Eating the Elephant
Export plans hollow without system change
Daniel Eb says even good goals like the doubling of exports in a decade will fail unless the leaders behind them can develop sector-wide future systems.
A strategy to double food and fibre exports
Call it what you will, this plan spreads the risks and the opportunities, says David Eade.
Hear me out. E-sports should be at the Olympics
The question of who gets to be a contender is hotly contested, writes Daniel Eb.
Olympic lessons from a Taranaki dairy shed
Even now, Olympic rower Rebecca Scown feels her early years on the farm guiding her.
How to keep going past gold
There’s no margin in resting on one’s laurels, in ag as in athletics, says David Eade.
Where NZ ag’s medals will come from
Considered decisions about where to compete will benefit our athletes and our exporters, says Phil Weir.
Trapped in history’s tragedies
The private and public rights and duties of land ownership present challenges that are yet to be solved, writes David Eade.
The courage to be a pragmatist
In an earlier, better time, says John Foley, politicians were not so dogmatic, and things actually got done.
A lesson from 1914
We are fast approaching a historical turning point, says Daniel Eb.
EV sales paint an interesting picture of the state of NZ
Sales of EVs suggest to David Eade that the mood for environmental policy intervention across New Zealand might have changed.
On a wing and a prayer
We badly need new Air Force jets – if for no other reason than to convince trading partners we’re serious players, writes Ben Anderson.
Nuffield global journey provided fodder for the Elephant
Daniel Eb reflects on what farming around the world can teach New Zealand.
A year of Eating the Elephant
Phil Weir marks once more around the sun on a number of fronts.
Fonterra – selling up or selling out?
The co-op shoud be very wary of narrowing its focus in such an uncertain world, says Ben Anderson.
Your technology still needs you
No matter the system, it’s your openness to innovation that is the real differentiator, says David Eade.
Navigating kids’ sports: a meat pie for a try
No matter how tough times get, there’s a Saturday ritual that Phil Weir will continue to celebrate.
The cost of a free lunch
Government cost cutting can sometimes come at too high a price, says Daniel Eb.
Learning to brand, Texas style
Scaling up and flexing commercial muscle are things agri NZ will have to learn to do, says Ben Anderson.
The lesson of the walking poles
Having been helped by therapy, Daniel Eb feels duty bound to call out the main reason people give for not seeking help themselves.
Winter is coming
The slower season prompts David Eade to reflect on planning for a measured, productive farming career.
Christmas on the first weekend in May
Phil Weir is shaking the presents and watching the pond as duck hunting season nears.
The boom and bust of wokeness
David Eade reflects on what happens to enlightened business thinking when financial pressures start to take their toll.
Go woke, go broke?
Phil Weir unpacks a certain rallying cry doing the rounds.
How I learnt to stop caring about woke nonsense
Revolution and reaction is the rhythm of our species, says Daniel Eb.
Regs that are worth the paper they’re written on
The high-value future of the food and fibre sector will come at a paperwork price that is even higher than what the sector pays today, says Daniel Eb.
The transformative power of water
Ben Anderson says large-scale water storage could be an idea whose time has come.
The next wave of Kiwi farming innovation
Our future place in the world may be defined by the quality of the meat and milk we help others to grow, says David Eade.
The courage to punch above your weight
There’s much to admire in New Zealand, but is it really making the most of what it has, asks Daniel Eb.
Risk, reward and dead rats
NZ has to reconsider its place in the world and what it wants to achieve, says Ben Anderson.
The Liar’s Dice: a beautifully simple game
Many a true word is shared in a game of bluffing your mates, Phil Weir discovers.
Lessons from the hard year that was 2023
Daniel Eb predicts that last year embodied the sort of upheaval we will have to learn to live with.
Fruit cakes and season’s greetings
Sand in the togs and uncles ahoy are some of Phil Weir’s Christmas memories.
A lesson for farmers from the Danakil Depression
Stoicism has its place, but merely trudging along should not be our default, says Ben Anderson.
A dance for the ages: balancing art and science
It is the farmers who navigate this dance through the agricultural year that leave a lasting legacy, writes David Eade.
Some useful lessons from the in-laws
Phil Weir takes insights from renovating the family home and extends them to the borders of his farm.
The media are not out to get farming
The work of journalists, like the work of farmers, really matters to society and they can be an easy target when things go wrong, says Daniel Eb.
Harness the power of not being a dick
With the way things are going, farmers are going to need to get better at winning friends, says Ben Anderson.
The case for calm on alternative proteins
Whatever the vehicle, we are on the road to a sustainable menu, David Eade says.
Dear Chris, please see beyond the next three years
We need a nature-based solution to meet two extremely pressing needs, says David Eade.
Dear Chris, ignore the deer-culler’s dog
Ben Anderson asks the next prime minister for less nostalgia about farming in NZ and more fresh thinking.
Load More