Business Central July 2021

18 | T Sue Russell BioFarm extends over around 240ha and is home to cows, sheep, goats and pigs. Manawatu Business Awards - BioFarm REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT N estled not far from the foothills of the Tararua Ranges on Te Matai Road, Palmerston North sits a productive and very special farm which, since day one, has ‘gone it alone’ in the quest to ensure its farming practices reflect a true passion for animal, land and people. “We established this farm on the principle that it would nurture and support all elements that are part of it, producing high quality organic products for our customers to enjoy,” says Cathy Tait-Jamieson. BioFarm has been AsureQuality certified organic since 1986 and to this day is operated by the original family. For Jamie and Cathy, it is not so much the case that the family works in the business, but the business is the family. “There is no hand-over of this farm, just more people involved and for Jamie and I to have three of our four children living in their own houses on the farm, and our fourth child not very far away has been a wonderful jour- ney,” says Cathy. Jamie’s grandfather was the first in the fami- ly to farm on this land, though, as Cathy points out, the area has always been seen as a food gathering bowl by indigenous communities stretching back centuries. “It sits on the Manawatu river flats, a bounti- ful growing area. “Back in the day when Jamie’s grandfather worked the land it was organic until after the war, in his father’s era it started to become less organic,” Cathy explains. When Cathy and Jamie took over the farm in the 1970’s there were a lot of interventions impacting on soil fertility. The couple were determined, in what might be seen as a nod to their hippy-era, to return the farm to its original value through applying organic management practices. “It was actually biodynamics that gave us that vision and when we started to approach farming from this understanding we found that it started to marry with traditional Maori culture.” It was important, too, for the couple to have complete control over the production and processing of the products they make. Unlike most organic farms, BioFarm makes its range of additive-free hand-crafted probiotic yoghurts at the farm. BioFarm extends over around 240ha and is home to cows, sheep, goats and pigs. With the Manawatu River enveloping the farm on three sides the farm feels almost like a small island oasis. The farm started off as a dairy unit, but as the Tait-Jamieson’s moved into more holistic farming they realised this mono-culture wasn’t very natural, so other stock were introduced. “We keep the goats because they are very compatible with cows, where sheep and cows don’t get on very well in the same paddock.” As an Assured Certified Organic farm product samples of every batch of yoghurt made are kept on site for quality assurances purposes. These are eventually fed to the pigs so nothing is wasted. “The whole farm is an organic compost heap. It’s a completely closed biological sys- tem,” says Cathy. And while Cathy would say, and rightly so, that as far as the farm and the business is con- cerned, the Tait-Jamieson’s have everything under control, she was reminded recently of the fact that life is full of surprises. Late last year, at the Westpac Choose Mana- watū Business Awards BioFarm was named winner of the Māori Business Award. “It was such a surprise that I dropped the award on stage,” says Cathy. Recognition for organic producer The couple had first entered the award in 2002 and Cathy says they hadn’t originally intended on entering again. “We are doing exactly the same thing now as we did nearly two decades ago when we first entered.” The award, supported by Te Au Rangahau and Poutama Trust, recognises businesses that meld Māori values and identity success- fully into the principles underpinnning its way of being. “We’re thrilled to have received this recogni- tion and that it is our family who all contribute to BioFarm’s success.” Totally Vets, proudly supporting Cathy and Jamie Tait-Jamieson and Biofarm by providing all aspects of animal health care Congratulations to Cathy and Jamie on winning the 2ÌSVM 'YWMRIWW &[EVH EX XLI 2ERE[EXY 'YWMRIWW &[EVHW admin@totallyvets.co.nz | www.totallyvets.co.nz Contact us now to discuss how our professional and wide ranging expertise can help you achieve financial and business success. It’s more than just numbers. Craig Purdy: craig@stuarts.co.nz or Aimee Gray: aimee@stuarts.co.nz Stuarts takes you and your business into account.