Rural Leaders Newsletter Archives | Page 7 of 15

The 50th Kellogg Rural Leadership Programme graduates.

With Alumni now numbering 1075, the Kellogg Rural Leadership Programme has had a long and rich history of leadership capability lift across the food and fibre sector.

To celebrate the 50th cohort’s graduation, the collective impact of alumni, and the Programme’s history, the NZ Rural Leadership Trust (Rural Leaders) hosted an event at Lincoln University’s Waimarie Building.

Kate Scott, Lisa Rogers and Dr Patrick Aldwell, spoke at the event, with Dr Aldwell sharing more the Programme’s genesis.

Serial impact.

The William Keith Kellogg Foundation (WKKF) was established in 1930 as a philanthropic organisation, running alongside the Kellogg’s Breakfast Cereal Company (Kellogg’s).

William Keith Kellogg initially set up Kellogg’s to support his brother’s business – a sanitarium.

Over his lifetime (1860-1951), William donated nearly $70m in stock to the WKKF, as he put it “to help people help themselves.” He wanted to equip people with the knowledge and solutions for better health and wellbeing outcomes.

He left simple instructions to future trustees and staff, “…use the WKKF’s money to promote the health, wellbeing and happiness of children.”

Incidentally, Kellogg’s has recently been rebranded ‘Kellanova’ in New Zealand and Australia, while in North America the brand will appear as WK Kellogg and Co. on supermarket shelves.

1075 Kellogg Scholars since 1979.

Eventually, part of the WKKF’s grants were used to establish rural leadership programmes in the US, Australia, and NZ.

One bold individual, John Pryde, CE of Federated Farmers 1964-1975 and Lincoln University Senior Fellow 1975-1991, persistently tried to set up a Rural Leadership Programme, finally succeeding in 1979 with funding from the WKKF for the first five years for a programme.

Since 1979 the Kellogg Rural Leadership Programme has helped deepen leadership capability in industries across our sector – and since 2017 it has been delivered by the New Zealand Rural Leadership Trust (Rural Leaders).

Thanks to the additional support of Rural Leaders’ investing partners, New Zealand Food and Fibre has more capable, and purpose driven people. 1075 of these individuals are Kellogg alumni.

Celebrating the Kellogg Programme’s impact.

As the Mackenzie Study has shown, the impact Kellogg alumni have made, and continue to make, cannot be underestimated. In fact, we thought it was something well worth celebrating. And so we did.

About 80 alumni, investing partners and industry leaders came together on Thursday 30 November to celebrate not only the 50^th Kellogg cohort’s graduation, but also the rich history of the Programme and the collective impact of Kellogg alumni.

Kate Scott, NZ Rural Leadership Trust Chair, opened by defining the the two types of future leaders Ta Tipene O’Regan believed we would see, “…

“Future takers who accept the future for what it is, feeling powerless to change what will be, and allowing today’s realities to obscure tomorrow’s potential, ready to respond to change; and future makers who shape the future by reading the signs, determined to create future spaces for people to excel, undaunted by today’s problems, and ready to lead change.”

Kate Scott drew on the powerful demonstration of achievement and impact catalogued by the Mackenzie Study and closed her speech by challenging the graduates gathered to become future leaders, “…ask yourself; how will I unleash the potential in others so that we can grow rural leaders together?”

Dr Patrick Aldwell, who has a long history of involvement with Kellogg spoke passionately of the Programme’s history, especially of William K Kellogg’s desire to ‘help people help themselves’. “May you have the skills, confidence, awareness and networks to take the next step, no matter what that may be. I congratulate you on your Kellogg achievements…”, Dr Aldwell said in closing.

Lisa Rogers, Rural Leaders CEO, gave a note of thanks to partners, the board and industry before leading the awarding of the certificates for the 50th Kellogg cohort.

Pictured below – the alumni list.

Four 2024 Nuffield New Zealand Farming Scholarships awarded.

Four food and fibre sector leaders have been awarded 2024 Nuffield New Zealand Farming Scholarships.

The Nuffield Awards Ceremony was hosted by Minister O’Connor and the New Zealand Rural Leadership Trust (Rural Leaders) at the Grand Hall in Parliament, Wellington last night.

Growing interest in the Nuffield Scholarships.

With the number of scholarship applicants rising each year, competition has been strong.

To ensure the 2024 Nuffield Scholars can travel and gain international insights in a climate of rising travel costs, the value of the Scholarships increased in 2023. This has also meant that four scholars were selected this year instead of the maximum five, making competition for scholarships tougher still.

Each scholar brings an impressive track record of performance and a corresponding level of passion. The scholars will now need to apply this experience and passion to finding those insights that will benefit the food and fibre sector.

“The four scholars represent up to eight industries, four separate regions, and over fifty years’ food and fibre experience.

This cohort’s combined knowledge and skill range will enable them to hit the ground running and support each other. The group’s first scholarship component is the Value Chain Innovation Programme – which starts next week.

