, we came back and look, we're going to
reverse history. Every time Winston and New Zealand first has
been in cabinet, it's been it's been like a desert
like experience. Afterwards, whether it was with Halen Clark knocked
out sind and knocked out Jenny Shipley, he survived and
(05:27):
went back into opposition. So this time around we're going
to ensure that we rewrite the script.
Speaker 2 (05:33):
Well, you haven't got a great track record of hanging around.
I mean, let's faice it. Winston's been sacked plenty of times.
Speaker 3 (05:40):
Well you know, there's a lot of volatility and randomness
and politics. But this time around, we all know that
he's had a tremendous run in terms of representing your
interests in mine overseas. He's widely respected of coross a
growing number of Kiwis as a cool head. I mean,
he steered us very very clearly through the pressure that
was a New Zealand to recognize Palestine. And I'm given
(06:04):
to all these extremists from time to time blight our
own parliament. So it's just a small matter of his judiciousness,
and of course he's known from time to time to
warn me and mister Jones.
Speaker 2 (06:17):
Less's more, there's a really good video doing the rounds
on a YouTube of his speech, and he literally like
the bloke's eighty years of age, and he is on
the front foot. He's coming in from the long run.
Whatever you cricket analogy you want to use, and he's
just giving it to the Greens and to party Maury.
And there seems to be a genuine animosity that even
(06:40):
if he wanted to, or even if it suited his
own purposes, Heaven helps Shane Jones, he couldn't go with
labor next year.
Speaker 3 (06:48):
No, No, the speech was absolutely clear. It was a
rolling cry, it was a war cry. You've got a
bear of mind. Winston predicted that the Multi Party would
turn into a bunch of losers. He took particular offense
at their slur that him and I and how Mali
ancestry was diluted, and it was a sort of a
distortion and a corruption of what it means to be
(07:11):
Maldi in politics. So he quoted a line in the Bible,
as you throw it onto others, it will be thrown
back at you. And boy, has that karmic experience settled
the palms on Tommy Eddie and the Malori Party. But anyway,
Lester say about those muppets on the question of the Greens,
You've got to bear in mind they've been through a
lot of chaos self inflicted themselves. But they have such
(07:31):
policies that they will drive out of existence thriving businesses
in rural News Zealand. They'll also impose a host of
unpayable debts from climate change on us, and they have
a distorted view about our place in the world that
somehow we should suck up to the extremists, the terrorists
and those other sort of finger puppets that support this
(07:56):
anti Israel cause.
Speaker 2 (07:58):
Are you disappointed had your comments about Chloe, the demonic egg, Beata,
the rent seek and kling On didn't mate quote of
the Year that went to Andrew of Ants with the
sea bomb.
Speaker 3 (08:10):
Yeah, well, just just imagine if the sea bomb had
to be nutted by a male politician or how would
have broken up. But look, I've enjoyed talking to you
during the course of the year, and my own staff
say to me, look, Shane, we really need to recodify
how you think because we don't know, and you certainly
don't know where you dream these terms up that you
(08:32):
fling around on Jamie's show. I said, wow, if it
brings a little bit of a tension and a few chuckles,
and then in a biblical way, I can say my word,
and on the seventh day arrested and my work was done.
Speaker 2 (08:44):
All right, you got one more job to do for
twenty twenty five, and that is to name your ag
person of the year. Who is it?
Speaker 3 (08:51):
Ah, Look, I've got two obviously, I've had my battles
with Fonterra. The CEO deserves major honors. And Jamie, I
might need your help. There's a farmer's first, man's David.
He came to see me and he's been through hell
there in Canterbury, spent hundreds of thousands of dollars trying
to get his resource consent renewed for water purposes.
Speaker 2 (09:13):
David Clark. David Clark is his.
Speaker 3 (09:15):
Name, David Clark. He came to my office. I've spoken
with him. That poor bug has been through help and
thats what That's what drove New Zealand first to seek
an extension of all water permits, et cetera. For farmers,
so we give them greater certainty as we wander through
the journey from the current regime to the new RMA regime.
(09:35):
And if they need more than I'd encourage them all
to come to the Select Committee because I'll have lots
of support from New Zealand. First, to replicate what we
did for the marine farming industry extending their permits for
twenty forty twenty fifty to give them certainty, we need
to do a similar thing for the copies.
