Joining us on the Podcast is Nadine Tunley, CEO of Horticulture New Zealand.  Nadine has always had a very strong connection with the food and fibre sector, having grown up in rural New Zealand. Prior to Hort NZ, Nadine was primarily in the apple and pear industry and Mānuka honey.  Nadine candidly talks to Emma and Claire about surrounding yourself with great people, resilience and grit, and the importance of being bold and owning your mistakes.  This was a great chat full of golden nuggets for anyone out there who may need an extra push to go out and make that next step. &n ..read more

Today on the Black Heels and Tractor Wheels podcast, we have Kate Scott of Landpro joining us for a chat.  Kate is Landpro’s Executive Director, a 2018 Nuffield Scholar and 2023 recipient of the Rabobank Emerging Leader award. Landpro is an environmental consultancy business, working with farmers and growers to help them navigate hurdles and challenges in the environmental space.  Kate grew up on a dairy farm in Taranaki and packed up her life, along with her husband, to go and milk cows in central Otago. When Kate was 26, she jointly established Landpro which has now steadily grow ..read more

Hayley Gourley joins us on the Black Heels and Tractor Wheels Podcast this week! Hayley hails from a dairy farm on the West Coast, and has had roles in Skellerup, Pāmu, Rabobank and Environment Canterbury to name a few.   Hayley has spent her career in the food and agribusiness sector, and is extremely passionate about all things Agri.  Hayley talks to us about selling yourself, acknowledging your weaknesses, being calm under pressure, and the changing face of the sector.  #blackheelsandtractorwheels #podcast #ruralwomennz Thank you so much for joining us Hayley!  ..read more

Next up on the Black Heels and Tractor Wheels Podcast, we have Jen Scoular. Jen is an avocado grower, Board Chair of House of Science NZ, Board Member of International Fresh Produce Association AU & NZ and immediate past CEO NZ Avocado. After 12 years at the helm of NZ Avocado, Jen stepped down earlier this year. After such an exciting career journey, we are very excited to see where Jen's path takes her next!  We really enjoyed Jen's openness and enthusiastic personality, something that she is very passionate about bringing into her workplace culture.  Jen speaks to us about ..read more

Lynley and her husband Matt own Spring Valley farm in Kaituna Valley, in the Wairarapa. The business has won several agricultural awards, including Wairarapa Hill Country Farm Business of the Year, Greater Wellington Balance Farm Environment Awards, Wairarapa Gate to Plate, the NZ Golden Lamb Awards and the Allflex NZ Sheep Industry Award for Innovation. While raising their two sons, now both teenagers, Lynley owned and operated a hairdressing salon for 11 years before Spring Valley became her focus while in a rapid growth phase.  Lynley co-founded Wairarapa Rural Women Incorporated, a ..read more

Bridgit Hawkins has an incredible resume behind her. Currently, Bridgit is the Chief Sustainability Officer at CropXTechnologies LTD and Chair for various organisations like Bovonic, Agritech and Cropsy Technologies.  Growing up on a farm has led Bridigit into the agriculture industry and she is extremely passionate about making a difference in our sector. Bridgit is also the founder of ‘Fields of Change’, which advocates for a strong, diverse, and sustainable primary sector. Its goal is to encourage conversation about women leaders in agriculture, and to find out why the sector is missi ..read more

Today we speak to Dianne Downey, one half of the duo that makes up the Limery. Dianne is based in Wairoa with her husband Paul, where they create 100% pure New Zealand citrus products and juices. As the business has grown, Dianne and Paul have helped grow their community too. They developed Te Rau Haumako, an on-site programme which offers industry experience to local rangitahi. The Limery also collaborates and encourages smaller growers, something that is very important to Dianne and Paul. Dianne chats to us about why the Limery’s Business model works, her advice for those looking to run th ..read more

Today we talk to Kate Cullwick, one half of the sister duo that makes up Foxtrot Home, which sells ethically made, sustainably produced natural French linen products. Kate is based in Central Hawke’s Bay, on her husband’s family farm.  Having grown up on a beef and sheep farm, Kate and Prue were determined that living rurally would not be an impediment to sourcing their products nor prevent them operating a very successful online business.  Today we talk to Kate about her NZI Rural Women NZ Business Awards experience, as well as how Foxtrot Home began and how she manages this all l ..read more

Today we speak to Eljay Anderson, owner of Rural Health Collective. Rural Health Collective is an online fitness, coaching and mentoring platform. Eljay started her business to share her experience of gaining confidence and strength through physical fitness and a healthy lifestyle.  Eljay offers a range of programmes which are tailored to potential clients’ goals. She has recently developed Project Evolve, a 12 week programme designed to help women live their best lives.  Eljay talks to us about her experience with our Activator programme last year, her own health and fitness journ ..read more

Today we speak to Sian Noble-Campbell, who hails from the UK but is now based in the Waikato. Sian is a co-founder of the Matahuru Valley Walk, a beautiful walk situated in farmland, with stunning views, several stands of native bush including a kauri grove and of course the Matahuru Stream. As well as the Matahuru Valley Walk, Sian helps run Midlife Downunder, a Facebook page that celebrated the ups and downs of midlife years. We talk to Sian about how she began the Matahuru Valley Walk (which started with one of our very own episodes), her RWNZ Activator experience, and how her life has c ..read more