We are as interested and excited to see each scholar’s impact on community, industry, and the sector, as we are the collective impact of the cohort”, Said Lisa Rogers, CEO, New Zealand Rural Leadership Trust (Rural Leaders).

The 2024 Nuffield Scholars.

The new 2024 Nuffield Scholars were announced by Kate Scott, Chair, NZ Rural Leadership Trust as:

Carlos Bagrie – An Otago based Sheep and Beef/Arable Farmer. Carlos will focus his research on circular farming systems that reduce waste while improving the bottom line.

Rachel Baker
Rachel is a Central Hawke’s Bay based Agri-investments Portfolio Manager, and Dairy Farmer. Rachel’s research will look at the impact of existing and proposed global food strategies on food producers.

Jenna Smith
A Waikato based Māori Agribusiness CEO, and Dairy Farmer. Jenna’s research will focus on climate change related land use changes.

Peter Templeton
A Southland based fifth generation Dairy Farmer. Peter’s research interest is in the future of farming and the role of innovation.

Leadership and change in food and fibre.

Before the Scholar announcements, Kate Scott, Chair, New Zealand Rural Leadership Trust, spoke about a global and national context of relentless change, saying that the challenges our sector faces within this require high-performing leaders for the teams they serve.

To this end the New Zealand Rural leadership Trust was commissioned by Food and Fibre Centre for Vocational Excellence in September 2022, to research and design a leadership development ecosystem for Aotearoa New Zealand’s food and fibre sector. Kate Scott drew on some of the work in the two project reports completed so far.

“Our leaders need to be more adaptive than ever before, creating healthy and diverse, high-performing environments that allow teams to acquire the skills and to build the resilience they need to thrive in a volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous world”, Said Kate Scott.

The first report presents research into the current state of leader development in the food and fibre sector.

The second report, ‘A Principles-centred Leadership Model’, proposes that Leaders who truly lead unleash their potential and that of those around them.

Kate Scott further acknowledged the support of Rural Leaders’ Partners, including that of Strategic Partners, AGMARDT, DairyNZ, Beef+LambNZ, Mackenzie Charitable Foundation, and FMG, and Programme Partners, MPI, Farmlands Co-operative, FAR, Horticulture NZ, Zespri, LIC and Rabobank.

Nuffield Scholar Research.

The 2023 Nuffield Scholars’ research topics will address several of our biggest food and fibre challenges and opportunities. They will bring a valuable global perspective to these with insights gleaned from an intensive travel itinerary of visits, meetings and experiences, designed to lead to a period of transformative personal growth.

The four new Scholars will join the over 180 Nuffield Alumni, awarded scholarships over the last 73 years.

Jessie Chan – Impact Story

Jessie Chan, MNZM – 2012 Kellogg Scholar.

Among her many accolades, Jessie became a member of the NZ Order of Merit for services to dairy and agriculture in 2022. Jessie was the recipient of Canterbury’s Institute of Directors aspiring director award in 2014 and was Fonterra Dairy Woman of the Year in 2017.

A respected leader in the dairy industry, Jessie is a director on boards including, NZ Pork, AgResearch, and AgriZero, and has served in the past on boards such as Ngai Tahu Farming, RuralCo and Alpine Energy.

Always interested in science, Jessie’s first role at the age of 17, was in Palmerston North’s Fonterra research lab, where she was exposed to product development.

University came soon after with study toward an animal science degree – graduating with honours.

After four years study Jessie went to Wellington where she held various primary sector roles, eventually heading a Federated Farmers’ policy team.

Marrying and moving to Canterbury, Jessie, and her then husband, took a share-milking job just south of the Rakaia River. Eventually they took over the lease and grew their herd from 750 to 1700 cows.

Jessie is now an equity partner with friends in her own dairy farm at Springston in Canterbury, an arrangement that works in well with her directorships.

Having held many senior sector leadership roles and understanding well the hard work required on the path to farm ownership, Jessie believes farming must adapt to meet challenges like environmental and climate change.

Jessie believes many of the answers will come from science, and to this end serves on the board of AgResearch and AgriZero. AgriZero support science-based solutions to some of the sector’s, and the world’s, trickiest challenges.

AgriZero is world-first partnership between agribusiness and the government and aims to reduce agricultural emissions 30% by 2030. A recent investment by AgriZero has been to build more methane chambers where a product’s effectiveness in reducing a cows’ methane output can be measured.

Jessie continues to apply science and entrepreneurship to Primary Sector challenges – along with her own enthusiasm, a lead-by-example style, and a long-held passion for science, for her industry and for the sector.

Jessie takes this quote she made in a recent Farmers Weekly article, “Let’s keep combining that science piece with that entrepreneur piece that goes, actually we can take that science and apply it on – farm this way and get a really good outcome’, I think we all want to move forward and do better for the land.”

We look forward to seeing the positive impact Jessie has made continue to influence change in dairy and the food and fibre sector.

Corrigan Sowman – Impact Story

Corrigan Sowman – 2016 Kellogg Scholar, 2019 Nuffield Scholar.

