Page 48 - NZ Hereford Magazine 2023

Sustainability

made simple

Words: NZ Herefords general manager, Posy Moody sustainability with the NZ Herefords leadership group in May
2022, they were much clearer in their understanding of the
y father was quoted in the Scottish Farmer definition and told the board the three pillars of sustainability
back in the 1970s as saying, ‘Live life like you were ‘environmental sustainability, social sustainability and
will die tomorrow, farm as if you will live economic sustainability’. The challenge to do this with all three
forever’. Was he on to something? requirements in line is something the younger generation felt
M Is sustainability that easy? If so, do we less threatened by.
need to do something more if the majority of beef farmers There are some agriculture companies that have already
have been doing that for decades? The ones I socialise with created their own ‘green’ indexes, but with Jacqueline’s
certainly have the first part sorted. knowledge I now understand they have been developed for
I started to look into carbon accreditation and sustainability marketing benefits and often indicate a ‘programme for
in more depth at the start of 2022. Thanks to an AGMARDT improvement’ (whatever that means) plus planting trees…
leadership scholarship I began monthly mentoring therefore ticking the ‘social sustainability’ box. When she
sessions with Dr Jacqueline Rowarth. For those who don’t explained the green index downfalls, it was evident they were
know Jacqueline, she is a formidable character in the weak in either environmental or economic sustainability.
agriculture sector. With a list as long as your arm of major Clearly the latter is extremely important because once beef
achievements and a PhD in soil science, she is respected breeders become non-financial, they will stop farming and
across management, research and governance as a science producing food to feed a global market that is expected to
advocate and communicator. More importantly for farmers, grow by 2 billion people by 2050. The challenge therefore as a
she understands what is possible and what is not. breed is to find out which genetics tick the environmental and
Like most farmers, I read the B+LNZ newsletters regarding financial boxes, assuming New Zealand beef farmers already
He Wake Eke Noa (the Primary Sector Climate Action farm with social acceptance e.g., not using growth hormones,
Partnership). I tried to understand the benefits of staying refraining from antibiotics within holding periods, grass-fed,
outside the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS), and for a and reducing stress at time of slaughter.
short time I followed the government’s PR on its proposed American Hereford Association (AHA) launched a
policies. However, the answer was no clearer; in fact, it Sustainability Research Project last May in tandem
became cloudier, especially when I discussed the issues with Colorado State University (CSU) to determine the
with Jacqueline and she added her scientific viewpoint. At relationships between environment and production traits. As
the end of the year, I had to write a progress report as to Ruaraidh Petre (executive director of the Global Roundtable
whether I had met my first milestone, which was being able for Sustainable Beef) stated at the Beef Improvement
to ‘lead the association into the initial phase of calculating Federation Research Symposium, “We need to give them
carbon accreditation amongst the members of NZ Herefords’. (the consumers) the data that shows ruminant agriculture
In short, I had not achieved the milestone. Why not? This is one of the few ways of providing food that can actually
country is in state of flux regarding what sustainability sequester more carbon and be more carbon neutral than any
actually means for farmers and which bar you have to jump other form of agriculture.” This is less of a challenge for New
over to obtain it. Have I learnt along the way? Absolutely. Zealand because soils are already at saturation for carbon
Sustainability has to have three pillars – without one being under current conditions. Craig Huffhines from CSU said
met, farming doesn’t work. Interestingly, when we discussed agriculture needed a licence to operate – what society would

46 HEREFORD MAGAZINE Year 2023