Oli Le Lievre 0:03
G'day, welcome to Super Saturday. Today I am sitting down with a man and doing something which is synonymous with so many visits to an Australian farm a farm tour is well and truly up there. Sam golden takes a huge amount of pride in everything he does from his business to how he supports his community. But one thing he is incredibly passionate about, and it will show in this episode is around education and helping people understand more about their cotton farm and their cotton clothing business going to Indy cotton, I've done with it. So I'm not gonna take too much time. There's a few glitches, there's a few not so pretty bits as microphones go in and around cars. We were in cars out of cars walking around, it was a tree farm tour. And if you want to check it out, there's a few different shops on our Instagram.
Speaker 1 0:51
which traditionally shoot right away through to the 50s with no more riding the sheep's back, who means out farming down the country, the old and huge wine and little linen. And then we're putting up money irrigation borne down in 1957, mostly to supplement cattle feed. And then we went to cropping, sorghum and corn corner, like that. And then in 1973, we came in and we bought this farm, which was partly developed the irrigation and we got in developed it got going. And then in 1978 77, we planted the first crop. And we've been talking about growing cotton. The Americans have been growing cotton, we will and quite successfully. But no but you've been dying to grow it outside of there.
Oli Le Lievre 1:39
Why was that?
Speaker 1 1:40
Well, mainly because it cost so much to get into. And to go from a grain farmer to growing cloth on a bush just takes a bit of getting through the brain wired about what's gonna happen and gonna pick it and we're gonna, when we don't know. And luckily what happened to us. We blend in you went broke. And we had to go to court change and adapt. And we had to so
Oli Le Lievre 2:04
but it sounds like it was like a pretty risky move, though, wasn't it like, Oh, she
Speaker 1 2:09
was a mentalist. We had the gun to their head. Say I went to my fertiliser companies who I had money for from last year. And my seed companies, my fuel companies and said listen in your bags, were a real problem. Unless you give me a crop term for another year. I'm gonna grow cotton on this, what's gonna happen? You're gonna lose a lot. So they all went with me all my suppliers, and why we went with our family. I mean, we grew the first crop of cotton in this field over here. The double Chevron's the first one in the valley to grow. And another black will Roger normal. My next door neighbour, he put in some cotton as well stay out was going to go anyway. We pay most of our bills. The first year time off. It's changed and adapt like most people do on the land or in any says business. They don't die. Get out there and pick another line and why that guy? And we do that. And she won't lie. country people in working on land. I mean, it rained last show. There's a change of direction this morning. But you've got to be ahead of that all the time. Thinking at what the hell's going on out there anyway, but we've always been that way. So most people on the land today have been that way. Is the farm you grew up on? No, I grew up at Northstar Northstar get from a place called get it and we still own that. My brother Dutch brother Ben and William Blair, and say, Oh, man should be here irrigation and drawn in and it's a beautiful part of the world. That's all soils, you know, magnificent. So
Oli Le Lievre 3:45
for EBO as ever, I'm wanting to go farming right. I love asking different people the question, what would be like your earliest memory in agriculture your more
Speaker 1 3:57
earliest memories. Party carbs, wedding party cars with milk bottle on the tennis courts. Delegate. I mean, as a five year old kid, Mommy's gonna get all bloody put bodies in a drought which plays and tails going in. And the beautiful part about all the calves playing in an afternoon on a bit of a hill you know all dancing medium pine and light blacks Do you know I mean, it's gorgeous. Yeah, but the potty cars and everybody. And it was cattle and land. And lamps and lions the eyes. Go to All I wanted to do at school and I left when I was 15 and 40. All in one of those command drove it back up. get mixed up in in. I can go and we're still a little bit down on me.
Oli Le Lievre 4:49
So what do you got the couple of plans running around here.
Speaker 1 4:54
This pipeline is running fine dining room and watch the next door neighbours just like Memorial Day Good morning,
Oli Le Lievre 5:03
what's changed since you came home at 1501?
