June 10, 2024 • 5 mins
A prominent sheep farmer who has boycotted wool auctions due to poor returns says he has no regrets.
Tai Rāwhiti farmer Toby Williams, who is the meat and wool chair at Federated Farmers, got so fed up with low returns on his wool he stopped selling it through the normal auction system a couple of months ago.
Selling mostly by word of mouth and directly to companies, Williams - a fifth-generation farmer at Pihitia Station up the coast from Gisborne - said selling required more patience now.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Sport, the latest from the land and just great rock.
It's the Country Sport Breakfast with Brian Kelly on gold Sport,
your home of live commentary.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
Twelve minutes away from eight o'clock here on gold Sport
in the Country Sport Breakfast, counting down to field days.
In fact, one man who's actually on his way to
the field days as we speak is a meat and
wool chair Federated Farmers Toby William's Morning Toby, Brian made
the trips from Gisbane. You're through through the y Worker.
Speaker 1 (00:27):
Gorge, all right, Yeah, through the way through, right mate.
I hoping that's perfect.
Speaker 2 (00:31):
So I've talked to you fantastic all right. I want
to talk about wool here because you've come out and
said that wool auction system contributing to our poor returns
for farmers is probably past. It's used by dat and
you're actually doing your own things, selling your wall, So
tell us more Yees auctions.
Speaker 1 (00:49):
You know, we've had low returns for a long time
now and auctions haven't really been improving. I mean, auctions
are great. It's lots of competition and you've got people
wanting to, you know, scrambling out what you've got. We're
seeing fourteenth volume of wall and we're still seeing you
prices depressed. So you know, the definition and centers is
really doing the same thing a different results. So we
sat down early in the year and talked with my
(01:11):
broker and I'm done, let's let's try something new. Let's
do something different here because I'm sick of the same
returns we're getting.
Speaker 2 (01:18):
So what are you doing that's different to sell your wool?
Speaker 1 (01:21):
Well, well, I'm making him work a bit more from
hon Us, and we've reached out to the mikes of wooll
Npeck and Andy Coe and who are working in the space
trying to get more direct customer relations customers to growers,
and they're also talking in the background mother farmers and
other group try and figure out what can we do,
How can we put a collective gear or how can
we do something to where we control the supply of
(01:44):
wool more and then drive that price up.
Speaker 2 (01:47):
Because there are bios and bios thousands of bails sitting
around in woolsheds, I would imagine still just not being
sold out there at the moment.
Speaker 1 (01:55):
Yeah, there are, but I think also we're seeing a
lot of people just got you know who need the income,
so you just sort of dump in the market. And
I've done I'm guilty of this for a long time.
So look just yeah, I've paid this share, is paying
interest on the ready sharing bill. Sell it for what
I can get and I'll move on with I have
to make the money out of my lambs. And you
know now we're not making money out of lambs either.
(02:15):
We've got to start to change something. Maybe we're put
a line on the stand here and there, right, do
you want my wall? I've got good wall. Come and
see me for it and we'll talk Turkey.
Speaker 2 (02:24):
And apparently just recently you saw what nine bails to
an international company.
Speaker 1 (02:30):
Yeah so nine bass, I mean they actually a company
has bought our viral auction anyway, so the same company
is still work viral auction or via private treaty. You
just got to negotiate a price with them and anywhere
you go. So you know, we're not stopped selling our wall.
We'll just stop going through the auction process and we're.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
Going to get the whole world sort of getting back
on what a fantastic product woll is really there. You know,
that's the starting point of the way isn't it.
Speaker 1 (02:56):
Yeah, And everything we hear from all over the world
is that people want to get away from controlling based
product and they want to go back to more naturally
based products. Yet we aren't seeing any up blasting pricing
for our wall. We know, we're seeing a rapid decline
in the sheep numbers, so we're doing something wrong. And
the only thing I can sort of think is that,
(03:17):
you know, the way it's controlled through that oction Systeff.
So the four main exporters who also into the end.
I talked to one of them the other data and
my she's looking at my wolf, and they were telling
us how great their bank balance is, like the air. Yeah,
the accounts are looking pretty good. I said, well, my lad,
you know I'm in the red. You know, the company
has got to change in mate, because you guys drive
(03:39):
the price down for us rather than listen to your customers.
The customers need to be paying war for our wall.
Speaker 2 (03:45):
Do you see lights at the end.
Speaker 1 (03:46):
Of the tunnel, Yeah, we do so talking with the
wall broker, you know, we're seeing ext you know, the
volume of wall dropping right off. And we've talked about
this throughout the last twelve months. That people are getting
up the sheep and going to the Wilshires and the
shell sheating sheep. But we were seeing this winter around
you see that, you know the land you's changed as
the sheep aren't there anymore. Share is the quiet and
(04:07):
they've ever been And we're looking likely into August we're
gonna have a bit of a hole in the wall sales.
We should naturally lift the price we're receiving. So part
of my hope is we hold our will back and
maybe the cast will start coming to us. Think you
know we need it. You know people want to buy ours,
but maybe we're going to have to start paying a
bit more.
Speaker 2 (04:25):
Fingers crossed, it's going to that's going to work. And
no doubt you've been doing a fair bit of lobbying
at field Days starting tomorrow, mate.
Speaker 1 (04:32):
Yeah, definitely. And we've also got pins coming up our
primary interesting news etting conference down in Wellington at about
a month's time, and we've got a wall penalty with
a Mark Madison and a few others talking about well
and the fortunes go forward.
Speaker 2 (04:45):
Fantastic Toby. All right, we'll let you get back on
the road again now and we might catch at field Days.
Speaker 1 (04:50):
Hicky boy, thank you very much.