Corrigan is the owner, director, and business manager of the 400ha Uruwhenua Farms in Golden Bay, a family-owned dairy unit where technology is used to manage a large herd in a small herd way – especially in terms of attention to individual animals. He is a graduate of Massey University and has a Bachelor of Applied Science.

Corrigan is both a Nuffield and Kellogg Scholar who completed his Nuffield research on how to better understand the way pressure on farmers impacts decision making.

His Kellogg research looked at the critical success factors of an agriculture non-profit in knowledge creation and dissemination.

Corrigan is LIC Chair, succeeding fellow Nuffield Scholar Murray King, who says of Corrigan’s appointment, “He has a deep understanding of farming, its challenges and what farmers need both now and in the future in order to be more profitable and sustainable.”

He is a member of the Fonterra Sustainability Advisory Panel, a group providing independent advice to the Fonterra Senior Management Team and Board. He has been a former Consulting Officer with DairyNZ and a Farm Consultant with FarmRight, in Canterbury.

In the past Corrigan has been Chair and Independent Director of the South Island Dairy Development Centre (SIDDC), which operates the Lincoln University Dairy Farm. He has also been Deputy Chair of the DairyNZ Dairy Environmental Leaders Forum, an initiative fostering environmental stewardship and community leadership amongst New Zealand dairy farmers.

We look forward to seeing Corrigan continue to support work encouraging farm practices that strengthen the integrity of the food we produce.

Dr Alison Stewart – FAR and the role of arable systems in agriculture.

In this podcast, Dr Alison Stewart, CEO at the Foundation for Arable Research, talks with Farmers Weekly’s Managing Editor, Bryan Gibson, about the role of arable in agriculture, her role at FAR and the delivery of research that benefits growers.

Dr Stewart also discusses her involvement with the Kellogg Rural Leadership Programme and the importance of exposure to diversity of thought for leaders in Food and Fibre.

Listen to Alison’s podcast or read the transcript below.

Bryan Gibson – Managing Editor of Farmer’s Weekly.

Kia Ora, you’ve joined the Ideas That Grow podcast, brought to you by Rural Leaders. In this series, we’ll be drawing on insights from innovative rural leaders to help plant ideas that grow so our regions can flourish. Ideas that Grow is presented in association with Farmers Weekly.

My name is Bryan Gibson, Managing Editor of Farmers Weekly and this week I am talking to Dr Alison Stewart, CEO at FAR, the Foundation for Arable Research, and a regular speaker on the Kellogg Rural Leadership Programme.

Bryan Gibson:
G’day Alison. How’s it going?

Dr Alison Stewart – Chief Executive Officer at the Foundation for Arable Research (FAR).
Yeah, great. Thanks for having me.

BG: Great to have you here. Now, you’re the Chief Executive of Far. What’s been happening in your world lately?

The current arable context.

AS: Well, we’ve just had a referendum. So, every six years, our levy peers vote to decide whether FAR is doing a good job and they want to continue paying their levy. So that happened just last month. I guess for the last year, we have been focused a little bit on the referendum and making sure that the growers know what we’re doing and what value it delivers. And fortunately, yes, we got good support.

Although I have to say getting growers to vote was the biggest challenge. They’ve just got so much happening in their lives at the moment and so much information being thrown at them that they’re almost in a situation where finding the time to vote in a referendum was not a high priority. That actually was the biggest challenge, convincing them to get onto their computer and vote.

BG: And running the organisation, what does your job entail? What do you do in a week?

AS: My job is to make sure that everybody else in the company is doing their job really well. I’m joining all the dots. We’ve got some amazing research staff who are out there doing applied research, trying to find new management systems, new tools, new technologies that will assist our farmers.

We also have a lot of extension people focused on trying to support them with all of the compliance regulations that are coming down the track. And then we also have to deal with the biosecurity incursions. We’re dealing with two at the moment.

Amongst all of that, we’re just trying to promote to the general public, to the other sectors, to the government, the value of arable systems and the value that they bring to New Zealand agriculture. I jump around a lot, getting involved in lots of things, across lots of areas, at different levels of responsibility. It’s never a dull day.

BG: Yeah. Our Food and Fibre Sector is dominated by the big two animal proteins. I guess, as you say, the animal sector is as big and successful of its own accord, but in some ways plays second or third fiddle sometimes?

AS: Oh, very much so. That frustrates me in the sense that we actually underpin the livestock sector because we produce all of the seed and the grass seed that they need to grow their pastures to feed their cows. If we go under, then the livestock sector is going to be substantially worse off.

We also produce a large amount of the animal feed the dairy sector and the beef sector and the poultry sector need. So, I’m not sure that we ever get full recognition for the important role we play, not only in our own right through producing milling wheat and quality seed crops, but also underpinning the livestock sector. I try to remind my colleagues in the dairy and beef and sheep sector that they need us as much as we need them.

World-leading seed production.

BG: I guess a lot of people do just think of fields of maize or barley or wheat, but that seed production part of things is really important, but also quite an opportunity and a success for New Zealand, isn’t it? We’re quite good at it.

