Head Shepherd

Building resilience and achieving success in agriculture is an unpredictable challenge that involves continuous learning, upskilling, mentorship and adoption of innovative practices. In this episode, Mark chats with Danielle England, both a consultant and farmer, about resilience in the agricultural industry. Danielle currently farms merino sheep with her husband and his family in Keilira, South A...

How would you manage your cattle differently (or your sheep for that matter) if you could diagnose pregnancy at day 16?  This week on the podcast, Mark chats with Bronwyn Darlington, a trailblazer in the field of disruptive innovation and sustainable agriculture. Bronwyn shares her journey through various ventures and projects, one of which is AgScent. “My area of expertise is looking at the compl...

This week on the podcast we have Bill Mitchell, co-founder of Optiweigh, discussing the Optiweigh system and its unexpected impacts on the farm businesses that are already using the technology. Optiweigh was founded 10 years ago by Bill and Jacqui Mitchell after they decided there must be a better way to closely monitor cattle weights, rather than running them into the yards every week. “There was...

This week on the podcast we have Richard Subtil, from Omarama Station, a 12,000-hectare property in New Zealand's South Island. Over the last 26 years, Richard and his wife Annabelle have made incredible progress on the station, creating a sustainable and efficient operation for their children to take over. There is a vast range of environments found across Omarama Station, from tussock at 1,...

As food producers, should we know more about the nutrition of the products we produce? This week on the podcast we have Dr Anneline Padayachee, a food and nutrition scientist. We dive into the fascinating world of carbs, proteins, micronutrients and more, hopefully leaving you with a better understanding of the food we produce and eat. Anneline provides a brief history of nutrition science. This r...

What happens when a Merino sheep farmer turns into a digital marketplace mogul? Our guest this week, Dwain Duxson, founder of Farm Tender and The Farmers Club, shares how and why he switched career paths. While Dwain enjoyed his time farming and breeding Merino rams, in 2011 he decided a change of gear was in order. “For me, [selling rams] was pretty restrictive in how many customers you could ser...

Join us this week and find out how Matt Iremonger manages multiple dairy, sheep and beef operations across 6,500 hectares in Canterbury, New Zealand. Matt shares the challenges and opportunities in such a diverse farming enterprise, as well as his recent experience as a Nuffield Scholar looking at the integration of beef production from the dairy industry to create a high-value premium product. Wh...

Ever wondered what it takes to breed top-quality Brahmans? This week on the podcast we have Alf Collins, of ALC Brahmans, sharing how he and the team do just that with a disciplined approach to breeding and selection. Alf discusses the evolution of the ALC herd, the business today and the stringent criteria they apply when selecting their Brahmans.   ALC started with Alf's grandfather when he...

From direct organic lamb sales to a firewood business and developing algorithms for drench recommendations, the Cotter family pretty much do it all. This week we have Nick Cotter of Cotter Agritech on the podcast to chat about their farm in County Limerick, Ireland, and the various inventions and innovations they have come up with. In Ireland, sheep farming is considered the least profitable, behi...

This week on the podcast we have Nancy Crawshaw, Extension Manager for Angus Australia and winner of the New Zealand Zanda McDonald Award 2024. The conversation kicks off with Nancy’s reflections on the aftermath of Cyclone Gabrielle in her home region of Gisborne. “It brought communities together,” says Nancy. “When you're completely cut off, you've got no outside communication, you can...

Nigel Kerin returns to the podcast this week to discuss profit drivers, decision rules, staying curious and the importance of science and technology in farming. Nigel has a great way of thinking about the business of farming and no decision is made without analysing it first. Nigel uses a triangular model to help him make these hard decisions. “Down one side of the triangle, you've got busine...

Are you heading to Lambex this year? If you’re not already going, you’ll want to be there after listening to this week's podcast! Our guest this week is Jason Schulz, chair of Lambex. After a six-year break, Lambex is back and better than ever. For those not familiar with the event, Lambex is a three-day event that celebrates and promotes Australia’s sheep and lamb industry, with more than 1,...

This week on the podcast we have one of the fantastic winners of the 2024 Zanda McDonald Award, Tessa Chartres, to discuss her career, how she manages her work-life balance and much more. Tessa grew up on a farm in Bathurst. She became an accountant, specialising in agribusiness and farming, and later moved to Deniliquin to be with her husband. There, she joined Murray Irrigation, where she is now...