Speaker 2 (09:51):
Well, Sean Jones, thanks for your contribution to your colorful
contributions throughout twenty twenty five. I hope you have a
RESTful festive season with family and friends, and remember just
be nice to any blind frogs, skinks or lizards you
come across. During the break.
Speaker 3 (10:07):
I'll do that while I'm supping on red wine, Rosie
wine and a feed of came wine. I see you by.
Speaker 2 (10:14):
See you, Shane. It's been fun and twenty five. It
was fun. By the way, yesterday in Parliament closing speeches,
I thought Luxeon was funny. I don't know whether he
writes his own and you've probably heard these before, but
he compared the Labor Party to a box of Cadbury
favorites for starters. I think all the good ones have gone,
(10:36):
and after refusing to front the COVID inquiry, I'd say
Chris Hipkins would be the flake. I think the rest
of labor are a bit like a cherry ripe. They
seem nice on the outside, but inside they're deeply, deeply red,
and then frankly they're just best left where they are.
I'm with you on the cherry rights. I don't like those.
It has one about Winston that this is Luckston's comment
(10:59):
about Winston that Shane Jones referred to. He was singing
the praises of Winston, saying he'd visited thirty one countries
or something like that, and he said Winston is actually
such a dedicated foreign minister that he's mastered French. Every
time I post something on social media, he replies, we
not a bad shot there from Prime Minister Chris Luckson
(11:21):
and the cricket Bay Oval and his elander off to
a rollicking, well rollicking start fifty five without loss after
sixteen point three overs. Latham and Conway not out twenty
five and twenty nine respectively. Up next, talking about Sport,
a woman who has transitioned from high performance sport to
a high performance ag tech company. Allison Shanks up next
(11:43):
on the Country. Tomorrow on the Country, we will announce
our ag Person of the Year. One of the popular
nominees has been Craig Piggott, Yeah, the guy who started
(12:05):
out in Rocket Lab and is of course now the
founder and chief executive of Halter. Haven't got him on
the show today, but we've got the next best thing,
a bit of a celebrity Halter person, that's what I'll
call her, Allison Shanks, world champion cyclist these days working
for Halter. Allie, great to have you on the Country.
How did you make the change? How did this come about?
Speaker 4 (12:27):
Yeah, it's a bit of a big change from sport
into egg But if I'm perfectly honest, it probably was
last year and I had that little inkling of like
maybe the grass is green, are over and aler, you know,
and I was like, far out, I can't be thinking that.
When you've worn the silver fern on your chest and
you've heard the national anthem playing for your country, you know,
(12:49):
there's a deep sense of pride. And I was just like,
how do I help to ensure New Zealand prospers as
a country and being here in the heart of the
White head ow. I guess I got drawn into that
egg space. It's like, yeah, this is where, like, this
is what New Zealand's all about. And then found Halter
and was like, man, this is such a high performing,
(13:09):
fast paced I guess a team and wanted to be
part of it.
Speaker 2 (13:14):
Well, and you've got a good background or a tertiary
education background to do a job like this. You've got
a Becom's Honors in marketing. You've also got a Bachelor
of Science and human nutrition from your Dunedin days Allison
Shanks or Ali Shanks. So I guess human nutrition's pretty
similar to cow nutrition. Mind you they've got four stomachs,
(13:35):
We've got one.
Speaker 4 (13:37):
Yeah, yeah, And I think, you know, there's suddenly been
a lot of transferable skills. I really look at it
from a performance model perspective, and so within cyclaying and
within high performance, it was very much about data analytics.
How do we understand the data and then make performance
(13:58):
decisions accordingly. And that's really what that Halter enables on
farm as well, for us to have those performance conversations.
And I think it's about data as knowledge and knowledge
is power to be able to make informed decisions. And
I suppose that's sort of the performance leans that I
bring from hyper sport into this role with Halter.
Speaker 2 (14:16):
You're now living in Cambridge, as you said, of course
that's a high performance area when it comes to sport,
but you're a delead and girl. Did you have an
egg background at all?
Speaker 4 (14:26):
No, I haven't. Actually, I guess my only touch point
into farming was you know, everyone's got an uncle, uncle
Brian and Clyde vale on the sheep and beef farm
and now my cousin Gareth is running that farm, and
so that was I guess my childhood touch point of farming.
