50 | Lone Star still farming better everyday The Wandle in Middlemarch, Otago. Randall Johnston Lone Star Farms has been named as finalists for the Rabobank People and Development Award at the 2024 Beef + Lamb New Zealand Awards, further solidifying its reputation as an employer of choice. Lone Star Farms has seven farms across the South Island with about 95,000 stock units, two of which are leased. The Nelson headquartered company employs 35 people. Oversight of the farming company is through an Advisory Board supported by a strong Leadership team. While it has a corporate structure, Lone Star Farms GM Southern Farms Matt Smith says it maintains the values of a family farm. “It’s great to be recognised for all the effort we put into this aspect of our business. Our staff are everything to us, so we want the best for them and to help them progress in any way that we can,” he says. “All permanent staff have individual personal development plans and we are progressively developing this process,” Matt explains. “If positions become available within the company, we have a policy to advertise in house first to give our current staff a chance to progress. Three out of the current seven farm managers have worked for us in the past. We also support staff with some of their training costs depending on the course and the benefit it will have.” The larger farms all have a Farm Manager; a Stock Manager and usually a couple of Block Managers as well as shepherds and general farm hands. “The Block Manager role is an opportunity for an experienced shepherd to start to take on responsibility around stock management, feed budgeting, and staff management, but in a very supportive environment. We are trying to grow them into becoming our next Stock Manager, so if this opportunity arises, they have some experience of MEAT & WOOL » Lone Star Farms PO BOX 128, BALCLUTHA 9240 PHONE 03-417 8485 • PHONE 0800-101 333 • FAX 03 417 8488 PHONE (03) 444-4737 RD3 Ranfurly 9397 Proud to support Lone Star Farms www.rurallivestock.co.nz PROUD TO WORK ALONGSIDE LONESTAR FARMS Paul Mavor Logan Moore 0274 730 100 0274 730 811 • to page 52
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