Ange New Zealand’s soil story
It’s all about drawing down carbon, helping fungi and soil bacteria.
that. But we’ll focus on our core ingredients, and that’s where we’ll get our milk from.”
Mohi says another goal is “the laziest way of farming while producing the same amount of milk”.
Free grazing cows and robotic milking with the use of Halter technology, trees for shade and organic matter, and adding a stock of chickens, goats and pigs to help him make compost “helps us be part of the whole cycle of life”.
Halter saves the team about 20 to 25 hours a week. With New Zealandinvented Halter, ergonomically designed smart collars monitor the herd for signs of ill health and provide a virtual — invisible — fence that’s controlled via a phone app.
The herd is also being transitioned from Spring to Autumn calving so they — and farm workers — get a break in the heat of summer.
Replacement stock is bought in, and
Mohi avoids the call of the bobby truck by giving this young stock away or selling them.
Mohi understands firsthand the pressure on farmers. He believes farmers feel increasingly isolated, not connecting with their communities.
“They may send their kids away for private boarding schools, losing another chance to connect locally. It doesn’t so much happen here, but I noticed that when I worked in rural communities that are dominant with farmers and growers.”
To combat isolation, he set up a gym in his barn, welcoming the community to use it. It began with Mohi and a local vet devising home workouts, and now attracts up to 20 regulars from the wider community. There are women learning boxing classes with Mohi, to guys sticking around after a weightlifting session, talking over what’s bugging them.
Mohi has developed a guiding principle rooted in his whanau’s ancestry, that the environment, people and animals must be considered equally.
A wood carving on his kitchen table serves as a daily reminder, and it underpins every decision on the farm. Its triangular pillars are carved with his Maori and Viking ancestry and Pacific Island motifs for his wife’s heritage.
Mohi Beckham
“We are the centre. If we don’t stray from our core values, it seems like everything is working well. It helps us with every one of our systems.
“It’s like coaching a sport. You can cheat or you can go back to your main core and concept, and you can win like that. Instead of just looking for grass tomorrow and missing the bigger picture, you relieve the easy stuff, and you can see the bigger stuff a lot clearer.”
The story of mana and mauri of lifesupporting soils is one that New Zealand wants to share with the world.
Project leads at Our Land Our Water say Rere ki Uta Rere ki Tai could benefit Ma¯ ori and non-ma¯ ori with a “mana and mauri story” of green, ethical and transparent production.
“Off-farm, the research will measure whether the connection to Ma¯ori values and tikanga can attract a premium in export markets,” says Clare Bradley, chief executive of Agrisea, 2022 Hi-tech Kamupene Ma¯ori o te Tau — Ma¯ori Company of the Year.
“On-farm, the research considers whole-of-system wellbeing through metrics across soil health, animal wellbeing, milk and meat quality, and ecological and environmental health, as well as looking at financial measures of farm success and the wellbeing of farming whanau.”
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