But no, I've certainly been learning a new industry and
I am loving it. It's been such a privilege. I
(14:48):
suppose to get out and sit down with farmers face
to face, hear their farming story, understand their performance model,
understand their farming system and look at how we can
pull the different levers. I suppose of the terms of
the features that Holter provides to really unlock an O
performance on farm.
Speaker 2 (15:09):
Holter has just recently cracked Australia. I think you've signed
up your first farm because there were legislative restrictions over
there until very recently.
Speaker 4 (15:19):
Yeah, it's super exciting. Obviously we've just opened up in
Victoria and New South Wales. That's been enabled by a
legislative change. So previously, yeah, we weren't able to go
into that market.
Speaker 5 (15:32):
It's a legislative change.
Speaker 4 (15:34):
That sort of hung over from the seventies where virtual
fencing was banned and so Holter's really led the charge
over there, you know, to unlock that market and really
step into the performance space on farm in Australia. We've
called our first farm in New South Wales at the
weekend and there's a massive market over there that we're
(15:55):
excited to be able to go into in twenty twenty six.
Speaker 2 (15:58):
Yeah. And of course Holton I don't need the dairy industry,
but the beef industry. Huge opportunities there. As I said,
you're famous, world famous for winning two world titles in
the three thousand meter individual pursuit. You want a Commonwealth
Games title as well. You're all set to win in
London in twenty twelve Alie Shanks, and then they changed
(16:20):
the rules, they got rid of your event. Does it
still grind your gears?
Speaker 3 (16:25):
Oh?
Speaker 4 (16:25):
You know, yeah, I suppose it's that little chip on
your shoulder, but those yeah, it's those things that are
like totally out of your control. And I mean London
was still amazing experience with that woman's team pursuit.
Speaker 5 (16:38):
But I don't know.
Speaker 4 (16:39):
I suppose it's about adaptability, isn't it and reinventing yourself
and yeah, you look back on that, but hey it's
one chapter and yeah, onto the next thing.
Speaker 2 (16:50):
Now, well you've certainly reinvented yourself. Allison Shanks. Great to
catch up, good luck. I know you'll go great guns
just like you did on the cycling track and the valodrome,
you'll do equally well. Worth Halter, You've got a great product.
Good luck and we'll eagerly await to see if Craig
Piggott is our ag Person of the Year on tomorrow
show Go well Allie.
Speaker 4 (17:08):
Thanks Jamie, and Merry Christmas.
Speaker 2 (17:11):
And Merry Christmas to you. Allie Shanks. What a champion, Yeah,
London twenty twelve London Olympics. She was the world champion,
all set to win a gold medal and then they
took the event off the calendar. Yeah that would annoy you,
wouldn't it. Yes, tomorrow we'll announce our ag Person of
(17:31):
the Year. But up next it is who is it
up next, Todd Charters. We're going to year to the
chief executive of Rabobank. Of course, the big farming story today,
no surprise, Fonterra has dropped the price of milk to
a mid mid point of nine dollars. We'll talk about
that and whether interest rates are going to stay down
or whether they're going up. Some of the long term
(17:51):
fixed rates are going up before the end of their
John mcavinie and Chris Russell. It's all on the country.
And Michelle's going to wander in here and we'll update
the cricket for you as well. And I'll do that
right now. Bear with me. Fifty seven without loss a
third test at the Bay Oval in Mount Monganoi. Here's
(18:17):
another great supporter of the country wrapping his farming year.
His name is Todd charteris chief executive of a Rabobank
who bring you the best of the country every Saturday
morning on News Talk ZB between six and seven. Thanks
for that, Todd. Hey, let's just start with the news
of today. Fonterra dropping the milk price or the midpoint
(18:37):
to nine dollars. No surprise, this milk price could end
up starting with an eight.
Speaker 6 (18:43):
Yeah, goodating And Jamie, you look at his no surprise
obviously nine consecutive drops and GDT the option and there's
just the world's just a wash with milk at the moment.
And so yeah, looks it's I guess it's disappointing, but
it's it's quite realistic. And the good good thing is
it's happening early in the season, so people can plan
(19:04):
and do so accordingly. So yeah, look, it's under pressure,
there's no doubt about it. But I think it's the
right signal from frontier to the market.
