North Canterbury News: October 15, 2020
You also want an ePaper? Increase the reach of your titles
YUMPU automatically turns print PDFs into web optimized ePapers that Google loves.
RURAL LIFE<br />
<strong>North</strong> <strong>Canterbury</strong> <strong>News</strong>, <strong>October</strong> <strong>15</strong>, <strong>2020</strong><br />
31<br />
KAIKOURA RESIDENTS<br />
–NEED ASURVEYOR?<br />
Surveying |Engineering |Planning |Subdivisions<br />
Topographical Surveys |Resource Management<br />
Land Development |Civil Engineering |Project<br />
Management |Building &Construction Setout<br />
Farm tourism<br />
... Most New<br />
Zealanders don’t<br />
get to feed alamb<br />
every spring, but<br />
there are farmers<br />
ready to offer that<br />
experience.<br />
PHOTO: FILE<br />
Mark O’Connor is available<br />
for free, no obligation<br />
consultations at the PGG<br />
Wrightson Kaikoura office<br />
Wednesday fortnightly.<br />
Appointments required.<br />
PHONE MARK 021 558 100<br />
0800 802 4546 | Email: mark@bonisch.nz<br />
2111416<br />
Built to your budget!<br />
Potential for farm tourism aired<br />
By DAVID HILL<br />
Rural tourism provides an opportunity<br />
for farmers to tell their stories.<br />
Lincoln University tourism lecturer<br />
Dr Joanna Fountain has been working<br />
with the Post Quake Farming Project to<br />
help farmers explore tourism<br />
opportunities and to tell their stories.<br />
Three years of drought and the 2016<br />
earthquake has forced farmers to<br />
rethink their whole farming operation to<br />
become more resilient, she says.<br />
‘‘I was brought on board following<br />
initial discussions for the project which<br />
found that anumber of people were<br />
looking at developing tourism<br />
opportunities and farmers<br />
were interested in being able<br />
to tell their stories of their<br />
earthquake experience,<br />
family heritage, farming<br />
practices and ecological<br />
diversification.’’<br />
Dr Fountain was already<br />
working with <strong>North</strong><br />
<strong>Canterbury</strong> wine growers and<br />
the Kaikoura community in<br />
the aftermath of the 2016<br />
earthquake to explore<br />
opportunities for diversifying the local<br />
economy before joining the project.<br />
‘‘It’s about ensuring farmers are<br />
making informed decisions by being<br />
aware of the opportunities and the<br />
pitfalls, whether they are making<br />
decisions about tourism, honey or<br />
planting trees, and helping them<br />
establish useful contacts and networks.’’<br />
Farmers quickly realised there were<br />
advantages to working together and<br />
collaborating with the wider<br />
community, Dr Fountain says, recalling<br />
an early meeting in the Waiau Hall.<br />
‘‘Some farmers knew each other, but<br />
others didn’t and many didn’t know their<br />
Harvest Time!<br />
Local Business Serving The Local Area.<br />
• Hay -Baleage -Straw<br />
Medium square, round, conventional.<br />
Double mower conditioners, wrapping.<br />
• All agricultural and cultivation work<br />
• Direct drilling -Giant discing -Ploughing<br />
-Power harrow -Air seeding<br />
Joanna Fountain<br />
We look after your needs like we look after our own!<br />
neighbours were also thinking about<br />
tourism, so it was agood opportunity to<br />
find out what ideas people were having,<br />
what synergies there were and what<br />
people had in common.’’<br />
While this year’s activities have been<br />
‘‘slightly curtailed’’ by Covid19, Dr<br />
Fountain says the farmers she has been<br />
working with remain optimistic.<br />
‘‘Covid19 has been disastrous for the<br />
tourism industry, but for the farmers,<br />
they are used to fluctuating markets,<br />
whether it be the milk price, the wool<br />
price, the meat price or rural tourism.<br />
‘‘The farmers have said, ‘OK, tourism<br />
is not happening at the moment, but<br />
we’ve had abumper crop and<br />
the rainfall has been good<br />
this year’.<br />
‘‘Primary producers have a<br />
number of strings to their<br />
bow. It’s about not having all<br />
your eggs in one basket.’’<br />
But it is not all doom and<br />
gloom for the tourism<br />
industry, despite the border<br />
being closed to international<br />
tourists, Dr Fountain says.<br />
‘‘For every dollar<br />
Cantabrians spend on<br />
domestic tourism, they spend $6 on<br />
international tourism, so if only 50<br />
percent of that is spent on domestic<br />
tourism this summer, it will make abig<br />
difference.<br />
‘‘In the postCovid environment, alot<br />
of New Zealanders are reevaluating<br />
what’s important in their lives and, for<br />
many urban people, they really enjoyed<br />
the quiet, taking walks and bike rides<br />
each day, and getting back to basics.<br />
‘‘Most New Zealanders don’t get to<br />
feed alamb every spring or listen to a<br />
bird song in the morning, but we have<br />
farmers who are ready to offer that<br />
experience.’’<br />
All heading and windrowing<br />
requirements<br />
• Daily Freight Run to Ch-Ch &Return.<br />
Ph: 0274 517 063 (Darran)<br />
0274 321 581 (Bus)<br />
03 314 4565 (H)<br />
1982614<br />
2309605<br />
HOMEKILL<br />
&Wild Game<br />
Meat Processing<br />
313 0022<br />
MEAT2U.NZ<br />
-All types of fencing including:<br />
-deer, sheep and cattle yards<br />
-Retaining walls –Timber gates<br />
-Full range of specialised equipment for farm fencing and<br />
lifestyle blocks, offers you the complete land package.<br />
Ashley: 0274 364 776 ah: 314 8541<br />
e: A.Duckworth@xtra.co.nz<br />
www.duckworthfencing.co.nz<br />
Post &Rail Fencing -Looks great &<br />
makes life easy for the Rural Lifestyler!<br />
WE BUY<br />
STANDING<br />
TREES,<br />
TALK TO US FOR<br />
ANOOBLIGATION<br />
QUOTE<br />
Call Tony<br />
027 436 0338<br />
2272726<br />
2301305
Change language