AS: Absolutely. It does help that the big global seed companies can see that they can get out of Northern Hemisphere seasons and they can get seed crops being produced in New Zealand. We have really good environmental conditions.

We have good quality certification, verification and accountability systems. We’re seen to be a very important seed producer. That’s really good from the perspective of an arable farmer because it provides a really nice rotation.

We’ve got our foundational cereal crops, but then we’ve got the seed crops in the foundation of the rotation and that gives a nice diversity, but it also introduces the opportunity to capture another revenue source.

Dr Alison Stewart - A CEO’s career path.

BG: Now, how did you get to the position you’re in now? What’s your career been like? What did you do when you left school?

AS: Well, I mean, gosh, I’ve been around the block. I’ve always been interested in plants. Even as a child, I was always out in the garden with my mum planting and looking after plants. I did botany at university, and then I did a PhD in plant pathology, and then I came to New Zealand.

Obviously, I’m Scottish, and I came to New Zealand, got a lecturing job at Auckland University, and it was the old Botany department. That was how I started off my career being an academic, and I had 10 years at Auckland. Then I moved down to Lincoln University because I wanted to be doing more applied research and more closer to the actual farming sector. I was 18 years at Lincoln University as an academic, running a big research centre, looking at sustainable production systems.

Then I decided to challenge myself a little bit more and I went off to California and ran a biotech company. Then I came back to New Zealand and headed up forestry science in Rotorua with Scion. Then I moved from there and came to be the CEO of FAR.

I’m probably relatively unusual in the sense that I’ve been in academia, I’ve been in the CRI system, I’ve been in a commercial company and I’m now working in an industry body. I’ve worked across horticulture, vegetable cropping, herbal cropping, and forestry. So it gives me a nice broad perspective on what’s happening, particularly in the plant-based sectors in New Zealand.

FAR - delivering the arable research that benefits growers.

BG: Well, that’s quite a CV. I’m interested in your interest in applied science and knowledge transfer. That’s something that’s been talked about in our sector as something that works pretty well, but does need work, if you know what I mean. Is that something that you think is moving the dial over the years?

AS: Oh, most certainly. I mean, there isn’t much point in doing research if you’re not going to get the results of the research out, being taken up and used by farmers and growers. FAR in particular, over the last 25 years, has been an exemplar of an organisation that has effectively delivered its research to benefit the growers.

It’s becoming more difficult because the environment is so much more challenging for growers. I won’t say the good old days, because I never think that the old days are actually that good. But in the past, FAR would do research and it would be identifying a new plant growth regulator or a new fungicide or a better fertiliser programme. And you’d go out and you’d say, if you do X, Y and Z, that will deliver a one-ton increase in yield.

That’s a really easy story to tell. The growers will go, that’s a good idea. I’ll do that. The growers get a one-ton increase and they think, Oh, my levy is good value for money for us doing a good job. But we’ve driven yield optimisation pretty close to the optimum.

A challenging arable environment.

Now the challenge is, how do we maintain those optimum yields given all of the constraints that growers now have around input costs and compliance around fresh water and climate change. That’s a much, much harder knowledge exchange programme because you’re potentially, and quite often, telling the growers something that they don’t want to hear. So you’re always trying to find a way in which you can present that information in as positive a way as possible.

At this moment in time in New Zealand, farmers feel as if they’re really under the pump with people throwing compliance regulations at them, their cost of production is going up. So often their headspace is not necessarily that favourably inclined towards hearing some quite difficult messaging. It’s challenging. It’s a really challenging space for the growers, and it’s a really challenging space for the labour organisations.

FAR and the Kellogg Rural Leadership Programme.

BG: Very much so. Now, turning to Rural Leaders, you have a bit to do with the Kellogg Programme, is that correct?

AS: Yeah. I mean, they roll me out twice a year where I come and I talk to the new cohort of rural leaders. I’m one of these people that, and it causes me a lot of angst over the years, I tend to just say exactly what I think. That can get me into a lot of trouble!

I really enjoy challenging young people around what they’re thinking, why they’re thinking it, and what they want to achieve in their careers. I love having discussions around what leadership actually means, because leadership means quite different things to different people.

In New Zealand agriculture at this moment in time, with all of the challenges that are coming up, it’s really hard to be a leader because levy organisations, for example, are reliant on doing what their levy peers want them to do, and that sometimes prevents you from being able to take a true leadership position.

I really like talking about some of those challenges, and it’s a good environment because it’s not out in the public arena. You’re not going to get hung out to dry on social media, but you’re able to have some really honest and sometimes quite painful discussions about how New Zealand agriculture needs to move into the future and the changes that need to be made. And that young cohort of Kellogg leaders are up for those kinds of discussions, and I just love it.

BG: I mean, it’s an interesting group because most of them already have a career and then they have a day job, and then Kellogg is back to school. So I guess it’s different from your previous work in academia, where it was 9:00 to 5:00 learning. And that has some upside, I think, of the Kellogg Programme, do you think?

Kellogg exposes leaders to diversity of thought and opinion.