Speaker 2 (04:51):
Mate. Toby Williams who's a gisband sheep and beef farmer,
and of course he is also meeting Mulchair at Better
Raged Farmers. Tough time out there for sheep farmers, that's
for sure with the wool, but hopefully, hopefully it can
pick up
Sport, the latest from the land and just great rock.
It's the Country Sport Breakfast with Brian Kelly on gold Sport,
your home of live commentary.
Speaker 2 (00:10):
Twelve minutes away from eight o'clock here on gold Sport
in the Country Sport Breakfast, counting down to field days.
In fact, one man who's actually on his way to
the field days as we speak is a meat and
wool chair Federated Farmers Toby William's Morning Toby, Brian made
the trips from Gisbane. You're through through the y Worker.
Speaker 1 (00:27):
Gorge, all right, Yeah, through the way through, right mate.
I hoping that's perfect.
Speaker 2 (00:31):
So I've talked to you fantastic all right. I want
to talk about wool here because you've come out and
said that wool auction system contributing to our poor returns
for farmers is probably past. It's used by dat and
you're actually doing your own things, selling your wall, So
tell us more Yees auctions.
Speaker 1 (00:49):
You know, we've had low returns for a long time
now and auctions haven't really been improving. I mean, auctions
are great. It's lots of competition and you've got people
wanting to, you know, scrambling out what you've got. We're
seeing fourteenth volume of wall and we're still seeing you
prices depressed. So you know, the definition and centers is
really doing the same thing a different results. So we
sat down early in the year and talked with my
(01:11):
broker and I'm done, let's let's try something new. Let's
do something different here because I'm sick of the same
returns we're getting.
Speaker 2 (01:18):
So what are you doing that's different to sell your wool?
Speaker 1 (01:21):
Well, well, I'm making him work a bit more from
hon Us, and we've reached out to the mikes of wooll
Npeck and Andy Coe and who are working in the space
trying to get more direct customer relations customers to growers,
and they're also talking in the background mother farmers and
other group try and figure out what can we do,
How can we put a collective gear or how can
we do something to where we control the supply of
(01:44):
wool more and then drive that price up.
Speaker 2 (01:47):
Because there are bios and bios thousands of bails sitting
around in woolsheds, I would imagine still just not being
sold out there at the moment.
Speaker 1 (01:55):
Yeah, there are, but I think also we're seeing a
lot of people just got you know who need the income,
so you just sort of dump in the market. And
I've done I'm guilty of this for a long time.
So look just yeah, I've paid this share, is paying
interest on the ready sharing bill. Sell it for what
I can get and I'll move on with I have
to make the money out of my lambs. And you
know now we're not making money out of lambs either.
(02:15):
We've got to start to change something. Maybe we're put
a line on the stand here and there, right, do
you want my wall? I've got good wall. Come and
see me for it and we'll talk Turkey.
Speaker 2 (02:24):
And apparently just recently you saw what nine bails to
an international company.
Speaker 1 (02:30):
Yeah so nine bass, I mean they actually a company
has bought our viral auction anyway, so the same company
is still work viral auction or via private treaty. You
just got to negotiate a price with them and anywhere
you go. So you know, we're not stopped selling our wall.
We'll just stop going through the auction process and we're.
Speaker 2 (02:47):
Going to get the whole world sort of getting back
on what a fantastic product woll is really there. You know,
that's the starting point of the way isn't it.
Speaker 1 (02:56):
Yeah, And everything we hear from all over the world
is that people want to get away from controlling based
product and they want to go back to more naturally
based products. Yet we aren't seeing any up blasting pricing
for our wall. We know, we're seeing a rapid decline
in the sheep numbers, so we're doing something wrong. And
the only thing I can sort of think is that,
(03:17):
you know, the way it's controlled through that oction Systeff.
So the four main exporters who also into the end.
I talked to one of them the other data and
my she's looking at my wolf, and they were telling
us how great their bank balance is, like the air. Yeah,
the accounts are looking pretty good. I said, well, my lad,
you know I'm in the red. You know, the company
has got to change in mate, because you guys drive
(03:39):
the price down for us rather than listen to your customers.
The customers need to be paying war for our wall.
Speaker 2 (03:45):
Do you see lights at the end.
Speaker 1 (03:46):
Of the tunnel, Yeah, we do so talking with the
wall broker, you know, we're seeing ext you know, the
volume of wall dropping right off. And we've talked about
this throughout the last twelve months. That people are getting
up the sheep and going to the Wilshires and the
shell sheating sheep. But we were seeing this winter around
you see that, you know the land you's changed as
the sheep aren't there anymore. Share is the quiet and
(04:07):
they've ever been And we're looking likely into August we're
gonna have a bit of a hole in the wall sales.
We should naturally lift the price we're receiving. So part
of my hope is we hold our will back and
maybe the cast will start coming to us. Think you
know we need it. You know people want to buy ours,
but maybe we're going to have to start paying a
bit more.
Speaker 2 (04:25):
Fingers crossed, it's going to that's going to work. And
no doubt you've been doing a fair bit of lobbying
at field Days starting tomorrow, mate.
Speaker 1 (04:32):
Yeah, definitely. And we've also got pins coming up our
primary interesting news etting conference down in Wellington at about
a month's time, and we've got a wall penalty with
a Mark Madison and a few others talking about well
and the fortunes go forward.
Speaker 2 (04:45):
Fantastic Toby. All right, we'll let you get back on
the road again now and we might catch at field Days.
Speaker 1 (04:50):
Hicky boy, thank you very much.
Speaker 2 (04:51):
Mate. Toby Williams who's a gisband sheep and beef farmer,
and of course he is also meeting Mulchair at Better
Raged Farmers. Tough time out there for sheep farmers, that's
for sure with the wool, but hopefully, hopefully it can
pick up
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