Getting more than you expect at the Waimumu Southern Field Days
It’s hard to believe it’s been more than a month since the Southern Field Days at Waimumu, but as I reflect on an inspirational few days, the lessons are becoming clear.
Farmers at the field days talked about wanting a perfect balance of sustainability and profitability, and ultimately for both those things to balance with a home life.
I went there to share what we are doing on our research farm; what I did not expect was to come away feeling so inspired, and with such fascinating insights into what farmers are thinking about the future.
My role as farm general manager at the Southern Dairy Hub – the largest research farm in New Zealand, and possibly the southern hemisphere – presented the opportunity to have a stand at the Field Days alongside DairyNZ.
For all that people know about the Hub, I often hear that they may not see the value they get from having a research farm on their doorstep and aren’t sure how to translate the research into practical on-farm activity.
Over the course of three days, I must have spoken to about 100 people, and the beauty of events like these is that you get to interact with people and get a real sense of what is occupying their minds most right now.
The depth of the conversation from farmers and rural professionals inspired me.
I thought I would be telling people about the value they get from the Hub, and I did, but we mainly debated what future challenges would be coming our way, what are the things they see as important in the next 10 years, and how they want to embrace technology but there are so many barriers.
There were four main themes that I took away:
Firstly, technology is complex and seems to be getting more so. What do farmers and rural professionals use, when, how and on what platforms? How do they get staff to embrace new technology, especially if there is minimal training offered.
There was a real desire for dashboards to help provide better insights to help make decisions on farm.
Secondly, and no surprises, compliance is complex.
The farmers I spoke to were questioning what decisions they needed to make today to set them up for positive future compliance.
Thirdly, farmers talked about the value of demonstration and learning from showcasing in real time. Not when multi-year research is finished; they want research, new practices, insights and technology visible and easy to access, in real time and ideally through on-farm demonstration.
I also talked to many farmers about their change in how they approach farming. This is where they talked about balancing sustainability, profitability, and a home life.
I reflected after several conversations along these lines, that it’s the way of the future – farming with low inputs and outputs to create the sweet spot so farmers can be profitable but also – and most importantly - have a life away from the farm.
For me, the ultimate value-add of the Field Days was including the whole farm team. I saw so many farm teams at the Field Days having a great time together. They were engaging with the sector and their community, seeing what was available and new.
For our farm team, it gave everyone such a buzz. They appreciated being involved, and it was rewarding and hugely engaging for all of us.
I left the Field Days feeling reinvigorated, and the people I spoke to helped me get clarity on the purpose of the Hub and how we can share more insights with our community.
It highlighted the importance of demonstration, so watch this space for more coming your way soon.
It also reinforced to me that we need to constantly support our next generation into farming.
Top of my to-do list is engaging with schools and universities to open the doors of Southern Dairy Hub so students can learn firsthand, through demonstration, the incredible things happening on their doorstep.