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Last week blogger and legendary mental health advocate Alison Fairleigh wrote a blog lamenting the demise of the rural blogger

Blogging can be very rewarding and people do it for many reasons. The live export debacle in 2010 was the launching pad for many rural bloggers passionate about telling the stories of agriculture that would mean the history of agriculture in Australia was not defined by its worst moments

This week I would like to reflect on why it is relatively easy to start with a bang and so hard to  maintain the rage that ignited the passion in the first place.

Firstly, blogging takes a huge amount of time. I have no problem justifying that time because I find it cathartic and my supporters inspirational . As an advocate for change in the agriculture sector I am heartened that my blog has a significant following. 260 people have signed up to get an email when I write a blog post and my blogs have had more than 400,000 views. They have generated mainstream media stories.  They have allowed me to attract many like-minded people in agriculture, get a clearer picture of the diversity of views in our sector, helped me identify the naysayers and I have even attracted a few “haters” who appear to live and breathe my demise.

I am constantly inspired by Winston Churchill and celebrate my enemies

Secondly Alison is right we do need an eclectic mix of rural bloggers sharing their stories and their opinions

I am a fan of dairy bloggers Milk Maid Marian and Montrose Dairy.   Whilst Marian is maintaining the rage, Graeme hasn’t blogged for over 10 months despite the motivation to get back on the horse . I love quirky stories and Alison Germon writes a blog that often makes me smile.

Ali’s tag line says “Dairy famer, mother, sewer, agvocate, collector of waifs and strays, determined to leave the world in a better place’. Her ‘about page’ shares her inspiration

This blog is my insider’s perspective on the dairy industry and the day-to-day life of a dairy farmer, mother and woman.

If you have any question, opinions or just want to say hello you can leave me a message here or follow me on Twitter.

I would much rather you asked me a question about dairy farming in Australia – the good, the bad and the ugly! – than base your views on things you read in a city newspaper or social media site.

Ali too hasn’t written a blog for a long time ( April 2015).

I also enjoy blogs about farming in harsher environments and enjoy Gus’ musings at  his Wyndham Station’s blog. My favourite blogger is Bessie Thomas. Blogging comes naturally to Bessie as like Marian she comes from the world of media. But even Bessie is struggling to maintain the momentum and hasn’t written a blog since May 2015.

Update from the Verandah is another favourite – a great example of the power of great pictures

I am also a fan of many of our non farmer agriculture advocate supporter blogs.  I love the Flourish Files  but Victoria too has been very quiet in the  space in the last 12 months

So the big question is how do we help our bloggers maintain the rage?

The answer to this question has multiple facets but today I  want to share with you some of the ways non-bloggers can help best support the people who put their hands up to blog ?

And this answer is a simple as remembering ‘everybody needs a hug sometimes’

We don’t need everybody to blog but just imagine what we could achieve if everyone supported our bloggers in some way. Whether that’s sharing their blogs on Facebook or Twitter or feeding them suggestions for great stories or occasionally sending them an email of support.

My blog is being recorded in history by the National Library as are my websites. My stories and my opinions will be a record of my perspective on agriculture’s journey  in my lifetime and I take this very seriously.

At the moment I am blogging prolifically as I am finding agriculture’s naysayers so frustrating and they are pushing my buttons. I am frustrated by the elitism in agriculture that rears its ugly head from time to time. I am frustrated by the people who say you have to be a 24/7 365 dirt under fingernails farmer to know what’s best for agriculture and make others feel unwelcome. Most of all I am furious with the people who undermine our youth and future influencers. Being frustrated is a great thing in my case because pushing my buttons for whatever reason, good and bad, means my blog is here to stay.

How to advocate and support others advocating is a workshop session for our Young Farming Champions and many have risen to the challenge.

Young people in agriculture are Facebook and Instagram fans. Some of the Young Farming Champions have set up Facebook pages to share stories about their careers in ag. Some have set up Facebook pages to share their farm stories and many others promote each other and  other people’s stories

If you follow my blog then what you do is being recorded in history. My blog is ensuring agriculture won’t be defined by my knockers – it will be defined by the wonderful men and women and young people determined to make farming in the 21^st century a success story

I have written a series of blogs over the last fortnight about what I see as the huge waste of energy that is taken up by the irrelevant debate around the apparent definition of the word “farmer”

This one is my special favourite

Some-one ( preferably male from a long heritage of farming) who owns X acres of land and grow Y crops and raises Z livestock. Must live on the farm and have 24/7 365 permanent dirt under their fingernails. Prerequiste must only  talk in public ( and particulary to goverment) about the negatives of being in the farming profession

Source AFR Real farmers don’t wear RM Williams

RESEARCH SAYS: Researchers have found that people view their work in three ways:

1. Job: Your work is a means to an end, a way to support your life outside of work.
2. Career: You focus on success or prestige.  You’re interested in moving upward, raises and titles, and the social standing that comes from the career.
3. Calling: Your work is integral to your life and your identity.  Your career is a form of self-expression and personal fulfillment.

What’s interesting is you can’t predict someone’s viewpoint based on their job title or income.  In almost every profession, from doctor to secretary, a third of workers fall into each category.  The key to feeling your job is a calling is that you consciously express your personality and your values.