AS: I think it’s a fantastic programme because it provides an opportunity to bring multiple thought processes to the table. Scott Champion, who’s one of the key Facilitators on the Programme; he’s very well connected and he can bring quite disparate views to the discussion.

That’s really important because if you stay in your own industry, in your own space, in your silo, then all that happens is that everybody validates preconceived ideas and it’s really good to be challenged.

I think that’s what the Kellogg Leadership Programme does. It makes you realise that what you thought you knew and what you thought was a valid belief, there may actually be alternative viewpoints. You have to open your mind to different ways of thinking and different people’s perceptions of agriculture and different conclusions that you can draw from the vast amount of research that’s out there.

It’s a fantastic learning opportunity for young people to avoid getting into a siloed mantra of just believing the here and now and what people they tend to engage with think. It’s a bit like when you google something, the algorithm sitting in behind Google can work out what your preconceived ideas are, and therefore they tend to give you links to things that validate those preconceived ideas.

I think we’ve always got to try and make sure that we don’t get into that mentality of thinking that because we believe something now, that means it must be true.

BG: Cross-discipline research or work in real time, isn’t it?

AS: Absolutely, yeah.

BG: So, you’d recommend the Programme to anyone thinking about the big issues facing the sector, and thinking about leadership?

AS: I think you have to be prepared to put time and effort into it. It’s like anything in life that if you don’t commit and put your passion and energy into it, you’re not going to get the same amount of benefit out of it. I think you have to be prepared to come to the table and listen to those diverse views and be prepared to change your opinion about things.

If you come to the Kellogg Programme with a preconceived idea that you’re right and everyone else is wrong, you’re not going to get the benefit out of the Programme.

BG: Thanks for listening to Ideas that Grow, a Rural Leaders podcast in partnership with Massey and Lincoln Universities, AGMARDT and Food HQ. This podcast was presented by Farmers Weekly.

For more information on Rural Leaders, the Nuffield New Zealand Farming Scholarships, the Kellogg Rural Leadership Programme, or the Value Chain Innovation Programme, please visit ruralleaders.co.nz

Independent Trustee – New Zealand Rural Leadership Trust.

The New Zealand Rural Leadership Trust (NZ Rural Leaders) is seeking an Independent Trustee to join its board. This is an exciting opportunity for a food and fibre leader with strategic and governance experience, strong industry networks and a passion for leadership development, to build on their governance journey.

Background summary

NZ Rural Leaders is a registered charitable trust. The Trust’s purpose is to: Establish and operate leadership programmes for New Zealand’s food and fibre sector, advance education in agricultural practices, and contribute to the general welfare of New Zealand’s rural population.

In pursuit of this NZ Rural Leaders aim to grow world-class leaders for our country.

Board meetings

The Board meet up to 8 times per year with some meetings coinciding with longer events. 4 “in person” meetings are typically held in Christchurch or Wellington, with video conferencing utilised for the balance.

Meetings are scheduled where possible around Kellogg and Nuffield programme events to enable Board members to be introduced to each cohort of both programmes and contribute as per above role. Meeting dates for the year are set at least 6 months in advance.

Please note, this is an unpaid, voluntary role. Air Travel, accommodation, and meals are covered (where required).

The core competencies sought in all Board members are;

Strategic focus and experience.
Previous governance experience.
Innovative thinking and entrepreneurship.
Professional expertise in one or more of the following areas: food and fibre sector, adult education or training, business skills, marketing.
Passion for and understanding of leadership development.
Strong industry networks and connections.

Applicants with one or more of the following attributes are particularly sought;

Strong financial skills and understanding.
Affinity for leadership in Māori and Pacifica agri-business.
Horticultural, forestry or aquaculture industry knowledge.
Regional capacity building.
Partner engagement including local, regional, and central government.
Global perspective.

You can find more information on the Terms of Reference here.

Applications close on 15 November 2023.

CV and cover letter should be sent to Lisa Rogers, Rural Leaders’ Chief Executive at lisarogers@ruralleaders.co.nz

For any questions, please feel free to contact Chairperson, Kate Scott at kate@landpro.co.nz

The search for 2024’s Nuffielders is nearly over.

The magnitude of the decision to apply, to commit to a year or more of study, travel, and growth is significant. Most applicants are on farms, working in agribusiness – sometimes both. They are busy people, even without a Nuffield Scholarship.

In the search for 2024’s Nuffield Scholars Rural Leaders received approximately 30 applications. Here’s an approximate breakdown of this latest applicant group.

The search for the next Nuffield Scholars: the path to receiving an application.

Here’s a brief summary of what is involved in the search for our Nuffield Scholars.

Our Nuffield alumni critical in helping prospective scholarship applicants get to grips with the process of applying and the Nuffield Programme itself. Alumni are also active in referring those in the sector they feel would benefit personally and professionally from a Scholarship. Rural Leaders follow referrals up with personal emails and phone calls.

Alongside the referral activity, Rural Leaders run a modest, traditional paid media campaign, both paid and unpaid social media, as well as some digital placements. All activity here asks for registrations of interest. This activity is rounded out with help from partners and networks.

