Head Shepherd

Mark Ferguson
  • 5.0（7則評分）
  • 科學
  • 隔週更新

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. How to Start a Cattle Business with Summit Livestock

    2 天前

    How to Start a Cattle Business with Summit Livestock

    Ever wondered what it takes to build a succesfull seedstock buisness from the ground up? Well, this is the podcast for you.  This week, Mark chats with Jasmine and Hayden Green, owners of Summit Livestock, about how they built their Angus and Limousin seedstock business from the ground up (and the challenges they faced), the importance of crossbreeding for production, how they balance phenotype with data, and the challenges of getting started without your own land. Jasmine and Hayden have built a successful dual-breed business, and they run us through the decision to run both breeds and the advantages of crossbreeding for both themselves and their clients. They also discuss the importance of embryo transfer in expanding their herd while keeping genetic quality at the forefront. 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, and Heiniger Australia and New Zealand. Please consider them when making product choices, as they are instrumental in enabling us to bring you this podcast each week. Check out Heiniger's product range HERE Check out the MSD range HERE Check out Allflex products HERE

    42 分鐘
  2. Financial skills for more profitable farming with David Egerton-Warburton

    11月2日

    Financial skills for more profitable farming with David Egerton-Warburton

    Accounting may not be every farmer’s favourite topic, but it is one of the most powerful tools on the farm. This week’s Head Shepherd guest, David Egerton-Warburton, explains why. Raised on a sixth-generation farm in Kojonup, Western Australia, David learned early that every on-farm decision ties back to sound business practice. His father, Kent, founded Agrimaster in 1981, bringing farm records into the computer age long before most households had a computer, and David and his wife have been joint CEOs since 2001. David and Mark Ferguson discuss budgeting, risk control and decision making, and why financial literacy separates good farmers from great farming businesses. As David says, “The most successful growers aren’t that much better from a production point of view… what we really see is the difference in the ability to take risks because they can control them.”  Listen to the episode to learn how to turn your farm numbers into a roadmap for success and take control of the risks that matter. https://www.agrimaster.com.au/ 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, and Heiniger Australia and New Zealand. Please consider them when making product choices, as they are instrumental in enabling us to bring you this podcast each week. Check out Heiniger's product range HERE Check out the MSD range HERE Check out Allflex products HERE

    47 分鐘
  3. Trust and Farm Advice with Dr Ruth Nettle

    10月26日

    Trust and Farm Advice with Dr Ruth Nettle

    What makes farmers change? And what holds them back? Our guest this week, Dr Ruth Nettle, has spent 25 years studying just that. Ruth has spent her career looking into how people in agriculture learn, adapt, and lead. Now leading the Rural Innovation Research Group at the University of Melbourne, Ruth has seen how agricultural extension, advisory networks, and rural communities have evolved through time. In this episode, she and Ferg chat about trust, workforce challenges, and what the future of extension looks like in a more commercial and tech-driven world. They talk about what makes a great employer in agriculture, why a positive team culture matters more than pay, and how farms can attract and retain staff in a global skills shortage. Ruth also shares her thoughts on AI in agriculture, the importance of human-to-human learning, and what Australia could take from extension systems overseas. If you work with farmers, lead a team, or care about the people side of farming, this episode offers great insight into agricultural workforce development, rural leadership, and the evolving role of extension in agriculture today. 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, and Heiniger Australia and New Zealand. Please consider them when making product choices, as they are instrumental in enabling us to bring you this podcast each week. Check out Heiniger's product range HERE Check out the MSD range HERE Check out Allflex products HERE

    48 分鐘
  4. Understanding IMF, Shear Force and Marbling with Dr Peter McGilchrist

    10月19日

    Understanding IMF, Shear Force and Marbling with Dr Peter McGilchrist

    Want to know more about meat-eating quality traits like IMF, shear force and marbling? Our guest this week, Dr Peter McGilchrist, is a leading meat scientist and professor at the University of New England, Australia, likely has the answers you're looking for.  Peter and Mark talk all things meat-eating quality and how the red meat industry can move beyond commodity pricing by identifying premium quality products through genetics, processing, and proper animal handling.  Peter and Mark discuss the importance of keeping an eye on IMF and shear force so that lamb doesn't "end up like pork," as well as the importance of early marbling and how we can genetically impact all three of these things.  Pete also treats us to a quick biochemistry lesson explaining the science of cold-shortening as well as insights on recent trial work he's been involved with on the impacts of feeding sheep pre-slaughter on eating quality. This podcast is a masterclass on the various aspects of red meat eating quality and is one not to miss!  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, and Heiniger Australia and New Zealand. Please consider them when making product choices, as they are instrumental in enabling us to bring you this podcast each week. Check out Heiniger's product range HERE Check out the MSD range HERE Check out Allflex products HERE

    1 小時 2 分鐘
  5. neXtPredict: Breeding Values Made Easy for Commercial Sheep Producers

