'Yes' factor keeps farmer busy off-farm

Oxford farmer Cameron Henderson plans to use his Nuffield Scholarship to explore what ``valued-added'' may mean on-farm. Photo: Supplied
Oxford farmer Cameron Henderson plans to use his Nuffield Scholarship to explore what ``valued-added'' may mean on-farm. Photo: Supplied
Saying ''yes'' has led to some ''pretty intense, but exciting'' off-farm challenges for Cameron Henderson.

Mr Henderson has been accepted for a Nuffield Scholarship, which he plans to juggle on top of his roles as Federated Farmers North Canterbury president, a Waimakariri Zone Committee member and running a 750-cow dairy farm near Oxford.

''I took the philosophy a wee while ago that I would say 'yes' to every opportunity off the farm that came along. But it's probably getting to the point where I need to rein it in a bit,'' he said.

The Nuffield Scholarship period is between March and June, which, barring any natural disasters, should be a quieter period both on- and off-farm, he said.

''The ZIPA (Zone Implementation Plan Addendum) will be in the planners' hands by then and I have a good bunch of guys working for me on the farm, so they will be fine.''

The scholarship would involve considerable time off-farm, including a six week tour around the world, including central and South America, the United States and Ireland, before a period of self-directed study which would involve further travel, which was largely paid for.

While he had yet to decide what his project would cover, Mr Henderson said he was interested in exploring what ''valued-added'' meant on-farm and how it might impact on farming businesses.

''All farmers will benefit from adopting the latest innovative practices on farm and encouraging others to do the same.

''The faster we can encourage farming to evolve, the less regulatory and public pressure we will have to endure.''

But there needed to be some consideration of what the costs and impacts were and ''would farmers be willing to accept that'', he said.

''I hope to look at successful value-added companies around the world and see what makes them successful and to explore their relationships with suppliers and buyers.

''And then I can present it back to farmers and fill in that reality aspect which is missing at the moment.''

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