Business Rural North Spring 2021

28 | RURAL PEOPLE » Balfour Farm: Tim & Nic Hewitt The world’s best grass-fed beef is all Environmental stewardship is key to Tim Hewitt, seen here with daughter Charlotte, on his sheep and beef farm operation. Kim Newth T im and Nic Hewitt are proud to be among a select group of New Zealand pastoral farm- ers, producing premium grass-fed Wagyu beef for First Light Farms. A gold medal winner at the World Steak Chal- lenge in Dublin for two years running, First Light’s Wagyu beef is recognised as world leading and graces the top tables of a discerning clientele across the US and New Zealand. America’s elite steakhouses and high net worth consumers are a long way from the green pas- tures of Balfour Farm (655ha effective), south of Pahiatua, home to Tim and Nic’s sheep and beef farm. The couple have been First Light share- holders since 2017 and, in addition to the home farm, have an equity partnership with Richard and Katrina Gavigan in an adjoining 285ha sheep and beef property. Tim and Nic’s business winters 1100 hoggets, 4300 ewes, 370 R1 cattle, 310 R2s and 30 nurse cows. Their on-farm team includes shepherd Lance Bryant.In addition, the couple own a local 165ha, 410-cow dairy farm run by 50/50 sharemilkers Cam and Anna Brown. Tim sees Wagyu cattle as an important diver- sification tool and says there is much to admire about the First Light story. “This is where farming needs to go, pitching our grass fed system to high end markets. It’s a good place to be. First Light is not selling a commodity – it’s a whole campaign - and that appeals to me. For us, it is also a good fit with the dairy farm; Cam and Anna have bought into the Wagyu vision too.” Full blood Wagyu cattle are not well suited to a 100% grass-fed system. Hence, First Light grass-fed Wagyu cattle are the progeny of full blood Wagyu bulls across either traditional beef cows or NZ dairy cows. Making use of good cross bred beef from his dairy herd makes a lot of sense from Tim’s perspective. Heifers from the Hewitts’ dairy farm are put to Wagyu bulls on Balfour Farm, where the progeny are also reared. “Cam also identifies the cows he doesn’t want to breed from and they are put to Wagyu semen as well. We are working on 100 animals coming from the dairy farm to our beef system per annum. It’s a very good tie-up.” Tim says he enjoys the certainty that comes from being a First Light producer and shareholder, both in terms of income and production. As well as finishing their own Wagyu, Tim and Nic bring in additional Wagyu from other First Light farms, finishing 200 in total. “They are wintered twice and then processed the following autumn.” A fifth generation New Zealand farmer, Tim took over the reins of Balfour Farm from his parents in 1995, later adding the adjoining block and dairy farm. “I’m one of four siblings and we’re all farming.” Tim and Nic were 2016 Horizons Ballance Farm Environment award winners and have been praised for their intergenerational thinking and en- vironmental stewardship. In all, 9km of waterways have been fenced off, along with 14ha of native bush and 9ha of wetlands. “We plant 150 poplar poles a year and have planted 400-500 natives a year for the last five years, all with family labour.” One of the couple’s sons, Edward, has been back on the home farm for a year now. His twin brother George is working in social media market- ing in Auckland. Their younger brother Hugo is working on a Wairarapa farm while their sister Charlotte is in her first year at Lincoln University. “We want the “Cam also identifies the cows he doesn’t want to breed from and they are put to Wagyu semen as well. We are working on 100 animals coming from the dairy farm to our beef system per annum. It’s a very good tie-up.” next generation to carry on the farm so we’re very focussed on succession and looking at what we can all do as a family.” Meanwhile, First Light’s Group Managing Director Gerard Hickey says First Light is aiming high with grass-fed Wagyu beef from farms like Balfour. As well as its growing retail business on the west coast of the US, it has an exclusive e- commerce Steak Club in the US with 1500 mem- bers now enjoying ‘the best steak in the world’. “We believe the Western diet is moving to less meat but better quality meat – and better quality grass-fed beef is exactly what we’re producing, thanks to the valuable efforts of New Zealand farmers like Tim,” says Gerard. Edward and Charlotte Hewitt with the Wagyu cattle. 116 Main Street, Pahiatua (06) 376 8829 PROUDLY SUPPORTING THE HEWITT FAMILY We have a crew to meet your needs. When you want it, How you want it. Pleased to be supplying shearing services to Tim Hewitt 06 375 8488 / 027 4407 021 tararuashearing@xtra.co.nz Fertiliser & Aerial Spraying Contact Andrew Cuttance 021 511 654 or Kurt Wieldraayer 027 448 6747 Give us a call for your aerial agriculture requirements