4 minute read
Tawanui Station: 'This place is my life'
Tawanui Station is nestled at the foot of Matua te Mana, Mount Ruapehu. Farm Manager Steve Tapa (Ātihaunuia-Pāpārangi) shares what an ordinary week on the farm is like.
Sprawled over 2360 hectares, Tawanui Station is home to over 17,000 stock units. "This place is my life," Steve remarks, reflecting on his four decades at Tawanui. "My ambition when I arrived was to stay here three or four years, gain experience, then move on. I'm still here," he chuckles.
As a fourth-generation farmer and an Ātihau shareholder, Steve’s approach to his mahi has been to operate to the farm's full potential while caring for the land, people and animals. It is a philosophy that has guided him throughout his tenure.
His working week begins on a Sunday at the farm office where he plans out the tasks for the week ahead. Normally by 7am the next day, the farm team – made up of head shepherd Mikaere Mareikura, senior shepherd Keith Robinson and cadet Ben Waiwai – gather for their important health and safety briefing. The team discusses the tasks planned for the week and highlight any potential safety concerns and how they should be addressed. This practice ensures that everyone is well-prepared and protected while working on the farm and that they go home at the end of each day.
The heart of Tawanui Station operations revolves around livestock management, with a farming methodology centred on creating a natural balance between people and the environment.
This has gone hand-in-hand with focusing on producing high-end products that have minimum intervention.
Under Steve’s stewardship, Tawanui has focused on genetics to produce prime beef marbled with intramuscular fat for high-end restaurants. It's a paddock-to-plate philosophy with each animal traceable to the farm where it was born and raised. The cattle are exclusively grass fed and Steve’s aim is to continue to increase the percentage of beef that achieves a high marbling score.
Likewise, the lamb and wool produced is also targeted for highend markets where possible. The Romney flock was chosen for its superior taste and the quality of the lambs produced. Around 85% of the lambs are fattened on the farm and the remainder are sold as store lambs or destined for the Ātihau fattening block. The strong, white wool that is produced is used in a range of products from carpets to footwear and fashion.
Head shepherd Mikaere, who oversees all the blocks, is currently working with the shepherds as they focus on lambing, tending to the ewes and monitoring their health and wellbeing. Checking on the sheep every second day, the shepherds try to avoid excessive interference to maintain a stress-free environment for the ewes.
Lamb survivability is a huge challenge. If there's a fall of snow, anything that can go wrong will go wrong. Therefore, careful breeding for the survivability trait has been key.
The shepherds also engage in some friendly rivalry, especially when it comes to preparing the ewes for breeding and fattening up the rams on their blocks.
“Delegating the shepherds their own blocks incentivises them and they take pride in their work,” says Steve.
Maintaining an optimal feed supply for the livestock requires regular monitoring of the availability of crops and grass, adjusting the feeding regimen as needed. If nitrogen levels in the soil are low, the shepherds take steps to improve grass growth to ensure there's enough feed for the animals.
“I always encourage my shepherds to come to me when they’ve got any issues like running out of feed, so we can sort things out early. Though there is that competition, they also collaborate and share resources to ensure their mutual success and it’s great to see that teamwork happening.”
As spring settles in, the farm's focus shifts from lambing to docking, followed by shearing. Steve emphasises that farming is a year-round commitment and though there can be quiet periods, they are only a temporary respite. "There's always something to do on a farm," he says.
"If you look up at the mountain and it's clear, you know it's going to be an awesome day on the farm. The opposite is also true," says Steve, who, along with raising a family of four with his wife Shirley, still knows the farm like the back of his hand.