Speaker 2 (19:11):
Economics one o one supply and demand the other interesting
story and this pertains to you guys who lend money.
Interest rates those longer term fixed strates are going up.
Can the Reserve Bank governor the new one I've forgotten
the name, talk them down?
Speaker 6 (19:27):
Yeah, well look, yeah, I haven't met her yet. We're
catching up in February, which are good. But yeah, look,
certainly the Reserve Bank's trying to talk talk them down
a bit. But yeah, the market responded to the Reserve
Bank announcement a few weeks ago, and we have seen
some sort of increases on those longer term rates, but
let's see where they settle. I think it's very sensitive
(19:49):
to commentary in the marketplace, so let's just see where
they settle. I do think, you know, OCR is going
to stay down for some time, so to see where
those wholesale rates end up.
Speaker 2 (20:00):
As we review the farming year twenty twenty five, really
encouraging were those soapy numbers that came out the Situation
and Outlook report for primary industries. You know, it's worth
what sixty two billion for the year ended thirtieth of
June twenty twenty six, heading up the sixty three billion.
It's absolutely brilliant of the sector. Food and fiber now
(20:22):
accounts for eighty three percent of all in Z goods exports.
Speaker 6 (20:27):
Yeah, it's outstanding, isn't it? And something that I think
everyone associated with the primary sector should be proud of,
right from the farm gate right through everyone who's involved.
So you look absolutely outstanding and just great to see
and really underpinning that confidence that we see coming through
and now of goodly confidence surveys, and long may that continue.
(20:48):
I mean, notwithstanding obviously we're just spoken about the dairy price,
but look at the commodity outlooks look outstanding and so
as I say, long may that continue.
Speaker 2 (20:59):
Well, fruit and beef. Trump's taken the tariffs of those,
there's a couple obviously we can throw in another red
meat and lamb. Have they've had stunning years?
Speaker 6 (21:08):
Oh? Absolutely, And it's great to see. And you know
it's you know, because it hasn't hasn't always been plain
sailing and certainly in sheep meat. So so you know,
if we can get a few good years and you
know people farms will reinvest and continue to invest in
what they do. And I think that's great and we
(21:29):
see that as saying as confidence results.
Speaker 2 (21:32):
Okay, Todd charteris chief executive of Rabobankoho is your twenty
twenty five agg Person of the Year.
Speaker 6 (21:38):
Oh look, look, you know it's obviously been a top year.
We spoke about that, so there's a lot of competition,
for sure. I do want to mention a couple of names.
I do want to give an honorable mention to the
agri Business Director Kerry Allen, who I thought really stepped
up when the Education Ministry suggested that agribusiness should be
dropped from the school curriculum. So well to carry I
(22:00):
thought it was excellent leadership there and we're a big
supporter of every business from schools. But for me, I've
actually thought about it more as a team and it's
to all those people for the Ministry of Primary Industries
who work hard every day to protect our borders and
buy security systems. They're just so important for our farmers
and growers. So you know, well done to Ray Smith
(22:21):
who's the Director General Bear. I really enjoy working with Ray.
I think he leads that team brilliantly. So I call
out Ray Raysmith and the whole team at MPI.
Speaker 2 (22:30):
Todd charteris wrapping the farming year that was. Thanks for
your support, Thanks for the support of everyone at Rabobank,
especially David Johnson who does the hard yards in the
back office. You have a good break. I'll catch you
back next year.
Speaker 6 (22:42):
Hey, thanks Jamian, thanks for all that you do in
the whole team of the country. Excellent work and just
finding a massive shout out to all of our farmers
and growls out there and you, well, we're all so
proud of you. Keep up with good work and have
a good break. Chairs.
Speaker 2 (22:55):
What a great comment. Thank you. Tod Yep you're all
heroes out there, back bone of the economy. Thank you
Liz for texting it and telling me, reminding me actually
that Alie Shanks, Allison Shanks did a few years as
a beef and lamb ambassady as she was one of
the Iron Maidens. And you can't argue with Ray Smith
and MPI we potentially or probably will be the first
(23:18):
country in the world to eradicate m bovis. So well
done to the team at MPI. Michelle's up in here.
I think she's found a twisted sister Christmas song. Surely not.