Yes Agriculture the research the is backing me up – far too much time is wasted debating who is entitled to wear the hat and the RM’s and the badge of honour.

Lets embrace the ‘concrete cowboys’ the ‘desk jockeys’ the ‘pen pushers’ and anybody else who has a specialty that agriculture so desperately needs

Lets spend our spare time where it counts and that is sharing our values with the people who buy what we produce

Lets put out the Welcome signs #AusAg

Special thanks for Will Marre for putting into context so well and the brilliant piece by Fleur Anderson in Fin Review from August 2013 which I spotted when I went looking for a pix of RM Williams boots and found a better one

Rider

My opinions are my own. They may change over time as I wake up everyday to listen and learn. I value those of the bright minds I chose to surround myself with. I maintain the right to edit my posts from time to time to clarify my opinion where I feel necessary

How does it make you feel when your role in the big picture is undervalued because of stereotypes?

My regular readers will know I have strong feelings about the time and energy that goes into the debate around ‘Who has the right to call themselves a Farmer’

My personal story gives some interesting background as to why I advocate so vehemently to change the image and perception of the word “farmer” particularly at grass roots level

As my readers will know I come from a long line of dairy farmers. Seven generations in Australia and only god knows how far I can trace dairy farming back in my Irish roots.  I grew up on a mixed farm in Central NSW and nothing in my childhood except for love of farm life inspired me to seek a career in agriculture

In fact as soon as I got my HSC results I took the fastest route I could find to Sydney University and a life in the big city.

After a 25 year career in retail pharmacy circumstances found me back on the dairy farm.  Growing up my dairy farming background father had always told me “no matter what you do don’t NEVER ever learn to milk a cow”

Now in the spirit of being as multi-skilled as possible I did give it a go. I quickly realised it was not one of my strengths, nor was driving tractors and estimating how to divide the paddock  up to be strip grazed based on the number of cows  to eat the feed available and the nuances that ensure the fence is in a straight line. But this didn’t worry me because I know I had plenty of skills nobody else on our team had

And what a great team we made in those first years of our journey to turn our little dairy business into a big business brand.  But I was constantly perplexed by the notion that you weren’t a real dairy farmer unless you milked cows.

I was doing some research on our cow families earlier this week and came across this article from 2005 in the international Semex Balance Magazine on our business. See page 3/4 here .

You will note there is no mention of me. This really amused me for a number of reasons particularly as the Australian version of this story did include me.

The story was commissioned after Semex Australia boss Jim Conroy visited our farm to discuss events I was sourcing sponsorship for the 2005 Sydney Royal Easter Show. See background here and here

Whilst at the farm he also did a tour of the farm and looked at our herd. Apparently he was impressed and he commissioned wordsmith Jim Lindsay to write a story

Being the ultimate in quiet achievers Michael and Nicholas found this concept pretty daunting. There was a lot of discussion before Jim arrived about “What people will be interested in and what to say”.

So to help them feel more confident I put together a background briefing document for Jim and Jim was very grateful we had taken the time to do this. He told us there are lots of great farmers in Australia but so often he would turn up at the farm to interview them and they would find the process a struggle –  and it was clear to Michael and Nicholas they were not alone. It was also clear to Michael and Nicholas that this briefing document allowed them to talk openly and with much more confidence to Jim.  Michael and Nick were pretty chuffed with how they handled the interview and the end result. As the story shows Michael Strong cares a great deal about is beloved cows having the best  genetic foundation and  Michael and Nick were over the moon to see their story showcased to the international Holstein community

But getting back to where I fit in. I found the interview process a big learning curve. One of the things that made us unique at that point in time – was we milked 3 times daily and it was clear Jim was fascinated by this and how we made it work

He asked me which milking shift I did and he appeared mortified when I said none. He also asked Michael and Nick to change into their “milking clothes” for the photos and I put my foot down and made a very strong statement along the lines of “There will be no people with cow shit on them in photos in the press from our farm”

What was a light bulb moment for me was Jim treated my part of the story as a breakout story focusing on my beyond the farmgate activities which was fine but (and I may be wrong) this highlighted to me at the time that there was a struggle to correlate advocacy beyond the farmgate with business success behind it

Over the last ten years our story has featured much more widely in mainstream press than rural press and the focus has been on my advocacy work and nobody was happier to get out of the limelight than Michael and Nicholas.

My interaction with mainstream journalists has shown me a lot of things. Firstly the wider community couldn’t care less whether I milk cows or not. The wider community was excited to see women farmers in the press, they were excited to hear that young people were passionate about agriculture, they were excited that farmers were telling positive stories and they especially loved stories about people debunking the stereotype. In our region they were particularly excited that their beloved local dairy industry (yes our community loves it dairy farmers) was not a sunset industry and I was constantly asked to talk about how the community can best support its farmers.

I am so passionate in this space because I know from great experience that grass roots agriculture is doing itself a great disservice by not taking every opportunity it can to promote the diversity of people who are attracted to our sector and those  who  have the time, capacity and capability to promote it in a way that resonates with our audience

In fact it breaks my heart and it will bring tears to my eyes when these people are dismissed because they don’t have 365 “dirt under their fingernails”

Yes we need people doing the hard yards with dirt under their fingernails 365 .  Our 365 day farmers have such great stories to tell  but not everyone is a lucky as Nicholas and Michael to have some-one on their team who can find the tools to help them have the confidence to do it.