Breeding values are something we discuss a lot here at neXtgen Agri. We decided to do a podcast episode explaining exactly what they are and how they are ‘built’. Today, Daniel Brown, Principal Scientist at Animal Genetics and Breeding Unit (AGBU), joins us to discuss what breeding values are, how they are developed, their role, the impact of genomics and the future of genetic evaluation. Mark and...

Understanding the rumen is a key part of being a top-performing producer. While we might think of them as herbivores, Rob explains it’s a little more complex than that. “They're more what we'd call a ‘fermentivore’. What they actually digest is the sludge and the byproducts of bacterial fermentation,” explains Rob. “If we think about everything in the context of what we put down an anima...

This week on the podcast we have Professor Emeritus of Animal Science at Cornell University, Alan Bell, discussing his recent paper ‘Animal science Down Under: a history of research, development and extension in support of Australia’s livestock industries’.  In this paper, Alan discusses how back in 1788, as you may have guessed, “There wasn't any real systematic research done on the livestoc...

When the going gets tough on farm, it's the tough who get going. But what fuels that resilience?  This week on the Head Shepherd podcast, we have Kane Brisco of FarmFitNZ to discuss mental wellbeing, farm fitness and community. In his late twenties, Kane found himself in a tough spot. He’d stopped participating in his local rugby team and his passion for farming had faded, so he didn’t know w...

Replacement rates in your sheep flock are determined by your ewe losses and your culling decisions. For every ewe lamb you choose to keep, that’s one less to sell.  In this week's podcast, our guest, Associate Professor Anne Ridler, discusses the findings from her recent study on ewe wastage in New Zealand sheep farming. Anne’s research found that, on average, 28 to 30 per cent of ewes leave...

In this current climate, should you be looking for ways to save money on farm? Or should you be looking at upping your production to cover rising costs? This week on the Head Shepherd podcast, we hope to answer those questions for you. Our guest this week, Tim Leeming, is well known for his precision lambing and we’ve had him as a guest on the podcast before (go check that one out here ).  In this...

Our guest on the podcast this week is Bonnie Skinner.  Bonnie is the CEO of Sheep Producers Australia (SPA), a levy board that advocates for a better future for Australia’s sheep industry. They do this in a multitude of ways: connecting farmers, consumers and government bodies. They advocate for better outcomes for farmers and direct levy investments towards research, development and industry serv...

With greater unpredictability in our weather patterns, managing pastures is an ever-evolving challenge for farmers. This week on the podcast we hope to help with some handy advice from consultant, Darren Gordon. This week we cover: The importance of pasture and feed-quality testing The genetics of fat and feed efficiency  Maximising profit from pasture Darren emphasises the importance of testing y...

This week on the podcast, we’re talking about Flexolt®, a revolutionary new oral treatment for lice control in sheep. Our guests are Dr Jane Morrison and Dr Hamish Pike from our fantastic sponsors, MSD Animal Health. Flexolt is the first-ever oral lice treatment for sheep, giving you the ultimate flexibility when it comes to treating your flock. It can be used rain or shine, with any length of woo...

What are breeding values? And why do you need a breeding objective? Our guest this week, Dr Jamie Courter, Beef Genetics Extension Specialist, explains why they are so important for reaching our breeding goals.  Do you have a breeding objective? This is the first question Jamie asks every producer. “I don't care what your breeding objective is if it makes sense for you,” says Jamie, “I just h...

Tune in to our latest podcast episode as Emily Riggs, the founder and creative force behind Iris and Wool, shares her inspiring journey.  Emily and her husband live on a sheep property outside of Burra, South Australia. “I fell in love with my farmer and also fell in love with wool,” explains Emily. “I don't actually work hands-on on the farm. So, I thought, how can I contribute to the indust...

This week on the podcast, Darren Spencer, President of the Western Australian Shearing Industry Association (WASIA), discusses some of the key issues faced by the wool industry, as well as how wool producers and the shearing industry can work together more effectively in the future. First up, Darren runs us through what WASIA has done to address the much talked about “shearers’ shortage”.  In the...