    10月12日

    neXtPredict: Breeding Values Made Easy for Commercial Sheep Producers

    Ever wished you could get breeding values on your commercial Merinos without having to record weights, dates or pedigrees? This week, we’re launching neXtPredict, our brand new genomic tool that lets you go straight from DNA to breeding values with just a simple TSU sample. Developed in partnership with Weatherbys Scientific, neXtPredict provides base genomic breeding values, parentage, poll/horn testing and a flock profile for Merino breeders. It’s powered by the MerinoSelect database and backed by MLA-funded research through AGBU and Sheep Genetics. To announce the launch this week on the podcast, Ferg chats with Tamarah Luxton, Territory Manager at Weatherbys Scientific. Tamarah shares the story of Weatherbys’ journey from managing thoroughbred pedigrees in Ireland to providing cutting-edge genomic testing for livestock across Australia.  neXtPredict has three service tiers, designed to suit everyone from large commercial breeders to data-driven operations wanting deeper insights. CORE gives you access to the neXtPredict Portal, where you can view gBVs, parentage, poll/horn, flock profiles and indexes, and filter or rank animals on standard industry indexes or generic neXtgen Agri indexes.PLUS includes everything in CORE, plus trait correlation analysis, the creation of custom indexes, and one-on-one support from the neXtgen Agri team.PRO adds long-term data storage, the ability to include non-genomic traits (like wool quality or dag scores), view multi-year data, and work directly with our consultants on testing strategies and optimisation.If you are interested in using neXtPredict, get in touch with us here at neXtgen Agri: info@nextgenagri.com Or with Weatherbys Scientific: tluxton@weatherbys.com.au 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, and Heiniger Australia and New Zealand. Please consider them when making product choices, as they are instrumental in enabling us to bring you this podcast each week. Check out Heiniger's product range HERE Check out the MSD range HERE Check out Allflex products HERE

    28 分鐘

  6. 10月5日

    Three Sheep Consultants walk into a podcast studio...

    What do you get when three sheep consultants, all podcast hosts, from Australia, England, and Wales sit down in front of a microphone? You get a very entertaining, slightly chaotic, sheepy podcast! This week we're joined by Liz Genever and Nerys Wright to discuss the launch of OptiEwe UK as well as the challenges and opportunities faced by farmers over there.  Liz, Nerys and Ferg chat about this summer's extremely dry weather, current lamb prices, shifts in farming practices (and the role of genetics in those shifts), as well as the difficulties of the ever-changing government policies. Liz and Nerys are launching OptiEwe UK next week, and we're excited to continue working with them over the next few years!  Tune into their podcast by searching "The Sheep Geeks". You can catch their episode with Mark here: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/episode-11-talking-to-mark-ferg-ferguson-about-optiewe/id1777227463?i=1000726635865 If you're interested in starting or attending an OptiEwe discussion group in New Zealand, get in touch with Sophie at sophie@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, and Heiniger Australia and New Zealand. Please consider them when making product choices, as they are instrumental in enabling us to bring you this podcast each week. Check out Heiniger's product range HERE Check out the MSD range HERE Check out Allflex products HERE

    39 分鐘
  7. Fighting drench resistance with the DAGI app, with Ryan Luckman

    9月28日

    Fighting drench resistance with the DAGI app, with Ryan Luckman

    Is drench resistance an issue on your property? Thanks to modern technology, we have tools at our disposal to help. This week's guest is Ryan Luckman, vet and founder of DAGI, (Drench and Grazing Integration), an app that displays the risk of larval challenge/resistance risk for the paddocks on your farm, helping you make better grazing decisions.  With the help of industry experts and the support of B+LNZ, Ryan has been building the DAGI (Drench And Grazing Integration) app over the past 2 years.  Ryan talks us through the app and how it works on farm, as well as discussing the state of drench resistance in New Zealand. He and Ferg also discuss the topic of refugia and how this is all about the genetics of the worm population on your farm.  Take a look at DAGI here: https://www.dagi.nz/why-dagi 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, and Heiniger Australia and New Zealand. Please consider them when making product choices, as they are instrumental in enabling us to bring you this podcast each week. Check out Heiniger's product range HERE Check out the MSD range HERE Check out Allflex products HERE

    31 分鐘
  8. What does neXtgen Agri actually do? Mark Ferguson explains

    9月21日

    What does neXtgen Agri actually do? Mark Ferguson explains

    Thousands of you listen to the podcast every week, but we've come to realise many of you don't know exactly what we do here at neXtgen Agri.  In this episode, Mark, our host and CEO, takes to the mic and chats about all things neXtgen Agri and the services we provide to farmers across the globe. He shares how “farming in our hearts, science in our heads” drives everything we do. From helping farmers lift genetic gain to building tools that make breeding decisions clearer and faster, Ferg goes through the work that keeps our team busy. We're out in the yards and around kitchen tables across Australia and New Zealand, as well as in meetings and boardrooms for multiple industry bodies, helping provide the knowledge transfer bridge between farmers and scientists. If you have ever wondered what neXtgen Agri is really about, this is the episode that explains it all. 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, and Heiniger Australia and New Zealand. Please consider them when making product choices, as they are instrumental in enabling us to bring you this podcast each week. Check out Heiniger's product range HERE Check out the MSD range HERE Check out Allflex products HERE

    47 分鐘
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簡介

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. 

資訊

  • 創作者
    Mark Ferguson
  • 活躍年代
    2020年 - 2025年
  • 集數
    261
  • 年齡分級
    兒少不宜
  • 版權
    © 2025 Head Shepherd
  • 節目網站
    Head Shepherd

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