Too often I hear people say “farmers can be their own worst enemy ” and in the total waste of space debate around who has the right to call themselves a ‘farmer’ I tend to agree

We also need farmers  who list ‘farmer’ as part of a list of multi-faceted profession career pathway. I will go so far as to say these farmers could just be agriculture’s silver bullet.

The question is will the grass roots embraces them before its too late ?

BTW to me nobody reinforces my point of view better that one of Australian agriculture’s bravest and most influential leaders of the 21st Century Rick Farley who the SMH even listed “actor’ and Nimbin hippie as part of the long list of credentials he bought to the sector

Agriculture cant have it both ways. We cant celebrate people like Rick and Mick Keogh and Andrew Campbell  and Barry Irvin whilst at the same time dismissing the potential of, and not encouraging  our new wave of future influencers

Further Reading

Great article on leadership mindset in Canada here 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Image source

In a previous post I asked the question. Who decreed Michael Pollan an expert on how we should produce food? The answer to that question is the growing amount of people in the community who are concerned about modern farming practices and if Michael Pollan’s celebrity status is an indicator, that is a lot of people

Michael Pollan lists his profession as journalist and author

Quoting from his press kit

For the past twenty-five years, Michael Pollan has been writing books and articles about the places where nature and culture intersect: on our plates, in our farms and gardens, and in the built environment

As a testimonial to his celebrity status Michael  Pollan was named in the 2010 TIME 100, the magazine’s annual list of the world’s 100 most influential people. In 2009 he was named by Newsweek as one of the top 10 “New Thought Leaders.”

There is no denying he is highly successful at what he does and that is because he has captured the hearts and minds of the growing number of people who share his values

I too share a lot of Michael Pollan’s values about how I would like to see food produced and so do a lot of farmers. What Michael seems to fail to understand is no matter what values he shares with farmers they (farmers) cannot continue to produce food unless they can run profitable businesses? Running a profitable farming business in the 21^st century is a constant challenge. No other business sector has a volatility index higher than agriculture. It’s a constant battle of managing things outside their control , whether that be the challenges of mother nature or the volatility of input costs and output prices and chasing that every elusive dream of a level playing field where all the moons align to deliver a fair return

It is possible (and I am happy to be corrected) that Michael Pollan has as little knowledge about hands on commercial agriculture as Paris Hilton.

I believe this because if  Michael Pollan had a strong knowledge of commercial agriculture he would be aware of the gap between the idealism he promotes and the reality of what farmers can achieve in a climate where the price of food does not reflect its true value. If this is the case then like Paris Hilton he is famous for being famous.

What concerns me most about the Michael Pollan model of advocay is the tendency to demonise modern agricultural practices to get the point across rather recognising farmers do share similar values. I would love instead to see an ethos an advocacy model that recommends putting a true value price on food. Equally an advocy model that encourages farmers to  work side by side with the community to get the best outcomes for the community and the environment (people, animals and the landscape) that supports the production of food we eat and the clothes we wear.

In saying this I believe we should never underestimate the value of the “celebrity expert “ Agriculture has a great deal to learn from people like Michael Pollan.  We desperately need charismatic and passionate advocates who also have considerable expertise in the realities of commercial agriculture. I have written about this in the past using Rosemary Stanton as an example  

I recently threw out the following question for comment ‘Who would Australian agriculture put forward to have a podium discussion  with Michael Pollan on food production?” As expected a list of highly credible people where put forward.

Whilst expertise is the foundation –  could any of these people be confident they would capture the hearts and minds of the community as well as Michael Pollan does? If Tony Jones Q&A team had Michael Pollan on a panel would they even know where to look to find an expert on Australian agriculture to add balance to the discussion?   If my past experience is anything to go by the person who the Q&A team would identify would be Rosemary Stanton.If may even be Lyn White

The answer to this problem is relatively simple. Agriculture needs people with ‘celebrity status’. ‘Celebrity status ‘achieved because they have a recognised area of expertise plus the  knowledge and skills sets and the charisma to attract mainstream media and capture the hearts and minds of its key audiences.

I agree with Zoe Routh from Inner Compass

“The challenge for agriculture is to be leading the public conversation about sustainable, ethical and responsible farming practices in industrial and global contexts. Decisions in agriculture that affect the supply system are largely being driven by large retailers, corporate suppliers and consumers, not government regulation. This affects the style and approach of leadership interventions, needing a more business and community orientation. ”

Agriculture remains a political force due to its representation in rural and remote areas, as well as for its economic power. However, advocacy for the long-term viability of the sector is largely left to each industry’s respective agencies. Zoe Routh Inner Compass.

Colin Bettles recently wrote an opinion piece  about the collapse of agripolitics  (Dec 19, 2015,   He cites the growing pressure to manage on farm issues and economic viability as a key priority. Australian farmers seem reluctant to equate advocacy and agri-politics to economic success of their sector, unlike their American counterparts.

