South of Waipukarau

Today's the day ................... for farm talk

Before we came to New Zealand, I think we expected to see lots of lots of sheep as we travelled - but in actual fact, we have hardly seen any.

We were lucky enough today to be taken for tour of a New Zealand farm, half an hour's drive south of Waipukarau. We were able to ask the farmer the reason for the lack of sheep - and of course, it all comes down to money in the end. Unlike those in the UK, New Zealand farmers don't get any grants or special payments for rearing sheep - and in the main, they are just not a viable option.

This farm had a lot of red deer - which were crossed with Canadian elk to produce bigger animals. Interestingly, most of the income from the deer herd did not come from venison - it came from the antler velvet which was sold to China for processing into medicinal compounds.

Farms are having to adapt to the ever-changing demands of the population both here and in the UK. It seems that, in order to survive - you have to be big. Dairy farms have thousands of cattle being milked round the clock in state-of-the art milking parlours.

There's no room for sentiment - farming is a business - just like any other ...................