We'll have Royal News and Sports News, will update the
cricket day one of the Third Test from the Bay Oval. Oh,
(23:45):
welcome back to the country where am I trilium gone
on my headphones trying to update cricket scores from the
Bay Oval to play underway and adelaide again for day
two of the third Ashes Tests, the days everywhere. Okay,
I think this is a boguan twisted sister Christmas song
from Michelle.
Speaker 1 (24:04):
Let's ask her the country's world news with Coup Cadet,
New Zealand's leading right on lawnlower brand. Visit steel Ford
Dot Cotians for your local stockist.
Speaker 2 (24:14):
Twisted Sister do Christmas song? Surely not?
Speaker 7 (24:17):
They did a whole Christmas album in two thousand and six. James, Oh, well,
this is actually the darkness. So I couldn't find Twisted
Sister in time for the start of the show. Unfortunately.
I know you're very disappointed.
Speaker 2 (24:27):
Okay, what's in Rawal news?
Speaker 7 (24:28):
Okay and Rawal news. The Minister of Trade and Investment
and Minister for Agriculture, Todd McLay has announced the appointment
of Nathan Guy as New Zealand's Special Agricultural Trade in Envoy.
He is currently the chairman of the Meat Industry Association
Independent Chair of Apiculture New Zealand And. Nathan Guy is
going to replace Hamish mar who has held that position
since twenty twenty three. Nathan will start up role on
(24:50):
the first of January and.
Speaker 2 (24:52):
He'll be great in their job. Thank you.
Speaker 1 (24:53):
Michelle Sport on the country with AFCO one hundred percent
key we owned.
Speaker 2 (25:00):
I'm looking at a tally and looking at a computer screen.
I can't multitask play underway in the Adelaide Oval. We've
just lost it. They're still eight down for three hundred
and something or other day, one of the third Windys
Tests Bay Oval, Mount Monganii and New Zealand is seventy
one without loss. And as you heard at the top
(25:21):
of the our Jenny Wiley, the beligue to Jenny Wiley,
has resigned as chief executive of Netbourne, New Zealand. Up next,
we're off to Waititomo. Here is another great supporter of
the country. We're going to get his wrap of the
Farming Year twenty twenty five. His name is John mcavinie.
He's a Waititoma sheep and beef farmer. When he's not
(25:42):
doing that, he's the chief executive of Steelfort John for
the North Island, the Upper North Island. Great rain overnight.
That's great for the cockies. It's also great for a
bloke like you who sells lawnmowers.
Speaker 8 (25:55):
Yeah, well, when you're either eating grass or cutting grass
at both ends of that. So you know, I'm very pleased.
We've got sort of good rain here in the last
forty eight hours. And I was at the farm last
week and we've got a lot at tucker out there
and it looks fantastic and we've just shorn over eight
thousand lambs and they're on the beautiful tacka. So you
(26:16):
know it should be really good for the you know,
we should be good right through to all the end
of Christmas. Now and those rains, I don't know MAT's
they head out there, probably fifty sixty mil. And I
was talking to the son and all last night and
Mada Manna and they've had sort of fifty mills on there,
so he had all was well for a very good
you know, grass growing period from now to Christmas.
Speaker 2 (26:37):
Happy days if you're a sheep and base farmer at
the moment, John.
Speaker 8 (26:41):
Yes, yeah, Look, you know, we we're sort of thinking
we haven't sold any lambs yet, and Chris, we've got
all this tucker on at the moment, so we think
we might just hang on to them and draft, which
we don't normally do. But you know, when the shears
was up at eleven backs, you know, it makes you think,
(27:01):
doesn't it. You know, we probably better if we've got
the feed, let's feed them and take advantage of that schedule.
Speaker 2 (27:07):
One of the big stories, and it's terribly sad and
tragic story in twenty twenty five was Tom Phillips. And
last year I think it was October of twenty twenty
four he was spotted with us kids walking around your farm.
In fact, I think were your grandsons that spotted them.
Speaker 8 (27:23):
Yeah, well it was last October or thereabouts, and yeah,
they were up there and my grandson Andre took those
photos and he you know, they were only sort of
twenty meters away from them, and they talked to the
kids and didn't say a hell of a lot. They
just sort of kept walking. But yeah, and it's a
(27:43):
tragic and you don't like anything like that to happen,
but you know, I think it's a pretty good outcome actually,
And you know, I really feel for those kiddies that
have been sort of segregated for four years out there.