Effective advocacy that resonates with the community is is why I founded Art4Agriculture and its foundation programs the Young Farming Champions  and its aligned in schools program The Archibull Prize which share the following aims:

• To promote understanding and appreciation of the agricultural sector in the community and with consumers.
• To promote positive perceptions of 21st century agriculture in the broader community, in effect garnering social license for agricultural practises and activity.
• Develop the thinking and confidence of young agricultural professionals and future influencers to share their stories and inspire others to share their vision and follow their career pathway .

Recent independent valuations have shown both of these programs are kicking big goals. In particular I am very excited the program is achieving the objective that is close to my heart and this is developing the capacity of young people in the agriculture sector to stand up and express an opinion based on personal expertise and perspective. The program equips and prepares the participants for that very experience: of standing up to be counted, even in difficult circumstances. This is viewed by the experts as a critical capacity and breakthrough ability for this stage of their early leadership development.

But these initiatives are just a starting point. The Young Farming Champions program works with 18-30 year olds and The Archibull Prize reaches schools students directly and the community indirectly through the media and exhibitions

Encouraging integrated advocacy with an economic focus will be key to many industries’ futures.  But who is investing in building these capabilities in agriculture’s 30 plus age groups who are already seen as industry leaders and whose life experiences can bring so much to the conversation?

I am confident that everyone in agriculture agrees it is pivotal agriculture be part of the conversation. But when Rosemary Stanton and Lyn White continue to be perceived by the wider community to be “experts” in  sustainable food production and animal welfare practices in the media  I think it’s pretty clear we need to get on the multi pronged advocacy train with our American farmer counterparts. The American model sees  the food and fibre system investing in people advocacy skills using people who represent the wide diversity of the system that includes for example young farmers, women, the Indigenous community, and large corporate companies- all of whom make up the modern agriculture sector

The question remains are we up for the challenge and if so who is going to lead the charge? I would like to think that it will be farmers.

 

 

 

 

 

The big idea to crowd fund and send Young Farming Champions Josh Gilbert and Anika Molesworth to Paris COP21 was inspired by a two day workshop in the Blue Mountains in August 2015 that bought together likeminded farmers many of whom told their stories for the Planet to Plate Cookbook

We made the decision to provide this too good to miss opportunity to fast forward the personal and professional development of two young people from the agriculture sector for multiple reasons

We had plenty of young talent to choose from but ultimately it came down to the fact that Josh and Anika attended the Blue Mountains workshop and shared both the ethos of the people who were working behind the scenes and those in the wider community who would be interested in contributing to a crowd funding campaign

Josh and Anika on SBS – Source 

And fast forwarded they were. The interest in their trip, why they were going and what they learnt was phenomenal – from mainstream TV, Radio, print and online media, government, the research, development, extension and outreach and corporate sectors and the wider community alike

As we put the final touches on the official report on Josh and Anika’s trip to ParisCOP21 I can’t help but wonder what history will say about their experience.  Whilst young people in agriculture don’t have a monopoly on vision, passion and commitment they do have more time to ‘change the world’.  Will this be the watershed moment that defined the future for agriculture in this country?

On behalf of the network of Australian farmers and their supporters who care about the impact of climate change on agriculture and welcome other farmers to join them as they communicate, learn together, support each other and build this network, to help Australia be part of the climate change solution I salute Josh and Anika

We threw you in the deep end and you rose to the challenge beyond our wildest dreams. I look forward to Australian agriculture, farmers everywhere and the community walking side by side with you as we forge a bright future for agriculture and the world at large,

 

 

 

Whilst some of those in agriculture spend their time quibbling over the definition of the word farmer the people who buy what farmers produce are bombarded with information about how our food is produced and the way it “should be produced”.  Sometimes from credible sources and more often than not from people who have well meaning ideals but their observations are so generalised they do more harm than good

As some-one who comes from seven generations of farming families it so frustrates me that agriculture lets other people tell its story. People like Michael Pollan who make a fortune out of telling his version of agriculture’s story

I found this recent article fascinating I watched Michael Pollan’s new fantasy “In Defense of Food” so you don’t have to.

Some interesting reflections include

Are simplicity and good health really located in the good old days? I don’t think so. The way Pollan idealizes nature and the past is pure fantasy. He thinks life would be better if we ate food cooked entirely from scratch. Better for whom?

and

For some reason, food crusaders like Pollan and Kass continue to cling to the mythology of an idealized past. What’s moderate about valorizing organic produce, when we know that organic is less efficient, more expensive, not any more nutritious or pesticide-free? Why cling to fantasies about the past without embracing the technologies that might make for a healthier future?

Today  it seems anyone can call themselves an expert on what we should eat and how we should farm. Apparently this starts with farming like we did 60 years ago. In Australia this is the era when farmers cut down every tree in their way and the rotary hoe and the lets plough it up and plough it up again mentality was mainstream thinking .

How and why is it that agriculture lets this happen? Seriously farming like we did 60 years ago I don’t think so.

