Shearing
Sixty Years of The Golden Shears
New Zealand's premier shearing competition, The Golden Shears, is gearing up for its 60th birthday bash next week. Despite scepticism at the start and declining demand for wool, The Golden Shears is… Audio
World sheep shearing record broken in Waikato
A Canadian woman, now living in the Waikato has broken the world 'women's solo eight-hour' record by shearing 510 lambs in a day. Audio
Midday Rural News for 11 November 2019
The farmer-owned meat Co-op, Alliance Group has taken on 40 staff members of an Oamaru meat company which was forced to suspend exports to China. Audio
Women and Wool
Since March a group of women from hawke's Bay have been swapping their stilletos and skirts for gumboots and black singlets, taking to shearing sheds around the region, learning the craft.. the back… Audio
Mavis Mullins' journey from shearing shed to boardroom
New Zealand Business Hall of Famer Mavis Mullins' life has been a fascinating journey from a shearing shed on the outskirts of Dannevirke to multiple governance role and collecting an MBA along the… Audio, Gallery
Masterful in Masterton: the 59th Golden Shears championship
Called 'the Goldies' by those in the know, The Golden Shears is the Wimbledon of shearing – or the shearing equivalent of a Grand Prix. The winner of the Open final is considered the creme de la creme… Video, Audio, Gallery
Aria Sports Day: a time-honoured community event in the King Country
On Waitangi Day, hundreds of King Country residents gathered in the tiny town of Aria for its 115th annual sports day. Some came to compete in dog trials, motocross and egg & spoon races. Some, like… Audio, Gallery
The life of a 16-year-old poultry breeder
Laura Inglis has been taking purebred chickens and ducks to local poultry competitions for as long as she can remember. The 16-year-old has a menagerie of over 100 feathered friends at her parents'… Audio
The Rigours of Shearing
The rigours of shearing need to be better understood by health professionals so they can help shearers overcome injuries, says a movement mechanics coach. Audio
Women's shearing record set in 'epic' sporting feat
A nine-hour slog to set a new world shearing record is being described as an 'epic sporting feat'.
Shearing world record attempt
Te Kuiti shearer Kerri-Jo Te Huia is attempting a world shearing record in a woolshed east of Eketahuna. Jills Angus Burney joins us from the woolshed. Audio
Shear Warmth
Lyn Neeson and her daughter-in-law Monique Neeson were looking at the wool cheque from the family's remote King Country farm and thought there must be a way to earn more from wool. They now make… Audio
Tough as boots
At the recent Rural Games in Palmerston North events including olive-stone spitting and egg throwing and catching, along with speed tree climbing, speed shearing and gumboot throwing. Audio, Gallery
Watching the fleece fly
Country Life was there when the handpiece buzzed at the 17th World Shearing and Woolhandling Championships in Invercargill. Audio, Gallery
Shear Brilliance
Des Williams is editor of Shearing magazine, a free publication that promotes the people and sport associated with the industry. Audio
New Zealand cleans up at shearing champs
John Kirkpatrick from Napier has claimed the individual world title for machine shearing for the first time.
Napier's John Kirkpatrick crowned World Shearing Champ
The World Shearing Champion, John Kirkpatrick explains how he beat Scotsman Gavin Mutch to take out the title he's aimed for all his life. Audio
1000s flock to World Shearing & Wool handling Championships
Alexa Cook is in Invercargill for the World Shearing & Wool handling Championships.The local sports stadium, which typically holds events such as basketball and netball, has been transformed into a… Audio
Accuracy wins out in world shearing champs
The son of champion shearer Sir David Fagan has taken out the world speed shearing title despite his rival pipping him by one second.
May I take your coat?
Keenan Scott is one of just a few professional alpaca shearers in New Zealand. Each year he shears about 8,000 animals across the North Island. Audio, Gallery