It can't be good for them. And you know, I
don't know how they're going to assimilate into the New
(28:06):
Zealand society again, so I'm not sure, but you've got
to feel for them. And yeah, it's just it's passed
now and it's yesterday's news, so you know, we move on,
I suppose.
Speaker 2 (28:18):
On a happier note. John mcavenny, White, Timo Sheep and
Beef Farmer, chief executive of steel Fort, We've got one
of your cub cadet right on Moers to give away
in January when we come back the Lex five four seven.
I've done the video, I've driven the thing around. It's
worth six four hundred bucks. And as we said at
the beginning of this yarn, when it rains and the
grass grows, it's a good time to sell lawn mowers.
(28:40):
How has the industry been this year?
Speaker 8 (28:44):
As far as steel Force is concerned, Our fiscal year
ends at the end of December, and we look like
we're going to be about twenty percent up on last year.
So you know, that's a pretty good result as far
as I'm concerned. They talk about green shoots, well, we're
certainly getting a few of them at the moment. It's
been a good spring. We've had new products, as I said,
you know, I've mentioned previously with this new Victor product
(29:06):
that we've got, and we've got these robotic mowers and
we've sold close to one thousands of those nationwide. I
never thought they'd sort of do as well as they do,
but they've a lot of people are buying those now.
So yeah, we're very very comfortable where we are, and
you know, with the recent reign, and as I say,
we'll be good right through for Christmas now.
Speaker 2 (29:25):
So watch out for that promo coming to a radio
show near you. In fact, this one in January the
LX five four seven cub cadet right on to give
away worth six four hundred dollars. Finally, and I've got
to be quick on this one, John mcaveny, because I'm
running out of time. I always run myself short on
the last week of the year. Who is your ag
person of the Year.
Speaker 8 (29:45):
Well, I'm probably a bit different from what yours are, Jamie.
There's a lot of people out there that you know
in the frontiers and the zespres and the silver food
farms and alliances, and then all the CEO gets all
the accolade. But you know, in my it's there are
people like Jane Smith, who you know, she is fantastic,
(30:06):
that girl. She does a great job promoting the agricultural industry.
So I'm between her and I think Chris Bishop is
the other one that I really enjoyed with Arima. I
watched him, not that I do it a lot, but
I watched him on TV the other day on the
you know where they do the Parliament on TV, and
(30:26):
you know, he puts up with a lot of crap
on there, and you know when he's answering these questions
and he was sort of just shaking his head and
not knowing quite how to answer some of the questions
that come from the Greens Party in particular. So I'm
either Jane Smith or Chris Bishop, one of the two.
I'm very happy I put a male and a female
in the athoiot good on.
Speaker 2 (30:45):
Yep, there we go, John Maker of any Merry Christmas
to you and Gav and all the Steal four team
and we'll, as I say, give away the ride on
mower in January, have a good break.
Speaker 8 (30:55):
Reciprocate exactly those thoughts Jamie thinks not always good to
talk and have a good Christmas breakment.
Speaker 2 (31:08):
The last week on the Countries for our favorite correspondence.
This bloke is probably my favorite correspondent because he's my
most long standing been on the show since nineteen ninety four.
Possi correspondent Chris Russell and Chris, it would be remissive
me not to talk to you, and I've avoided it
largely this week because it's so tragic and depressing. The
Bondi Beach massacre as a Sydney height this must be
(31:32):
so distressing to you and everyone in Australia.
Speaker 5 (31:36):
I think it absolutely and almost you know, Australia likes
to think of himself as being above them, beyond all
that sort of thing. But of course, when no one's
immune from it, and especially this radicalization that's obviously occurred
with these guys were particularly the young fire. But the
big effect that's been talked about in the agricultural world
(31:57):
is the potential effect on gun control. And you know,
some sort of knee jerk reaction to what farmers and
feral pest controllers are now allowed to use in the
never ending battle against the pigs, cats, rabbits. Boxes all
required different caliber, different numbers of weapons, close, long range,
(32:21):
et cetera. And yet if there's some sort of blanket
rule board in that says that they can't have more
than say three weapons, and they you know, and they
start restricting. There's some ideas which I think are a
good idea, like, for example, you have to be an
Australian citizen to get a license. That's a great idea,
But they've got to make sure that they don't throw
the baby out with the bath water. In terms of
(32:42):
feral animal control, of this. The problem is that forty
percent of the licenses Jamie are being held in the cities,
and the average number of guns that these people in
the cities have is five, which clearly people in the
cities they need five weapons other than for maybe their
own sort of edification. And in so we're going to
see some changes, but let's hope that they just keep
(33:04):
in mind that for some people they're a tool of
trade and a very necessary one.
