2026 Nuffield NZ Farming Scholarship. Apply by 17 August 2025. Read More...

Apply for 2026 Nuffield NZ Farming Scholarship by 17 August 2025. More details...

2020 Review and look ahead to 2021 with Chris Parsons & Lindy Nelson : Sarah’s Country Interview

Chris Parsons, CEO of Rural Leaders and Lindy Nelson, Founder of Agri-Women’s Development Trust joined Sarah Perriam on Sarah’s Country to talk about the year ahead and what to expect for 2021.

Sarah’s Country Interview : 16th December 2020

Click here to watch the full Sarah’s Country show on demand.

Listen to the podcast here:

Step up in 2021 – be part of the Kellogg Rural Leadership programme in Tai Tokerau!

Take the next step in your development and do the Kellogg Rural Leadership Programme in Tai Tokerau in 2021.

Course dates: 4 May – 21 October  

APPLY NOW
Applications close on 31 January 2021

Click here for more information on the Kellogg Tai Tokerau Course

Siobhan O’Malley & Wayne Langford – Meat the Need

In our last newsletter we featured the work Siobhan O’Malley and Wayne Langford have been doing with their new charitable venture ‘Meat the Need’. 

Tune in to this podcast where Siobhan and Wayne talk about how and why they got started on the ‘Meat the Need’ charity concept.

To find out more about Meat the Need charity or to donate click here: https://meattheneed.org/

Anna Nelson’s work for King Country River Care Group

Anna Nelson, 2016 Kellogger, is currently working as the Co-ordinator for King Country River Care Group.

Anna recently featured on Sarah’s Country where she talked about the work she has been doing for the King Country River Care Group who have been awarded an $844K grant to support clean waterways in the King Country.

Click here to listen to Sarah’s Country podcast >>>

Programme partners update

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We were pleased to welcome LIC on board as a Programme Partner in June this year with the signing of a three-year agreement.

Our partnership with LIC helps support NZ Rural Leaders mission to grow world class leaders capable of local, national and international impact.

LIC is a herd improvement and agri-technology co-operative that empowers farmers through the delivery of superior genetics and technology.

Find out more about LIC here.

Rural Leaders are pleased to have re-signed a three year partnership agreement with GlobalHQ in July.

GlobalHQ is a data and information business supporting New Zealand Agripreneurs, including every farmer in the country. Their brands include Farmers Weekly, Dairy Farmer, Onfarm Story,  Agri HQ, Farmer’s Voice, Sarah’s Country.

We thank GlobalHQ for their continued support in helping us deliver the Kellogg and Nuffield programmes.

Find out more about Global HQ here.

NZTE Funding Assistance for Kellogg Applicants

Rural Leaders are now registered with the NZTE business Capability Scheme. applicants may be eligible to receive funding assistance up to 50% of the Kellogg course fee.

Kellogg applicants now may be eligible to receive funding assistance up to 50% of their course fee.​

Do you qualify for funding?

The following criteria will be used by the Regional Business Partners to identify whether or not your business qualifies for funding:

  • Have undergone an assessment with a Regional Business Partner (i.e. Growth Advisor)
  • Have fewer than 50 full time employees.
  • Are registered for GST in New Zealand
  • Are operating in a commercial environment.
  • Are a privately owned business, or are a Māori Trust or incorporation under the Te Ture Whenua Māori Act 1993 or similar organisation managing Maori assets under multiple ownership.
  • Demonstrate a desire to innovate and grow.

For more information or to apply for the funding available through NZTE, please visit their website.

Or click here to find out more about the new Kellogg Regional Initiatives.

To receive updates on Kellogg courses and initiatives, register your interest here:

Meat The Need NZ

New Charity launched by Wane Langford & Siobhan O’Malley

Wayne Langford and Siobhan O’Malley have just launched their new charity that allows farmers to donate fresh meat to help feed New Zealand’s most vulnerable.

Wayne joined Sarah Perriam on Sarah’s Country recently to talk about their latest venture ‘Meat The Need NZ.’

Wayne and Siobhan are both Kelloggers, Wayne completing the Kellogg Programme in 2014 and Siobhan in 2018. 

https://meattheneed.org/

Nicky Barton – Old Dogs, New Tricks

Nicky Barton’s research that she carried out on the Kellogg Rural Leadership Programme revealed ‘some interesting interactions between age and health and safety behaviours on-farm.’ Read more in this ODT article : https://www.odt.co.nz/…/rural-l…/farmer-deaths-correlate-age

Nicky is the marketing and communications media manager for Worksafe and graduated from the Kellogg Rural Leadership Programme in 2019.

Click here to read Nicky’s Kellogg research report ‘Old dogs, new tricks : An exploration of age and its influence on health and safety in New Zealand’s primary sector.’ 

Lisa Portas – Showing people what we’re about

Lisa Portas who is an Expansion Manager at Palliser Ridge, a Sheep & Beef Farm in South Wairarapa graduated from the Kellogg Rural Leadership Programme in 2019.

Her research report  ‘Farmer Storytelling : Navigating our Narrative‘ focuses on helping farmers to tell their stories to help explain to urban New Zealanders the realities of life on the land and the contribution the primary sector makes to the country. 

Lisa featured on Global HQ’s OnFarm Story this week in her video  “Showing People What We’re About.”  Click here to watch the video.

IFAMA CONFERENCE – ROTTERDAM, JUNE 2020

FoodHQ is delighted to be able to offer a limited number of scholarships for young professionals and postgraduate students with food/agriculture related interests to attend the International Food and Agribusiness Management Association (IFAMA) conference in Rotterdam in June 2020  (https://ifama2020.org/) and participate in the IFAMA Student Case Study competition. 

