Business Rural Autumn 2021

16 | Organic meat cuts Karen Phelps MEAT & WOOL » Kilbrannan Farm: Paul & Tracey Ruddenklau PHOTOS: Organic Kilbrannan calves. The Resolution Farming App (below), one of Paul Ruddenklau’s business ventures. NZOM lamb crowns now being sold in 20 supermarkets across Hong Kong. AGRICULTURE ~ DIRECT DRILLING ~ HAY & BALAGE 03 249 7252 | www.stevejamescontracting.co.nz Call us today for a no obligation quote. STEVE JAMES 03 249 7252 | 0274 907 552 info@stevejamescontracting.co.nz 56 Lakefront Drive, Te Anau Locally Owned and Operated 2618 State Highway 94 RD2, Te Anau Office.................................(03) 249 5000 Email............. .Tim.Jackson@hwr.co.nz STOCK FERTILISER GENERAL CARTAGE Proudly supporting Kilbrannan Farm TRUCKS & DIGGERS • Drainage • Landscaping • Farmwork • Roading • House Excavations For more information please contact Dave Kelly on 021 721 591 Quality Work / Competitive Prices MANAPOURI DIGGERS Paul and wife Tracey currently manage two farms: Kilbrannan Farm, a 350ha organic farm in the Te Anau basin with 2300 Perendale ewes and 280 cattle and a 500ha conventional farm nearby with 2700 Perendale-romney cross ewes, 50 cows, 50 R1 and 35 R2. Incredibly they do it all single handedly with only the assistance of one person 2 ½ days a week. It’s not the only venture the entrepreneurial farmers are involved in. Paul is also one of the four founders as well as a co-director of the company that produces the Resolution farming app. The app was created by a group of like-minded farmers for the purpose in their own businesses of a system to record, store and share data in a simple yet efficient manner. “The app has been designed with the farmer in mind. It gives the flexibility for anyone at any level to adopt and grow their confidence using Resolution in their own time,” he says. Resolution’s Android and IOS offline apps allow users to work at any time from any location to stay informed and save time. Back in the office, the Resolution Web App gives farmers the ability to analyse their data on a higher level, providing a complete, easy-to-navigate database of their farm records. Some of the many applications include interactive farm maps (area calculator, distance measurer as well as the ability to print drawings or paddock changes), records displayed on a timeline with the ability record store and share attachments documents and photos, individual tasking to staff, contractors and consultants and staff time sheets with reports. Paul says that Resolution has been designed and built with the latest technology to ensure that it can move with the rapid technological advancements of the industry ensuring the future sustainability of the app. Word of mouth sees users continue to grow. “Farmers can use it in a basic sense or more in-depth every day like I do. With the ever-changing pressures such as the environmental impacts leg- islation, compliance, health and safety, and general day-to-day operations, we are seeing Resolution become the most vital tool for farmers.” N ew Zealand Organic Meats (NZOM) is going from strength to strength and has just got product into 20 different supermarkets in Hong Kong, marking a major boost to the brand’s export market. “We were already supplying small amounts into Hong Kong but this is a larger deal, predominantly lamb, and really quite exciting,” says company director Paul Ruddenklau. NZOM, formed in 2019, is run by Paul and other company director Neville Parkinson and works to bring together organic farmers and strengthen the organic red-meat sector as a whole. The company has recently established a successful partnership with Australian Organic Meats (AOM) to identify both domestic and international market opportuni- ties for organic, grass-fed lamb and beef, working with farmers and processors to meet growing demand. NZOM also works to add value to consum- ers and the animal as a whole in these organic markets, exporting specific cuts of meat to spe- cific nations based on specific market demand analysis. It currently exports to countries including Singapore, Dubai, the USA and Saudi Arabia as well as Hong Kong. Paul says Covid-19 has thrown curveballs due to logistical challenges getting product overseas. Also demand has been affected due to the hospi- tality industry being impacted. “It’s been a stop-start year environment. There is a lot of interest but not a lot of confidence from the hospitality industry at the moment,” he says. The aim is for NZOM to start selling its meat under its own label in New Zealand. Currently it supplies to other brands. The company boasts around 50 South Island suppliers and Paul says that the company is now looking to grow its North Island supplier base to meet market demand, seeing an increase in dairy farmers converting to organics resulting in organic cull cows and surplus stock that could head to NZOM.