Speaker 1 5:09
The whole world changed. It's been part of each continual challenge or farming techniques, from the Old English ways of being the main thing was changed from ploughing to no till, like you see on the right hand side, in that hilly country out there with the best old soils. I mean, if we you still farming now each way, you wouldn't have any soil left to be all gone, raging would have taken for change in their yields. You know, I came home from school, we were going trickles to town. And now we're growing a tonne and a half to Tong got to stop by the I could drop it. I mean, it's magic, we've been able to store more moisture in the soil, and the rain comes down on that stubble, we used to get it in heavy stone, and it will just blow the velocity of the raindrop down and store more moisture. And that's all we're trying to do as farmers anyway. You go anywhere throughout Australia now. And that's all we're trying to do is store energy restore moisture, by
Oli Le Lievre 6:11
having different interests and stuff go because obviously started off in grind and whatnot. But then, yeah, we
Speaker 1 6:17
had to go. And it's the most profitable thing to grow per millilitre of water. Whether it's dryland or irrigation,
Oli Le Lievre 6:26
how the varieties and how's cotton changed since you got started. Grant was
Speaker 1 6:31
shovelling out it was their first year we took it off. But I mean, what happened was it was profitable. 1975 didn't help us much because we had a flood come right through here and wiped us out that really put some pressure on
Oli Le Lievre 6:45
you have you already planted the crop and everything? Well, we didn't have
Speaker 1 6:49
any cotton in red was soybeans and sorghum and sunflowers and lunchtime. And not a lie lighted area that can 75 Which Didi and that put us into the financial pressure. So we went yeah, that's how we got into the cotton on negotiating repayments on that type of thing. We've got that way it was the best thing ever do. What's happened over the years you'll find that award, it comes from Pindari dam, and Glen Lyon dam to the Easter's and years ago, they put them up in the 60s. And what happened was, they sat there for years not being used, they were full. So the government says the board resource we should get along the river and issue some irrigation licences and let's they were put up drought free towns and grow food when the drought zone and get them going along the edge of the rivets loop the guys use US farmers lived off the rivers and guys has been gracious. They were gracious, they weren't farmers, we came in here and then we started growing cotton. And then it was my goal and why it went. And at that particular point in time with arrogation licences, we had an 80% reliability factor that we were going to get water every year. And then we had a meeting with water resources in 1982. And they said of all the licences have been handed out or developed will drop back to about a 29 30% expectancy right? I don't know when wack Jason's it's a disaster because you're going in and spent 1000s levelling and ditches and all that type of thing, but and that was the start of the over allocation. Australia wide that's what have they ever allocated the licences along the rivers from the dams that's what they're doing. So they're still doing that. Sorry, no, no, no, that was all chopped back all it was in the 80s
Oli Le Lievre 8:49
Is that what you ended up in? Yeah, we
Speaker 1 8:51
ended up ended up getting caught overwritten a mess, you know, I mean, timing families fighting and but it was it was basically against the water resources and the government though, they'd hand out so many licences and they wanted to hand out more and and that was just wanting to do anybody even good.
Oli Le Lievre 9:10
So did that really create like hostility amongst families? And oh, yeah, no, I
Speaker 1 9:15
put a bad split between families you know, up here on the river, and it is done in a number of other words to that it's a bad taste in people's mouths is bad and work. But it was government started and government should have finished it but they didn't. They lifted Palmer FIDE farmer Pharma. And you're still saying that now down the mountain big in places like that, you know, rich crazy. We're government shipping inside? No, this is what's got to happen. We've stopped this up this works. Yes, the blue one. So what happens is we it over the years, we've gradually I mean, when we first grew up as cotton crop, we were growing a bale per millilitre of water. Now We're grabbing two bales per millilitre of water. We used to spray him 15 times we did a tea pile of different chemicals. Now with plant breeding and CRDC those types of people have come through and we're growing to bales per millilitre. It's incredible what's happening with the recirculation tanks for decisions. The highest part of this farm is right here. This is the oldest dam on the McIntyre Valley, it's 100 acres holds about 400 mega litres of water, the water comes down from Glen Lyon dam, and Pindari dam takes about nine days to get here, when we ordered, comes down, we pump it out of the river up onto the farm he we cannot just go in and pump it out of the river, we've got to order our water, pinch how much we've been distributed that year depends on how much water is in the dam or allocation. We pump it up straight into here, we try and take it when we order it straight into on the farm straight into the into the crops. But sometimes in that period of time, you'll get a storm. So we bring it up and shove it in our dam, that border that's coming through for those nine days. Or for that water instead of putting it on the back because only just like a clean sheet is going to run all day on the bottom end of this farm allow us to where we came in. That's the lowest point on the farm so everything runs through there and then it's cut back into the hill and it comes right back up. And we can pump it back up into this recirculate everything on this farm everything. On the other side water comes on from the river and you go straight into a crop and then you get a two inch fall around. There's just like 10 sheets so everything so we pump that water back up onto our farms. Number one, it's illegal to lead power water run off your farm, as in back into the river back into the river. Yeah, we've got to be able to hold a two week storm on our farms. That's what we're gonna
Oli Le Lievre 12:03
do. So you can't end up building like a bit of a dish really. So it's like your boundaries are a bit of the edge of the bowl. Well,
Speaker 1 12:08
we've got banks all around to stop and to hold and to sell or to atone to pop back out.