The registrations of interest build over time and these are nurtured with a 3-4 month email campaign featuring podcasts, testimonials, links to articles and details on the Scholarship.

It’s a rewarding experience for all involved. To see the first indications of interest develop into an application. Some have applied before, some are not well known to us, and some may have had Nuffield on their minds for many years.

The applicant demographic profiles shift and change over time, while such leadership traits as: pragmatism, passion, courage, and self-awareness remain constant.

In early November we’ll be in a position share who our 2024 Scholars are. For now, we’d like to thank all the incredible, dedicated people who applied. We know it was a decision that likely involved partners, family, work colleagues and friends.

The final submitting of an application is just the start of the story. It’s also the end of this one.

Inspiring value chain change – book your place on 2023’s Value Chain Innovation Programme.

The Value Chain Innovation Programme is ideal for those looking to give their strategic and entrepreneurial mindsets a boost.

Want to start a new business on-farm, lead value chain transformation, or start an entirely new value chain on, say, cherries? Or simply bolstering our value chain and farming and food production systems knowledge, then the Value Chain Programme offers high alignment to those.

Since 2020 Nuffield Scholars have had the opportunity to participate in this unique value chain immersion, whether that was 2021’s ‘World Tour of New Zealand’ pilot programme, or the first Value Chain Innovation Programme, held last year.

Fellow participants will be a mix of mid to senior level leaders, with some looking to develop new businesses.

2022’s cohort found the Programme inspiring and informative. Here are comments from Allan Richardson and Satwant Singh, 2022 Value Chain participants.

The Value Chain Innovation Programme was an action-packed week with highly motivated people from every industry in the sector. We saw the leading adopters of value chain innovation, they told us their pathways to success, often with one-on-one contact.

Just as important has been the new network of industry leaders that I travelled with, and now keep in contact with. Allan Richardson

And from Satwant Singh,

The Programme was a great opportunity to connect and re-energise with likeminded industry leaders and learn more about our own backyard. We can sometimes get narrow minded to our own industry (speaking for myself as dairy).

This programme showcased multiple successful NZ value chains first hand from farmer to market, providing some great insights and learnings.

The greatest value I took from the Programme though, was the people who all still keep in touch regularly.

This one-week immersion tour runs from 12-18 November (Auckland to Napier) and focuses on North Island based dairy, red meat, apple, and kiwifruit value chains.

Facilitators Prof. Hamish Gow and Phil Morrison bring a wealth of knowledge, experience and approachability to the Programme. They enjoy debate, discussion and the exploration of ideas. There’ll be plenty of that on the coach (aka the Think-tanker) in-between panel discussions, operation visits, and in conversations with business leaders and owners.

You can read both facilitators’ bios by clicking below. You’ll also find an application form below – just get it to us before midnight Sunday.

If you are interested in joining mid November’s fast-filling tour, just reach out to Matt Hampton at matthampton@ruralleaders.co.nz

Julian Reti Kaukau – Bridging the connection between our people and the whenua.

In this podcast, Julian Reti Kaukau, 2021 Kellogg Scholar, talks with Farmers Weekly’s Managing Editor, Bryan Gibson, about his Kellogg research and to share insights from his work with MPI Māori Agribusiness.

In reference to his research, Julian reflects on the historic prowess of the Waikato Maniapoto Māori in the agriculture and horticulture sectors and suggests that by harnessing the wisdom of the ancestors who once nurtured the Whenua, today’s Kaitiaki can make profound and impactful economic and sustainable decisions for the Whenua and their futures.

Julian believes that Māori who have been disconnected from their homelands can better reconnect with their Tupuna Whenua, fostering a profound sense of Tūrangawaewae, enhancing the Mana of the Whānau and Hapū, honoring important Tīkanga such as Manaakitanga and be given the ability to uphold the crucial role of Ahi Kaa.

Julian completed his Kellogg research on how can Waikato Maniapoto Māori landowners increase productivity whilst improving the environmental protection of their land?

Listen to Julian’s podcast here or read the transcript below. As always, the transcript has been modified for readability.

Bryan Gibson – Managing Editor of Farmer’s Weekly.

Kia ora, you’ve joined the Ideas That Grow podcast, brought to you by Rural Leaders. In this series, we’ll be drawing on insights from innovative rural leaders to help plant ideas that grow so our regions can flourish. Ideas that Grow is presented in association with Farmers Weekly.

My name is Bryan Gibson, Managing Editor of Farmers Weekly and this week I am talking to Julian Reti Kaukau, a 2021 Kellogg Scholar and currently the Facilitator Programme Lead for Māori Agribusiness at the Ministry for Primary Industries. How’re doing Julian?

Julian Reti Kaukau – 2021 Kellogg Scholar, Facilitator Programme Lead for Māori Agribusiness at MPI.

I’m doing great. Thank you, Bryan.

BG: Cool. Where are you calling in from today?

JR: I’m calling in from Rotorua in the sunny Bay of Plenty.