Its time agriculture asked itself where are our credible celebrity farmer faces? People who can be seen as the rationale voices, people that the media call up because they can discuss the key issues and call people like Michael Pollan out on the falsehoods they perpetuate

I think its time we got over-ourselves and stopped debating the definition of farmer  and started supporting our credible celebrity  farmers – they may just be our saving grace

This is a very interesting Ted talk from Robert Saik asking the question “Will agriculture be allowed to feed the world”

Blurb from Ted

Robert Saik, CEO of The Agri-Trend Group of Companies is a Professional Agrologist and a Certified Agricultural Consultant. As founder of The Agri-Trend Group, Robert has been involved in the development of many new business processes and spearheaded several advancements in technology integration in agriculture. Agri-Trend has been nominated one of Canada’s 2012 Top 50 Best Managed Companies and was recognized by Venture Magazine as one of Alberta’s 2013 top 25 Most Innovative Organizations. Robert is a Director of Westerner Park, 2014-2015 Chairman of Agri-Trade Show, past Director of the Red Deer Chamber of Commerce, and serves on The Red Deer Chamber of Commerce Ag Policy Committee as well as Adviser to The Canadian Management Council, The Farm Progress Show and The Red Deer College.
In July 2014, Robert was appointed by the Premier of the Province of Alberta to the Innovation Council, a think-tank on technology integration and innovation leadership. He is a passion keynote speaker addressing audiences on the importance of modern agriculture. He is also the author of the Amazon bestseller, “The Agriculture Manifesto” – 10 Key Drivers That Will Shape Agriculture in the Next Decade.

If you want the right to call yourself a doctor of medicine – you need to have done the hard yards at Uni and tick mega multiple boxes post passing your degree

It’s the same with the majority of white collar professions

If you want to call yourself a farmer there are no legal restrictions, no degrees necessary and in reality no boxes you need to tick and some very interesting dictionary definitions

In the field of agriculture the definition of ‘farmer’ is defined by the dictionary of public opinion and those opinions are very diverse

What I know is agriculture doesn’t need more ad nauseam  debate around the definition of the word ‘farmer’. Agriculture needs people with passion and energy. It needs big picture thinkers, its needs bright minds.  Agriculture needs people focused on the greater good.

For me success, for the agriculture sector will be built around ideas, not people. Its time to embrace the notion you don’t have to have dirt under your finger nails and callouses and grey hair and bad knees to have the best interests of agriculture at heart.

There are a couple of great quotes that come to mind

“It’s not who you are underneath, it’s what you do that defines you.”

And

‘Nobody remembers what you meant to do. They only remember what you do.”

 

Here is a great example of the diversity of people who have earned the right to call themselves a farmer reprinted from Leading Agriculture Dec 2015

 FARMER BRON – STANDING UP FOR BEEF

 BRONWYN ROBERTS, AKA FARMER BRON, IS LEADING THE WAY IN THE PROMOTION OF THE AUSTRALIAN BEEF INDUSTRY.

At a packed gala dinner – men in suits, women bejeweled – Farmer Bron takes the stage. Within moments the crowd is engaged, leaning forward in their seats as this confident young woman entertains and educates. She talks fervently of beef, of grazing management and of long days spent fencing. She pays homage to the generations who came before her and speaks of the bright future she envisages for the red meat industry. Ending to hearty applause Bronwyn Roberts is congratulated on her presentation. “Oh, no, no, no’” she laughs, “that’s not me up there, that’s Farmer Bron.” In an instant she has revealed a strength of character that has carried her from shy school girl to an award-winning advocate of Australian agriculture.

Bronwyn can trace a farming heritage back 500 years to English soils and since 1855 the Comiskey surname of her mother has been synonymous with Australian agriculture. “I’m related to half of central Queensland,” she jokes as she tells of growing up in Emerald where her parents balanced a dual lifestyle of on and off-farm employment. Farming was truly in her blood and at the end of high school she was keen to pursue a career in agriculture, but her dreams were smothered. “Mum and Dad didn’t want me to get into ag. They didn’t see a future in it, especially for a girl. There was also pressure from school. I was expected to do the university course I was smart enough to get into – not to waste my smarts on ag. Now I think that’s all a load of crap,” she says forcefully.

Bowing to the pressure Bronwyn commenced a geology degree. And then quit. She followed her heart back to Emerald – a traineeship at the saleyards, a Diploma in Agriculture from the Emerald Agricultural College, and then falling on her feet with a job as a grazing management officer. Bronwyn Roberts was re-directing her career to where she wanted it to go.

In 2002 Bronwyn’s parents bought “Barngo”, a 5,500 acre conventional cropping property at Capella, and set about converting it to a beef operation. The timing was perfect. “I was 19, knew what I wanted, was ready to learn and my Mum and Dad gave me the opportunity to go out and try new things and bring them home.” In the heat, the dust and the drought she worked alongside her father building fences, watering points and yards. “Dad’s thinking was more practical – how to get cattle to yards and off the property – whereas I was keen to fence for rotational grazing. I mostly had wins,” she says with satisfaction and pride. For twelve years Barngo was Bronwyn’s training ground. She attended field days, completed a Diploma of Conservation and Land Management and took all her new skills home. “Sometimes I surprised myself, but I definitely surprised Dad.”

Grazing management on Barngo coincided with Bronwyn’s “town job” with Fitzroy Basin Association Inc. As a grazing management officer she increased her knowledge base by working with farmers throughout central QLD, where the waterways flow to the Great Barrier Reef, to improve their practices. Although she sees no silver bullet for the regeneration of grasslands she is encouraged by the work of holistic operators, whether large or small, or whether for management or regeneration. “The principles of any grazing system are the same. It’s all about rest and recovery and that’s what we were trying to achieve at Barngo.”