Speaker 2 (33:08):
Jamie sympathies go out to your nation, Chris. Feed lots,
let's talk about of farming are at one hundred percent capacity.
We just can't get enough beef.
Speaker 5 (33:19):
Yeah, well absolutely, and of course that's having a big
effect on store cattle, where they're paying five dollars a
ka for store animals to put in these feed lots.
We've got about a million and a half spaces in
feed lots. They're all absolutely full. And of course China's
extra demand during the period when they had the registered
those American beef suppliers that really boosted it. But that
(33:44):
everything still seems to be going up. And of course
underlying that is America, our biggest customer now taking all
the off cut meat at the record numbers every month.
I've lost track with how many records we set this year.
So feed lots are doing well and it's hard to
become a feed lot in Australia. The environmental controls is significant.
(34:04):
I remember visiting a guy in Queensland who's one fence
was one foot in the old money inside the limit
of how fai had to be from his neighbour's fence,
and that stopped the entire feed lot. So it's a
very hardening to own a feed lot for thefuly with
large numbers and the ones that are there absolutely flat out.
Speaker 2 (34:23):
At the moment, who is your agg person of the
year and this is your Australian Egg person of the
year because we're announcing as on tomorrow's show, who are
you going well?
Speaker 5 (34:32):
I've got a joint award here to doctor Peter Kirkland,
team leader and doctor Paul Hicks, a virologists for the
foot and mouth disease vaccine program they developed here in
Sydney at the Elizabeth MacArthur Institute. They've managed to use
FAY technology is used in COVID vaccine for this time
to foot and mouth. Of course we couldn't bring the
foot and mouth vaccine that's used worldwide because it's based
(34:56):
on live virus and that's prohibited from import into Australia.
We had to sit here. We send a lot of
it to Indonesia, but we can't use no orin tattle. Well,
this one, once it's registered, will be able to the
tests in Germany. We're extraordinary live you know, uninfected cattle
mixed up with infected cattle. None of them that have
been actually in vaccinated with this actually got sick with
(35:19):
foot in mouth. So to me, he's potentially saved US
fifty billion dollars in costs if we ever had even
one outbreak here in Australia. And for he he's the
unsung hero of agriculture this year. Jamie.
Speaker 2 (35:31):
Chris Russell, thanks for your contribution throughout twenty twenty five.
For catch you back next year mate, for your thirty
second year in a row and really enjoying will enjoy
day two of that third Ashes test at the Adelaide
over one of my favorite sports grounds in the world.
Catch you next year, mate.
Speaker 5 (35:48):
Yeah, no worries and happy Christmas for all our listeners
and look forward to it.
Speaker 2 (35:52):
Good on you, Chris, Yes, Adelaide Oval play underway on
day two, three hundred and sixty five for nine. The
tail ends in there, Scottie Boland and Nathan Lyon, let's
have a look at New Zealand seventy three without eighty
two with our lost Latham and Conway going along famously there.
Tomorrow we will announce our AG Person of the Year
(36:15):
and Michelle, you've got to name yours.
Speaker 5 (36:17):
I do.
Speaker 2 (36:17):
I hope it's going to be exciting.
Speaker 7 (36:19):
It's always exciting, a dynamic on a journey of learnings
and pivoting with me, Jamie.
Speaker 2 (36:23):
Oh no, stop it, Okay, So we've got to cast
one thousands tomorrow. It's going to be pretty loose for
the final show of the year, but we will name
our AG Person of the Year. Just got to decide
who it is. We'll see you tomorrow, catch.
Speaker 1 (36:40):
You all the latest from the land. It's The Country
Podcast with Jamie McKay. Thanks to Brent, you're specialist in
John Deere construction equipment.
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