Head Shepherd

Mark Ferguson

Mark Ferguson from neXtgen Agri brings you the latest in livestock, genetics, innovation and technology. We focus on sheep and beef farming in Australia and New Zealand, and the people doing great things in those industries. To learn more about neXtgen Agri, visit www.nextgenagri.com. 

  1. Building resilient farming businesses to keep up with global demand, with Richard Green

    hace 17 h

    Building resilient farming businesses to keep up with global demand, with Richard Green

    How do Australian and New Zealand farmers stay competitive when the rest of the world is changing faster than ever? For our guest this week, Richard Green, it starts by accepting that yesterday's thinking will not solve tomorrow's problems. "It frustrates the hell out of me when I hear us talk about 'We're the best farmers in the world.'" explains Richard. "And we may have been, but that's a moment in time. There's so much change, progress and disruption happening around the world. We're only as good as how we were yesterday, and every day we've got to improve." Richard's recent travels gave him new insight into where the world and the red meat sector are going. He explains the concept of a hybrid consumer where some people are shopping for experiences and absolute luxury... And then there are the "normal" people who shop at the value end who still want quality, but want as much value within that as possible. And, as Richard explains, the "middle" has been completely hollowed out.  "Commit to volume and efficiency, or commit to a genuine premium value proposition. Half-measures won't cut it." explains Richard. "If you're competing on a commodity, compete hard and be exceptional at it. If you're not, build a differentiated supply chain with genuine partners - offshore, in-market, and at the processing end." He explains how the South American commodity powerhouses have been doing it well, by scaling their surpluses into global supply chains and manufacturing, and how we could take some lessons from them.  Mark and Richard also cover Cultivate Ventures, the growth fund Richard chairs. Born partly from a goal he set himself, Richard realised money made in the industry wasn't going to flow to the farmers, it was going to flow to where the capital returns- aka the investors.. So they decided they had to invest in these disruptive businesses to ensure farmers got their share of the success.  They finish the conversation discussing the relationship between physical challenge and business mindset. Richard is no stranger to an intense physical challenge. He has run the Kepler, one of New Zealand's great walks (that usually takes 3 days) in a day, and ridden the length of both islands by bike. "If I'm challenging myself physically, it helps me be more positive about life..." he explains. "It just realises that you are as an individual capable of a lot more, and if you realise that, then it helps you drive your businesses to be capable of a lot more too." Head Shepherd is brought to you by neXtgen Agri International Limited.  We help livestock farmers get the most out of the genetics they farm with. Get in touch with us if you would like to hear more about how we can help you do what you do best: info@nextgenagri.com. Thanks to our sponsors at MSD Animal Health and Allflex, Heiniger Australia and New Zealand, and ProWay Livestock Equipment. Please consider them when making product choices, as they are instrumental in enabling us to bring you this podcast each week. Check out the MSD range HERE Check out Allflex products HERE Check out Heiniger's product range HERE Check out ProWay's product range HERE

    47 min

  2. 21 jun

    Growing grass for sheep, stadiums and everything in between with George Fell

    Long before performance recording became mainstream, George Fell's grandfather was building a sheep breeding programme around growth, efficiency and measured performance on pasture. Unable to find the genetics he wanted, he created them himself. Today, that same mindset runs through everything at Fell's Yorkshire farming business. Alongside the Meatlinc sheep breeding programme, the family operates a diverse farming enterprise that includes Premier League-level turf production, free-range eggs and dairy beef finishing. In this episode, George joins Mark to discuss the origins of the Meatlinc breed, the role performance recording has played in its development, and the current state of the UK sheep industry. They also discuss how a sheep breeding business evolved into one of the UK's leading turf producers and why the same principles of performance and continuous improvement underpin both enterprises. George is also Chair of the Sheep Breeders Round Table and discusses this year's conference, where Mark will be a guest speaker. UK Sheep Breeders Roundtable Conference 2026 Head Shepherd is brought to you by neXtgen Agri International Limited.  We help livestock farmers get the most out of the genetics they farm with. Get in touch with us if you would like to hear more about how we can help you do what you do best: info@nextgenagri.com. Thanks to our sponsors at MSD Animal Health and Allflex, Heiniger Australia and New Zealand, and ProWay Livestock Equipment. Please consider them when making product choices, as they are instrumental in enabling us to bring you this podcast each week. Check out the MSD range HERE Check out Allflex products HERE Check out Heiniger's product range HERE Check out ProWay's product range HERE