By 2012 Bronwyn was ready for a new challenge. While procrastinating over starting a university degree in agricultural science, she discovered Art4Agriculture’s Young Farming Champions Program and thought “this looks pretty cool.” She found the training fantastic and for two years worked with schools in QLD and NSW as part of the Archibull Prize, but most importantly the program spawned Farmer Bron. “I am actually an introverted person and quite shy but I’ve created this character out of Art4Agriculture who can easily get up and talk to people. She is my alter ego.” Farmer Bron has plenty to say. She runs a Facebook page, tweets on Twitter and is fast becoming the young face standing up for the beef industry. “The doors Art4Agriculture opened for me were amazing and it sent me in a new direction,” she says.

A year later the accolades were flowing. She was crowned the AgForce Emerging Leader at the QLD Red Meat Awards, represented Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA) at corporate events and was the keynote speaker at the Marcus Oldham Rural Leadership awards dinner.

John Gunthorpe, chairman of the Australian Beef Industry Foundation (ABIF) first met Bronwyn at the Marcus Oldham dinner. “I was very impressed with her verbal presentation and she is a lovely person and a great communicator,” he says. So impressed was he, Bronwyn is now a director of ABIF and manages its website and social media.

While her leadership and advocacy roles were flourishing changes were taking place at Barngo. “I had always known Barngo wouldn’t sustain a second generation and it was Mum and Dad’s superannuation. When it was put on the market in 2014 I had everyone and anyone suggesting I take it on, but no – it was their place. They bought it, they built it up, they weren’t handed anything – and I’ve got my lifetime to do the same,” Bronwyn says with a conviction rich and rare.

Farmer Bron has become a farmless farmer, a term John dislikes. “It doesn’t matter where Bron lives. The work she does for the Fitzroy Basin and the beef industry is critically important. She has earned the right to call herself a farmer.” Bronwyn concurs. “I’ve got a foot in both camps. I consider myself as being off the land even though I didn’t live there and although I may never be a full-time farmer I don’t want to either. I enjoy this dual-lifestyle and the part I can play in education.”

These are strong sentiments, borne of that strength of character, which now sees Bronwyn Roberts – and Farmer Bron – on the national stage standing up for a beef industry she has so much belief in. She has a lifetime to achieve, and it will be a lifetime well worth watching.

So who has the right to call themselves a farmer? Does it really matter? Is the debate even worth oxygen.? Its the 21st century we have moved on from the notion that farming is all mud and flies – embrace the new way of smart farming. Embrace people in the agriculture sector who have the image, the will and the capacity to ensure agriculture is the profitable, innovative and dynamic place that the world wants to partner with

I am sure you will agree Bron can hang out the shingle “Farmer” and the agriculture sector everywhere will celebrate

 

 

Colin Bettles Canberra Comment this week The Changing Style of Agri-politics is creating a lot of comment on twitter and so it should

An excellent piece that puts the elephant in the room that is leadership capacity (or perceived lack of) in agriculture in the spotlight where it needs to stay until we address it and rectify it

Colin begins by lamenting what he sees as the end of the era of

crusty old agri-politicians in tweed jackets who once spear-headed Australian farming…… who sparred like gladiators on regional news pages and radio airwaves over die in the ditch issues ……. or perhaps what I’m really lamenting is the diminished opportunity to write such sensational stories.

 Colin’s further reflections go well beyond his desire to write more sensational stories and he makes a lot of very serious observations that all need to be addressed

A number of people have also tweeted Andrew Campbell’s piece in The Conversation from 2012 on Rick Farley.  What happened to brave leaders? A look at the life of Rick Farley. I read the biography on Rick Farley that prompted Andrew’s article.  I loved it.

Andrew as lucky enough to be part of team Farley and he reflects on the qualities that made Rick’s leadership style a success

Farley brought competing interests together, listened deeply and patiently, worked from clear principles, helped people to understand each other’s perspective and to find common ground, and often delivered results that everyone could live with. Farley usually negotiated deals that represented real progress, but more importantly, that left a legacy of better relations between competing interests. Invariably, he earned the respect, trust and admiration of those he worked with.

As a farm industry leader, Farley often brokered unexpected alliances. He positioned the NFF in principled, leading positions in national debates on economic reform, land management and native title. Farley ensured that the NFF was a crucial player in the Mabo debate rather than remaining outside and damning the whole process like the Coalition and the mining industry.

My reply to this series of tweets was “we do have brave leaders, what we don’t have is 21^st century thinking” and the question that was then asked is what did I mean by this

A little bit of background on my expertise in this space

In the last 10 years I had a ‘career change’ moving from a management job in retail to being a 24/7 farmer and also moved in agri-politics circles and representative roles both and state and federal level and I can definitely understand why young people who put their toe in the water in the agri-politcs space more often than not then run for the hills

Why do I say this?

Firstly, I moved from a job that paid very well to a role that at times put severe strain on the purse strings and if you are going to do things for love then its pivotal it be good for the soul. It certainly wasn’t good for my soul and that is why so many of our smart farmers don’t do it.