Click here to see if your are eligible to apply.

The case study competition is held on the Sunday, June 23rd and involves teams from all over the world working on a given case study with very relevant global food and agribusiness issues, devising various solutions to its problems and then presenting the results of their analysis, the options and their chosen strategy to a panel of judges. It is a unique experience and one that previous participants from NZ have thoroughly enjoyed being part of. The opportunity to get to know the competition and see how different geographies unbundle the same case differently is a special global experience.

We are seeking high-calibre applicants who are future leaders in agrifood from a diverse range of backgrounds.  Prof Nicola Shadbolt from Massey University and several Mentors with experience within the agrifood sector will coach the case study competition entrants as well as accompanying the group throughout their visit, providing insights and further learning as appropriate.

We will also be arranging an in-market experience consisting of visits to interesting agrifood businesses in Europe as part of the programme.  It is likely that this will consist of 3-4 days prior to the conference.  Scholarship winners will also have the option of extending their visit to Europe to pursue their own itinerary or joining some or all of the International Horticulture Immersion Programme that will be running a course in Europe and Asia starting shortly after IFAMA concludes.

The scholarship includes return flights to Europe, transport related to the in-market experience, accommodation and conference fees.  Scholarship recipients will need to be able to cover other costs (including those related to visas/passports, meals, spending money) themselves.

Attached is a guide to the scholarships and an application form.  If you or someone you know is interested then please check your eligibility using the flowchart within this document, and if you do qualify then please complete and return the application form and your CV by the 27th Jan 2020.  Please note the requirement for Young Professionals to have completed their most recent university-level studies no earlier than June 2017 and for Postgraduates to have been still enrolled in a course in Dec 2019.

Please feel free to pass this information through your networks across NZ who you think may be interested – there is no restriction on where the applicants are or have studied.

If you have any questions please contact:  Abby Thompson, 021 774 864, abby@foodhq.com.

Alice Rule: Sustainability at heart

Alice Rule, Kellogger and emerging young leader in sustainability, is researching the circular economy of glass in the New Zealand wine industry as part of her Kellogg research project. Through her work, she hopes to drive awareness about using glass made in New Zealand in the wine industry. Click here to find out more about Rule’s research project.

Learn more about the Kellogg Rural Leadership programme

NUFFIELD AGRIBUSINESS SUMMIT – MARCH 23, 2020

Nuffield International Agribusiness Summit

After our fantastically successful one day Summit alumni event in 2017 we promised you another one in three years (based on your preferred frequency). We are pleased to announce that our next Kellogg alumni event has been confirmed for 23 March 2020.

What is even more exciting is that we are combining this event with the Nuffield2020 International Event, as part of a one day International Summit being held in Christchurch and hosted by Nuffield NZ.  With a theme of Fast Forward – this is a day focused on future solutions showcasing new business models. There will be lots of discussion and debate with International and New Zealand speakers who are leaders in change and business solutions, that will inspire, provoke and challenge your thinking.

We know as Kelloggers you also love to reKonnect – so we are organising some alumni networking events around the Summit with the help of Canterbury Kellogg alumni including a cocktail function on Sunday evening. The details of other events will be announced shortly.

All we need you to do now is:

  • Diary this date – 23 March 2020
  • View the Summit Programme 
  • Get your Kellogg cohort together for a reunion
  • Register now for the Summit and get in fast to secure your accommodation
  • Follow the Social Shares below and keep up to date with what’s happening at the Summit

If you have questions about the Summit and associated Kellogg events feel free to contact us at programmes@ruralleaders.co.nz.
 
EXPERIENCE AN EVENT TO GROW | CONNECT | INSPIRE

Social licence about trust

Penny Clark-Hall is passionate about helping rural communities.

Ms Clark-Hall is the founder of New Zealand’s first social licence consultancy, helping farmers and agri-businesses earn and maintain their social licence to operate.

She is excited about speaking at the Women’s Enviro Evening in Clinton later this month, saying meaningful change had to come from grassroots, or “the ground up”.

That had a domino effect and, if everyone did their “own little bit” then it all added up to something big, she said.

The evening, which will be held in the Clinton Town Hall on Tuesday, July 30, has been organised by local woman Sandra Campbell.

Mrs Campbell, who with husband Chris is in an equity partnership on a 500-cow dairy farm between Clinton and Balclutha, attended a food and fibre conference in Christchurch a few years ago.

She left feeling enthused both about their own business and also about sustainability. The aim was of this month’s meeting was to bring top speakers back to community level and make it accessible, she said.

Click here to read more.

It’s not weak to speak

It was a warm, sunny afternoon in Takaka in Golden Bay. 

As daylight beamed through a window only to hit the back of a curtain, Kellogger, Wayne Langford found himself bedridden in a cool, dark room. He had been flat on his back every afternoon for more than a week to escape his constant mental anguish.

But this day was different.

“I had like an out-of-body experience.

“It was as though I was hovering above myself looking down and saying ‘what the hell are you doing in bed?’”

It was 2pm on March 18, 2017. 

It was his 34th birthday.

“I couldn’t help but think I should be out and about celebrating with people, not stuck indoors….”

To read more about Wayne Langford by Luke Chivers, click here.

Calling all dairy farm workers

Blake Marshall from Ngai Tahu Farming is completing his Kellogg Rural Leadership project on “The importance of developing positive stress management and mindset skills in young dairy farmers”.

He is wanting to survey dairy farm workers.

If you are a dairy farm owner or employer and want to be involved in this survey or receive a copy of the report on completion, please email him on Blake.Marshall@ngaitahu.iwi.nz