BG: Now, you were a 2021 Kellogg Scholar. How did you find that experience?

Completing Kellogg and settling on a research topic.

JR: The Programme was geared up to bring out the most in terms of that academic space within myself, that may have been neglected since I left high school. In all reality, having gone into the workforce pretty much as I turned 18, having the opportunity to go into the academic space was quite onerous.

I felt the Kellogg Programme helped guide and shape me. Patrick Aldwell was instrumental in assisting me to basically learn how to write, how to write well, and get my writing out there in the public space so that I could share what was on my heart and mind. In summary, I think that’s what the Kellogg Programme helped to do – is to really get those thoughts out.

I think those thoughts were really great ideas – at least to me – the Programme enabled me to get these out there in a more public domain and allow others to provide some feedback, thoughts and alignments on some of those ideas. I think that’s what Kellogg really did for me.

BG: Now, what did you focus your studies on? What was your report about?

JR: Initially, it was a bit of going around in circles trying to flesh out your topic. I actually started wanting to do a report around Māori Agri-business. But as you get further into the Programme, you realise you might have to go a little bit deeper, more specific and compartmentalise your particular subject because Māori Agri-business is quite broad in general.

I specifically chose to focus on the area that I whakapapa to, or have genealogical ties to, which is the Waikato and Maniapoto area, namely the King Country.

Embracing history for an informed future as Kaitiaki of the whenua.

JR: My topic was around what’s happened over the last 150 years with having a thriving agricultural primary sector within the Waikato, Maniapoto. Then leading into the 1860s period with the land wars and then the following land confiscations of almost 1.2 million acres of land being confiscated between 1860 and 1865, and a further 1 million acres being confiscated through various legislative policies between 1870 and 1970.

I think what really made me want to focus in on my own people, my own backyard, if you want to call it, is that we were once a powerhouse in agriculture. Our people were quite fast and quick to pick up the knowledge around agriculture, and I always felt that the future for our people is within the land.

So in order for us to be good stewards or kaitiaki of the whenua moving forward, we have to know a thing or two about how to look after the land. Whether that be in primary production or in an environmental capacity. That’s why I chose to go deep on around how our people could embrace the history that we once had, take those learnings and knowledge of our elders, right through the pre 1860 period, the post 1860 period up to about 1970, and having 1970 till today.

Then really look at the leadership that we had within our hapu and our iwi and our whana and take learnings out on how we could maintain our mana, maintain our footprint, our foundations of our land. For me, I believe that’s through making the land sustainably economical, whether it be a dairy, sheep and beef, forest, plantation, horticultural enterprise, whatever. But doing it right, doing it properly, pretty much, Bryan.

BG: There seems to be a movement to obviously the sustainability movement in farming is finally, I guess, getting momentum. That links beautifully to some of the things you’ve been talking about in terms of kaitiakiakitanga, and manaaki whenua. Is that something you found in your studies?

Kaitiakitanga and the sustainabilty movement.

JR: I wouldn’t say that I found it in my studies. It’s probably a concept that I’ve always grown up with. I’ve seen it enacted or lived out by my grandmother, my grandfather, out there on their quarter acre with the most beautiful garden, the māra, that you would ever see, feeding the masses.

Then as I got older and went to visit the cousins in the rural areas and seeing them out on the land and seeing how they connect and relate to our whenua, be it partaking in a mahinga kai, which is the collection of watercress, pūha, and eels. Or collecting kai moana, seafood, and just really acknowledging that the sustenance of all human life and animal life comes from Mother Earth.

There’s a reciprocity philosophy that co-joins guardianship of the land where we acknowledge that our life comes from the land. Therefore, we must do what we can to ensure that that life is going to be enjoyed by our children and our grandchildren, but at the same time, they create a life of some type of bountiful sustenance while we’re here on Earth.

In terms of the kaitiakitanga, I know there’s a huge movement towards sustainability that’s probably more in light of the impacts the rapid industrialisation of the primary sector has had. Now we’re now starting to see those impacts visibly, be it with nutrient-dense rivers or waterways or underground aquifers being depleted, and in the erosion of our soils.

It usually just comes hand-in-hand when you’re seeing those types of impacts, whether you’re Māori or non-Māori. You feel a deep sense to try and protect and restore that so that your children and your grandchildren can enjoy the same economic sustainability that you currently or once enjoyed yourself.

So in terms of kaitiakitanga, it’s wrapped around those points I’ve just mentioned Bryan, and more. And when I say more, so for Māori, it comes to whakapapa, which is the connection that you have through your ancestors to particular land and the efforts that your ancestors put into their land to maintain it for the future generations – to have a living of it.

There’s a dual concept of sustainability, but also protecting what was set out by your forefathers and mothers and making sure that’s passed down to the next generation. There’s probably a lot in there.

BG: Yes. And you’re still involved in some projects in that region, aren’t you? You were working for a Haukinga mai ki te whenua. Can you tell me a little bit about that?

Reconnecting our people with the whenua.