There are lots of reasons for this beyond the financial cost involved and many of my thoughts may be different to others

As a start I don’t believe the current agri-politics model doesn’t work anymore for multiple reasons

Firstly, as Colin says

An alleged contributor to the rate of apparent agri-political decline has been the financial and emotional strain placed on representatives in trying to balance running a commercial farm-business and still serve family needs, while mostly volunteering their time to address altruistic industry needs.

And then, having sacrificed valuable hours and dollars to serve industry’s big picture causes, they suffer multiple face-palms from fellow farmers or industry commentators who do little more than grumble from the sidelines.

Secondly agriculture is very different to what it was 30 years. Farming in the 21^st century is very specialised. Whether you are an organic or conventional farmer, whether you believe native vegetation laws are a good thing or an impost, whether you are a dryland farmer or an irrigator. In the dairy industry whether you supply the export market or the domestic market or feed TMR and house your cows or have a pasture based system.

We are even precious about the word farmer. We have graziers, pastoralists, grain fed or grass fed beef producers and wool producers, cotton growers et al

These diverse farming systems and specialisation mean today farmers know a great deal about their industry and their farming system and bugger all about other industries and their farming systems.

This leads to representative farmers coming to the policy making table with blinkered views. This leads to a focus on the best outcomes for their individual businesses and the farming environment they operate in.

Pot kettle black methinks when the farming sector’s common opinion is its consumers that need educating about agriculture. Maybe we should start in our own backyards first. Until we do our farmer representative committees will continue in the main to consist of farmers who struggle to come to grips with understanding that what we need is big picture thinking, holistic mindsets and outcomes that are good for the agriculture sector as a whole.

Thirdly like Gregor Heard I too have firsthand experience that the agri-political succession planning has largely failed.

His theory suggests young farmers have been repeatedly denied opportunities to advance through representative channels due to initiative-blocking by older, conservative, agri-political hacks.

Maybe that’s just a subtle way of saying up-and-comers with talent and initiative have subsequently shown-up and threatened others already sitting on various agri-political thrones, resulting in Machiavellian skills being used to kill-off the challengers.

……….

Another suggested reason for this alleged agri-political deficit has been the younger generation’s disenchantment with fractured representative structures and in-fighting of various leaders; especially when they’re belting the living stuffing out of each other in the national press, with gusto. Source

 

Yes, indeed we have to be realistic and acknowledge the current model isn’t conducive to developing future influencers.   On top of this staff who work for State Farming Organisation (SFO’s) and National bodies are inundated with white papers, green papers, senate reviews, state government reviews, water policy reviews, animal welfare policy reviews et al – it never stops.

I am yet to sit on a farmer committee who has done a strategic plan, identified their vision and passion and the projects they want to work on. We are continually trying to make good decisions in the dark and I don’t see light at the end of the tunnel.

As Gregor says we shouldn’t be surprised that 24/7 farmers of all age groups who are active beyond the farmgate are attracted to progressive farmer/producer/grower groups that provide an environment that allows farmers who share a common vision and commitment to interact and learn from experts and each other.

This is where the 21^st century thinking comes in. A lot of the problems we have we share with the rest of the world

These days’ community surveys continually show people are self-absorbed and have blinkered views. Front of mind is them and their families and the income that supports their lifestyle.

There is also no shortage of people in the corporate world who feel threatened by youth or have misogynistic views about women in leadership roles.

And youth today want different things. See previous post here. Whilst they are passionate about farming they see the value of a higher education, they understand the importance of having a world view, coming back to the farm with a corporate mindset, the need to have a secure complementary incomes to support the volatile world of farming. They understand why Rick Farley achieved so much through his collaboration and cohesion model .

Ultimately no matter how brave you are you can’t be a brave leader in isolation. Rick Farley was surrounded by thought leaders

I believe there are many people in agriculture like me who think that life is for learning, that people want to grow, they want to be part of a success story.

This starts with listening to people like Mick Keogh and doing what he says

“Agriculture urgently needs to communicate its very positive potential to the Australian community instead of constantly emphasising its problems,”

We also need to communicate this to each other

If we are going to achieve this, then we have to turn the way agriculture thinks and acts on head

We have to stop this mindset of only telling government what we don’t want.

We have to learn (and want to) take the solutions to table.

We have to learn how to take the rest of the supply chain with us.

We have to create a leadership environment young people want to be part of and can thrive in.

We have to genuinely want to be part of a success story.

We have to use the same thinking and methods that the 21^st century corporate  world uses to build successful business.