    46 min
  3. Turning grass into money - this time with cattle, with Joe Kerin

    14 jun

    Turning grass into money - this time with cattle, with Joe Kerin

    What does a cow actually cost to run? At Kerin Ag, every kilogram of utilisable feed has a value attached to it. That allows Joe Kerin and the team to measure whether an animal is genuinely paying its way. In this episode, Joe joins Mark to discuss how putting a dollar value on each kilogram of grass they grow led them to choose Wagyu over Angus. As any Kerin would, Joe has done the numbers and compared Wagyu cows with larger recipient cows, based on the weaning weight of their calves relative to the kg of dry matter consumed by the cows. And, as predicted, the moderate-sized cow is far more efficient than the larger Angus X recipients.  Joe also discusses the role of genomics in Wagyu breeding. As they are a breed with a very narrow gene pool and are bred for carcass-related attributes, genomics is incredibly important, and Joe utilises it to its fullest. Tune in to learn how to turn grass into money - this time with cattle. Head Shepherd is brought to you by neXtgen Agri International Limited.  We help livestock farmers get the most out of the genetics they farm with. Get in touch with us if you would like to hear more about how we can help you do what you do best: info@nextgenagri.com. Thanks to our sponsors at MSD Animal Health and Allflex, Heiniger Australia and New Zealand, and ProWay Livestock Equipment. Please consider them when making product choices, as they are instrumental in enabling us to bring you this podcast each week. Check out the MSD range HERE Check out Allflex products HERE Check out Heiniger's product range HERE Check out ProWay's product range HERE

    47 min
  4. Forty years at Wairere Romneys with Simon Buckley

    7 jun

    Forty years at Wairere Romneys with Simon Buckley

    Few people have had a front-row seat to the genetic improvement of New Zealand sheep quite like our guest this week, Simon Buckley. After growing up in Whangārei and starting his farming career at Castlepoint Station, Simon joined Wairere Romneys and has never left. Four decades later, he has helped one of New Zealand's most influential sheep breeding programmes through the transition from visual selection and paper records to EID, genomics and data-driven breeding. In this episode, Simon chats with Mark to discuss the history of Wairere and the long-term thinking required to make meaningful genetic progress. They also discuss maternal instinct, breeding sheep for commercial conditions, the challenge of balancing innovation with market demand, and the lessons he's learnt from those who have travelled through the "University of Wairere". Grab a coffee and sit back and enjoy this one - it's a goodie!  Head Shepherd is brought to you by neXtgen Agri International Limited.  We help livestock farmers get the most out of the genetics they farm with. Get in touch with us if you would like to hear more about how we can help you do what you do best: info@nextgenagri.com. Thanks to our sponsors at MSD Animal Health and Allflex, Heiniger Australia and New Zealand, and ProWay Livestock Equipment. Please consider them when making product choices, as they are instrumental in enabling us to bring you this podcast each week. Check out the MSD range HERE Check out Allflex products HERE Check out Heiniger's product range HERE Check out ProWay's product range HERE

    1 h
  5. Refugia, resistance testing, and the future of worm management with Chloe Frank

    31 may

    Refugia, resistance testing, and the future of worm management with Chloe Frank

    Most sheep producers assume their drenches are working. Chloe Frank's job is finding out whether they actually are. After discovering how few producers in her region were monitoring worm burdens, Chloe launched Central Stock Health while still at university. She now travels from farm to farm delivering on-site worm egg counts and helping producers make better management decisions. In this episode, Chloe joins Mark to discuss the challenge of drench resistance in Australia and why better information is often the missing piece in sheep management. She explains why the delays associated with traditional testing methods mean many producers still are not testing, and how her on-farm service is helping farmers access real-time results. Chloe and Mark also discuss how she built a business from the ground up while still at university. Chloe also highlights the multiple opportunities available to young people in agriculture. However, in recording this podcast, it is obvious that her passion for making a positive, practical difference to the Ag industry has played a significant role in her success so far. If you want to get Chloe on your team, get in touch through her website here:  https://centralstockhealth.com/ Head Shepherd is brought to you by neXtgen Agri International Limited.  We help livestock farmers get the most out of the genetics they farm with. Get in touch with us if you would like to hear more about how we can help you do what you do best: info@nextgenagri.com. Thanks to our sponsors at MSD Animal Health and Allflex, Heiniger Australia and New Zealand, and ProWay Livestock Equipment. Please consider them when making product choices, as they are instrumental in enabling us to bring you this podcast each week. Check out the MSD range HERE Check out Allflex products HERE Check out Heiniger's product range HERE Check out ProWay's product range HERE