Oli Le Lievre 12:15
So at what stage did you go from just being a grower to then moving into the whole fashion space they began to indica. Oh, and why?
Speaker 1 12:25
Well, what we wanted to do was because we gave some of the best product in the world, Australian cotton farmers, and iron ore, rich and beiges everything brings good product quality product and sought after bottle because of the quality. We've just wanted to take some cotton, lean and turn it into yarn for knitting and sold to the knitters or the weavers that's what we wanted to do. So we had 204 bales spun into 20 Count T shirts my T shirt in Indonesia we brought it back to Australia and that was enough for a couple of 100,000 T shirts. We tried to sell it today because it was about we just worked it out wrong. And then we ran into a blank that was making T shirts for piping on the surfwear live at Newcastle and he said look if you put the yarn in I'll get it needed and have cut Mike and trim for piping hot and he said but you won't get paid until the hot get paid from the retailers like David James remark no top person probably gonna burn it anyway we'll try and do something with it. That's it the errata whatever you type, it got up and going it's about 18 months, two years and it was starting to move along. But at the same time I always wanted to bring the manufacturing back to Ghana windy to try and give to value added product when you go from $500 a bale to a T shirt and you turn into a t shirt at a wholesale price of say 20 bucks you just take 20,000 bucks a mile. I mean if you take you know 500,000 bales that go in the gunner windy area, and you turn it all into a t shirt to take up into the beans dollars. I mean imagine the economy here we just boom incredible. So to value add that product. So we started off that way I ran into Louisiana's and who you met yesterday and design and she was teaching the bug bug rubella type over here and bug Avila and chat about 1012 sours that were telling us it rolling well. Guys, we're making Sydney we're bringing a bit of cloth back up and cutting it out from and they were showing us losers cutting it out and they were teaching these cells. So in the 90s What we did is we had the soldiers were taught how to clap for sailors and good sailors. They bought their own industrial machines. They started working from home they finished that type college course But if we were paying him on a piecemeal basis, it's perfect. We were cutting him out the front back sleeves, collars, that type of stuff, take it to their house, they'd show them all together, we'd go and pick them up, bring him back and do the buttons and buttonholes back at the office where we work. And I was working well, paying them on a piecemeal backup was perfect for them. Because they did get the kids off to school, send the husband to work, and then just sit down and save and make some extra money. You know, it was great, was great, and they loved doing that type of stuff. And then we got through into the 2000s, we were going okay, and then just making polo shirts, and then we had to start bringing in a little bit of colour, we will make a natural product. And then we bought some agents on board to sell our products throughout the stage, Peter and hiring Ferrari all manufacturers moving offshore, this idiots heading west, everybody else reading east. Yeah, all all knit houses, the weaving houses, the spinning mills, everything's closed down. They're all gone to Asia. So in 2008 2009, we are the closed down, but we moved up. So we went to China went Hong Kong. And we mentioned people up there. And we started very slowly started bringing some products through. They were stuffing it up, they were trying to do it too cheaply. It just wasn't right. But we learned we showed them what we want done the specifications, exactly. The type of thread at the buttons, the stitches per inch, the white consistency, and will remember that it went from a $2 shirt to a $12 shirt. When you got involved in product nausea, cotton was going Sousa was prescribed, but we wanted something back had to be done perfectly. And then it started to move from there. And now we manufacture out of Hong Kong and China. We're in India, and some product coming out of Vietnam, this next 12 months, we started to spread out manufacturing and risk because it will problems, potential problems. But it was to value add to bring more dollars into town where the agricultural sectors run into problem is droughts, we get a fantastic community moving on a few things, generally, you've got good seasons. And then what happens to get drowned in the summer all the tattle. There's no farming going on. And we have to the people get put off. And I mean, the people in their 30s, with young kids at school, got a higher purchase got a house paper, they got no choice, there's no job, so they gotta go to the coach. So