JR: Yeah, when you work in the Māori space, if you don’t have a proper employment contract, then you’re pretty much a volunteer. I’m volunteering on a number of trusts and boards.

Probably the one that’s the closest to my heart is Hokianga mai ki te whenua, which is a project initiated by my whanau to bring relations brought up in urban settings, in cities, or even overseas, like Australia, and connect them back to their foundational roots.

It gives them a sense of where their ancestors once dwelled and lived, and a sense of their own belonging and where they come from. Basically, just to answer the question, who am I?

Then it’s a journey. We have multiple engagements, which we call wānanga, which can be also called workshops, over a period of years. Then it’s building on each wānanga. One could be around, where do we get this land from? How did we come to be where we are today? Currently, 95% of our people live outside of our land-based areas. How do we bring our people back?

To do that, you need to have some type of economic base. All we have is land. What can we do with the land we have to ensure we can bring at least some of our people back home so that the mana, the mana whenua of our whenua is upheld and our fires, or what we call ahi kā, continue to burn.

BG: Also in your day job, you work in the Māori Agribusiness section of MPI? Is that right? What does that involve?

JR: It involves a number of jobs, mainly listening, first and foremost. Listening to the many pātai and ideas of our people. Being in a special place where we stand as conduits between Crown funds, the Crown support, and the aspirations of our people.

Mahi in Māori Agribusiness.

What I have found to date, depending on which groups that I’m working with, is that a lot of our people don’t have a strong understanding on how to seek support to assist them with their land aspirations. Whether this be to potentially take over a long-term lease of their land leased out to the local neighbour for the last 60, 70 years. Yes, I’ve seen a few of those. What do I do with this land now?

A good example here would be to be able to get some expert advice, some sound feedback on what to do with their land. Usually, it requires a person of knowledge and experience on certain areas, such as land use options, which requires a bit of money to pay someone to get that done.

Now, whanau that have been in those situations, where they’ve had no money coming into a land block, have the opportunity to work with Māori Agribusiness, to work with the experts that we currently have employed within our team, and also the networks that we have outside of MPI, to assist them in making sound decisions for the future of their land. That’s just one small aspect.

We cover a number of areas within the directorate of Māori Agribusinesses, but the main overall objective is to assist our people with their economic, sustainable aspirations. That is, producing healthy produce from their whenua that’s going to sustain their people, their whanau, their communities, and ultimately, New Zealand as a whole.

BG: That’s excellent. Māori agribusiness in New Zealand is currently a powerhouse, but as you mentioned, with the history that we share in New Zealand, it’s also in some ways just still getting started. What are your hopes for the future on how Māori agribusiness can thrive?

Future hopes for Māori Agribusiness.

JR: It’s a good question, Bryan. I’ve been involved in Māori agribusiness for most of my working life, almost 22 years. What I’ve seen over this time is probably the lack of capability and capacity within our own people, Māori, to be able to work within their iwi organisations. Especially in relation to the primary sector assets they may hold and to really drive from the front.

That could either be a member in the executive team or governance team, being able to make tupuna or mukapuna decisions, as future decisions that impact on our children.

The reason why I highlight that is because a lot of our organisations, they are currently hiring the best people to run our primary sector assets. The best people may not necessarily be Māori people. I find that some of their thinking that comes from running a multimillion-dollar enterprise is largely economic thinking, not necessarily Māori thinking.

That’s why I have mentioned that the lack of capacity and capability within our people being an area of focus I would like to see be invested in and to continually improve on. This, so we have more of our people, their whakapapa to the whenua, making decisions about the future of their whenua.

BG: That’s great. Just circling back to the Kellogg Programme, is it something you’d recommend for others?

The Kellogg Rural Leadership Programme and digging deeper.

JR: Most definitely. It was a challenge and something that I had a peripheral understanding of. I’ve seen others go through the Programme over the years, but it was something I thought that was maybe a little bit out of my league. That’s mainly because I don’t have a strong academic background.

I pretty much left school 16, 17, and went straight into the labour workforce. That’s where I felt was my place and I really loved it there. But over the years, you come across great mentors and you build great relationships, and you start to realise that you could probably do more than you think you can.

Joining the Kellogg Programme for me was a bit of an out-of-the-box experience, putting myself out there. I’m quite introverted by nature, so having to promote myself amongst others that were also vying to be a part of the Kellogg Programme at the time I joined. It was out of my comfort zone. But then being a part of the process, being part of the cohort, you meet some great people, some awesome people that are up and coming and doing big things in the primary sector today.

You make some great mates; you make some great friends. But also, the Programme is well thought out in terms of the people that are leading it. Scott Champion comes to mind. The way that he facilitated and drove the cohort from start to finish, keeping us all on track, keeping us all to the tasks, that helps you dig deeper and brings out the best in you. If I can encourage anyone that’s thinking about wanting to do the Kellogg Programme, do it if you have the opportunity to do so.

For more information on Rural Leaders, the Nuffield New Zealand Farming Scholarships, the Kellogg Rural Leadership Programme, or the Value Chain Innovation Programme, please visit ruralleaders.co.nz

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