Head Shepherd

Mark Ferguson
  • 5.0 (6)
  • SCIENCE
  • UPDATED WEEKLY
Head Shepherd

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. 

  1. How Genetic Strategies Can Solve Farming Problems with Robert Peacock

    4 DAYS AGO

    How Genetic Strategies Can Solve Farming Problems with Robert Peacock

    This week on the podcast, we’re chatting all things livestock breeding with Robert Peacock from Orari Gorge Station. Robert discusses how and why they’ve been breeding for worm resistance. They have also been one of the first to measure feed efficiency and methane emissions, demonstrating the role of genetics in addressing these farming challenges. Tune in to discover how Orari Gorge is setting the standard for sustainable farming.Farming sheep, beef and deer in South Canterbury. How to ...

    41 min
  2. Boosting Heifer Performance with Enoch Bergman’s AI Insights

    SEP 22

    Boosting Heifer Performance with Enoch Bergman’s AI Insights

    Our guest this week is veterinarian Enoch Bergman. Originally from the USA, Enoch arrived in Australia in 2003. He fell in love with the people, the landscape and the agricultural innovation of Esperance, Western Australia and has been there ever since. Enoch is passionate about improving the performance of heifers and the use of fixed-time artificial insemination (AI) in commercial breeding programmes, and shares that passion with us today. He explains the process of synchronising heifers an...

    1h 4m
  3. Our 200th Episode: Live from Lambex with Dawson Bradford

    SEP 15

    Our 200th Episode: Live from Lambex with Dawson Bradford

    This week on the podcast we’re celebrating 200 episodes! We thought we’d make a special occasion of it so we recorded our podcast live at Lambex 2024 and who better to have on as a guest than Lambex founder, Dawson Bradford. Mark and Dawson discuss the origins of Lambex. Dawson came up with the idea to “ … bring producers together with the processors and retailers, and get an understanding through the whole industry.” It’s safe to say Dawson accomplished that with 1,500 delegates attendi...

    20 min

  4. SEP 8

    Navigating Change in Farming with Bill Webb of Merinotech

    If you farm Merinos in Australia, it’s more than likely you will have heard of Merinotech. And if you’ve heard of Merinotech, it's likely that you know our fantastic guest this week, Bill Webb. For those that don’t know, Merinotech is an intensively recorded ram breeding nucleus founded in 1988 by a group of WA Merino breeders who wanted to breed a ram that thrived in their environment, backed up by a breeding plan and strategy that fully embraced the latest developments in breeding and ...

    30 min

  5. SEP 1

    Managing Triple Drench Resistance in Cattle

    As you may have heard in the media recently, triple drench resistance in cattle is quickly becoming an issue for New Zealand farmers. This week on the podcast, we are joined by Dave Leathwick and Christian Sauerman from AgResearch. They share how they came across the issue, why it has occurred and what producers can do to mitigate the risks of developing triple drench resistance. Dave and Christian are both ‘accidental parasitologists’, with Dave initially studying entomology, while...

    32 min
  6. The Future of Meat Grading with Barbara Webster

    AUG 25

    The Future of Meat Grading with Barbara Webster

    Our guest on the podcast this week is Barbara Webster, co-founder of inMR. Barbara shares with Mark how inMR's Marbl™ technology uses nuclear magnetic resonance to measure intramuscular fat quickly, accurately and non-invasively, delivering a new standard to the industry.In the last few years, the technology has been successfully implemented in lamb-carcass grading. inMR are in the process of adapting it to other applications, such as beef carcasses and live animals. While MRI technology...

    34 min
  7. Heat Stress: Impacts on Sheep Reproductive Performance with Dr William van Wettere

    AUG 18

    Heat Stress: Impacts on Sheep Reproductive Performance with Dr William van Wettere

    This week on the podcast we’re discussing heat stress during mating and pregnancy with Dr William van Wettere.Heat stress is classed as anything over 32°C, which can disrupt fertility in ewes, semen quality in rams and embryonic development in lambs, so it has an overarching effect on all aspects of reproduction.Mark and Will start by discussing the effects of heat stress on ewes. Trials show that heat stress affects ewes most in the five days leading up to ovulation and the first five days a...

    27 min
  8. Resilience and Building a Sustainable Farm Business with Danielle England

    AUG 11

    Resilience and Building a Sustainable Farm Business with Danielle England

    Building resilience and achieving success in agriculture is an unpredictable challenge that involves continuous learning, upskilling, mentorship and adoption of innovative practices. In this episode, Mark chats with Danielle England, both a consultant and farmer, about resilience in the agricultural industry.Danielle currently farms merino sheep with her husband and his family in Keilira, South Australia. However, she has spent most of her career going back and forth across Australia in a var...

    38 min
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Ratings & Reviews

5
out of 5
6 Ratings

About

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. 

Information

  • Creator
    Mark Ferguson
  • Years Active
    2020 - 2024
  • Episodes
    202
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2024 Head Shepherd
  • Show Website
    Head Shepherd

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