Looking forward to the feedback and further suggestions this post will generate

Some further observations from the bright mind of Professor Shaun Coffey  Purpose is the game of champions, and subservience to purpose is a proven path to success

Leadership guru Zoe Routh put the big picture advocacy issues beautifully in a recent evaluation of the Young Farming Champions program

1. Social trends
   Globally, urbanisation is on the increase. This means that young people are seeking employment in the cities rather than pursuing a career in agriculture. As a result, the agricultural sector is ageing considerably. There is also a rising trend of retirees choosing rural
   retirement options. (see “Rural Migration Trends and Drivers – Networked Rural Councils Program, December 14, 2012). Rural areas and industries are being populated and serviced by an ever-increasing ageing population. Promoting agriculture as a viable and fulfilling career option is critical to the sector’s and various rural regions’ future survival.
   Social media is also increasing the need for transparency for all organisations. Perceived ethical transgressions or wrong-doings are broadcast immediately around the world. Social expectations of business, rural or otherwise, is that they must meet social expectations of what is ethical. The challenge for agriculture is to be leading the public conversation about sustainable, ethical and responsible farming practices in industrial and global contexts.
2. Technological trends
   Technology has advanced farming practices considerably. Many agricultural professionals attend college and university before embarking on agricultural businesses. Running a farm is
   now far more than ever an advanced and sophisticated scientific and technological enterprise. This story of agriculture is missing in the mainstream.
3. Economic
   Agriculture is big business. Corporate farming dominates and now foreign investment in agricultural holdings is also growing. Developing Australian stewardship and advocacy for its
   own food and fibre production will help protect one of the nation’s key assets long-term.
4. Environmental
   Climate change and drought pressures continue to apply pressure on farming communities. Water access and use continues to be a contested topic amongst various stakeholders. Environment variability affects mental health of many farmers, putting pressure on the region’s resilience.
5. Political
   Agriculture remains a political force due to its representation in rural and remote areas, as well as for its economic power. However, advocacy for the long-term viability of the sector is largely left to each industry’s respective agencies.
   Colin Bettle also wrote about the collapse of agripolitics (Dec 19, 2015, ). He cites the growing pressure to manage on farm issues and economic viability as a key priority. Australian farmers seem reluctant to equate advocacy and agri-politics to economic success of their sector, unlike their American counterparts.
   Encouraging integrated advocacy with an economic focus will be key to many industries’ futures.
   Decisions in agriculture that affect the supply system are largely being driven by large corporate suppliers and consumers, not government regulation. This affects the style and approach of leadership interventions, needing a more business and community orientation.

 

 

 

Johnny Depp might up picked up the Black Stump awards: Dill of the Year Award but I am giving Barnaby Joyce our genius “weird sweaty big-gutted man“ ( Johnny’s words not mine) the Communications Coup Wizard Award for 2015 for how he handled the Boo and Pistol smuggling case.

Such is the NSW Department of Primary Industries focus on biosecurity risks and concern it had fallen under the radar for most Australians they partnered with The Archibull Prize in 2015 to roll out a Biosecurity Competition in NSW Schools participating in the program

And just to show you how right they were to be concerned that “biosecurity” was a foreign concept for both adults and young people between 12 and 18 the following is an extract from the schools ‘entry and exit surveys evaluation

When they began The Archibull Prize only 38% of high school students (i.e. 123 of 327) had heard about biosecurity. Most of the Primary and High School teachers had (i.e. 86%, 30 of 35 teachers). Whilst 265 of the high school students offered an explanation for biosecurity, only 23 of these were acceptable; with 18 (of 35 teachers) explanations also being acceptable.

Awareness of biosecurity amongst High Schools students and their teachers on beginning The Archibull Prize, 2015

	High School Students		Primary Teachers		High School Teachers		Total teachers
Answer Options	%	Number	%	Number	%	Number	%	Number
Yes	38%	123	77%	10	91%	20	86%	30
No	62%	204	23%	3	9%	2	14%	5
answered question		327		13		22		35
skipped question		12		1		0		1
Attempted an explanation	81%	265		13		22		35
Acceptable explanation given		23		4		14		18

At the end of their projects the majority of high school students (94%, 197) reported having heard about biosecurity. All the students (100%, 207) chose the correct answer for the definition of biosecurity i.e. the protection of the economy, environment and community from the negative impacts of pests, diseases, weeds and contaminants. A majority of students (72%, 150) correctly identified biosecurity practices; and considered that biosecurity is everyone’s responsibility (85%, 178). A further 191 students offered their understandings of what ‘biosecurity is a shared responsibility’ means. These results are a significant shift in awareness of biosecurity as a result of participation in The Archibull Prize.

 Whilst the primary school students were not involved in the biosecurity competition and were not asked the question in the program entry and exit survey it was obvious from their artworks and the blogs  they too had a phenomenal understanding of risks and their role in mitigating them as a result of participating in The Archibull Prize

Barnaby Joyce’s style and language and no-nonsense reaction to Johnny Depp’s wife bypassing the quarantine process when she ‘smuggled’  their dogs into Australia earlier in the year put Australia’s tough stance on biosecurity on the world stage and sent a very strong message globally

When Barnaby ordered his dog’s out and charged him with smuggling offences Johnny Depp continued to give biosecurity considerable oxygen keeping it front and centre by treating it as a joke even going so far as to say he had eaten his dogs. The court case will continue the good fight 

Well done Barnaby confident you were happy to take the “weird sweaty big-gutted man“  comment on the chin for team Australia and the “biosecurity is a shared responsibility” cause

Loving this tweet by Kerry Anderson with some reverse kudos for Johnny

BTW Hurlstone Agricultural High School took out both best class entry and best student entry in The Archibull Prize 2015. Going forward Hurlstone is putting biosecurity on the curriculum and making it an assessment task ensuring ‘Biosecurity” is a foreign concept no longer

Below are the winning entries

Best Class Entry

Best Student Entry

Also blogged here