    30 min

  6. 24 may

    Data driven sheep breeding with James Trowbridge

    This week on the podcast, Ferg introduces James Trowbridge, the newest consultant to join the neXtgen Agri team. James grew up in South Australia working alongside his parents, Margie and Bill Trowbridge, in both Merinos and the family artificial breeding business. After working across a range of farming and agribusiness roles around Australia, James now joins the neXtgen Agri team, bringing with him a strong practical background in sheep production and genetics. If you want to get James on your team, get in touch at: james@nextgenagri.com Head Shepherd is brought to you by neXtgen Agri International Limited.  We help livestock farmers get the most out of the genetics they farm with. Get in touch with us if you would like to hear more about how we can help you do what you do best: info@nextgenagri.com. Thanks to our sponsors at MSD Animal Health and Allflex, Heiniger Australia and New Zealand, and ProWay Livestock Equipment. Please consider them when making product choices, as they are instrumental in enabling us to bring you this podcast each week. Check out the MSD range HERE Check out Allflex products HERE Check out Heiniger's product range HERE Check out ProWay's product range HERE

    17 min
  7. Genomic data management and the future of breeding values with Dan Garrick

    17 may

    Genomic data management and the future of breeding values with Dan Garrick

    What does it take to build the data systems that sit behind your genetic evaluations? This week on the podcast, Ferg catches up with Dan Garrick from Helical. Dan grew up on a sheep, beef and venison farm in the Manawatu before moving to the US at 13, where he went on to complete a PhD in aerospace engineering at Iowa State University. He's the son of Professor Dorian Garrick, one of New Zealand's most respected animal breeding geneticists, and his grandfather was one of the world's leading experts on sharks, making Dan a third-generation PhD. Dan explains how the same maths used to model fluid dynamics around rockets is used to generate breeding values, and how he ended up joining the family business in 2017 to help roll out some of the first production single step evaluations in the US for American Hereford and IGS. That work quickly revealed a major bottleneck in managing the genomic data flowing in from DNA testing labs. That's where Helical was born. Ferg and Dan talk through how Helical now serves breed societies, genetics companies, universities and labs across beef, dairy, sheep, horses, dogs, aquaculture and forestry. They also look ahead at where things are going. From decision support tools and AI in commercial herds, to the potential for wearable devices like virtual fencing collars to generate entirely new breeding values nobody has thought of yet - both Dan and Ferg agree the future is bright for Agriculture.  Head Shepherd is brought to you by neXtgen Agri International Limited.  We help livestock farmers get the most out of the genetics they farm with. Get in touch with us if you would like to hear more about how we can help you do what you do best: info@nextgenagri.com. Thanks to our sponsors at MSD Animal Health and Allflex, Heiniger Australia and New Zealand, and ProWay Livestock Equipment. Please consider them when making product choices, as they are instrumental in enabling us to bring you this podcast each week. Check out the MSD range HERE Check out Allflex products HERE Check out Heiniger's product range HERE Check out ProWay's product range HERE

    56 min
  8. Lessons learned from LambEx with Jane Kellock

    10 may

    Lessons learned from LambEx with Jane Kellock

    Jane Kellock joins Mark to talk through the production and business decisions that have shaped their Merino operation in South Australia’s Mid North. From running a non-mulesed flock for more than 20 years to building a breeding programme focused on lamb survival, Jane explains how genetics, condition scoring and lessons learned from attending previous LambEx conferences have helped their business through some brutal seasons. Jane also discusses the importance of making strategic decisions before drought hits, why mixed farming regions risk losing livestock knowledge, and what producers can expect from LambEx26. Tickets available here: https://www.lambex.org.au/tickets Earlybird tickets finish Friday, the 15th of May.  Head Shepherd is brought to you by neXtgen Agri International Limited.  We help livestock farmers get the most out of the genetics they farm with. Get in touch with us if you would like to hear more about how we can help you do what you do best: info@nextgenagri.com. Thanks to our sponsors at MSD Animal Health and Allflex, Heiniger Australia and New Zealand, and ProWay Livestock Equipment. Please consider them when making product choices, as they are instrumental in enabling us to bring you this podcast each week. Check out the MSD range HERE Check out Allflex products HERE Check out Heiniger's product range HERE Check out ProWay's product range HERE

    26 min
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Mark Ferguson from neXtgen Agri brings you the latest in livestock, genetics, innovation and technology. We focus on sheep and beef farming in Australia and New Zealand, and the people doing great things in those industries. To learn more about neXtgen Agri, visit www.nextgenagri.com. 

Información

  • Creador
    Mark Ferguson
  • Años de actividad
    2020 - 2026
  • Episodios
    294
  • Clasificación
    Explícito
  • Copyright
    © 2026 Head Shepherd
  • Mostrar sitio web
    Head Shepherd

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