we have to have more outside money coming in, rather than just farming. And hence, Ghana, we need cotton helps a lot in that area. We got product going all around Australia, and overseas now. So on a daily basis. So US dollars coming into town, they helped keep the butcher the back of the candlestick market going into your town. Because when the draft save a more broad and want to have a hair done, and all want to go to the pub, I want to make sure they're open to it. It's just a little thing. And we've got to get more and more of that outside income coming into town. The tourist industry does help us not much 95% of the money that comes through Ghana really is from parliament. That's a reason Ghana in us here otherwise, it'd be just a BP garage. That's all it's farming number one. So we have to have something else. And then it started to move towards waste. I saw in this word sustainability. What is sustainability? I believe farming. We are number one in sustainability. I mean, we've been engaged. And we've kept that. And there's been a lot of families do the same thing. Our farmers, they have to be sustainable. You might say, I couldn't be born in that early 50s. We didn't waste anything. We used everything. And what we're seeing now is that much waste, you can't fix it. You think you can't. Everybody wants new clothes get caught. And I can't blame people for that. What we're going through is unsustainable. If the pressure on agriculture, food, energy, this type of thing keeps increasing, the prices are going to keep going up. It doesn't really solve. We've done extremely well. In our country. We've got a brilliant standard of living compared to other countries. I saw sustainability I saw or saw or seen up in bein Dong in Indonesia, crypto news ago, I walked into the same toy factory cut my country. And here's a kid sitting there about 12 years of age sewing And then yeah, everybody. Yeah, we're talking call live composure. So what's into this black I said, this was a visual pattern Kenji, you blacks this is right, this child labour, you know, mine the show us. And he said, team have been doing it for a long time. They said, I bring the kids in like it take, they get clothed, and they get schooling. And he said, If I'm not here, he said, you see that rubbish dump, which is three times higher than that shed, we should touch with it by
Oli Le Lievre 20:37
just scanning as we just discovered.
Speaker 1 20:39
He said that 18 year old boy did that on the floor as wartime. He started in that rubbish dumps. And now he's here. And they all work. They all get reading, writing and arithmetic. recognise that they should they get three paid today and they got some clothes on any shed seven o'clock in the morning. That, that that door get in, they do not want to go home. And you can understand. Now that's what I call sustainable. Not that we have child labour. I don't do any manufacturing on labour that that hit me hard. And when I sit here, and I listen to hear people say you should be paying this person that person and bah, bah, bah, and you shouldn't be using child labour. Come on. That's what those countries are bound. You're not going to change it. It'll take years to change.
Oli Le Lievre 21:36
has that opportunity because they're going to end continents seeing other parts of the world especially like developing countries and whatnot. How much has that changed in like shaped your view of the world? You I can
Speaker 1 21:45
change my view of the world? Yes. I do know. We're extremely, extremely like country. There's no doubt about that. Rule number one, as I say, Canada, these other areas. They're all what I see in Asia. They're all happy people. They enjoy their lives. They are maybe because they haven't gone the material things we have to find either. Yeah. Beautiful, beautiful food. It just goes on and on. No one you know. Yeah. I'm trying to fit in with anybody. Anytime, anywhere. As you saw this morning I've been around the world I believe the lady Don's.
Speaker 1 22:32
Auto hookah gave me buddy. We're starting to move towards lateral move on this. Oh, no, doggy. Yeah.
Oli Le Lievre 22:42
I reckon people who are just coming on to that like probably well, I mean, I wouldn't know much about your family. So how many? You four brothers. Everyone's still farming but you've all gone separate ways now. Yeah,
Speaker 1 22:55
we're all we're all integrated. I mean, my brother, my nephew Sam farms this in conjunction with his phone this farm here which just to the south Mila join. Yep. Rather been his offices in my office to go live. And but we were also discussing Paul the other day goes on and on and on every day.
Oli Le Lievre 23:23
Or every second. Are they supplying intake Endicott? That's all that's all sealed? No,
Speaker 1 23:28
no. See, we only use Ghana when he calm. We don't use all the on call. No way. Because we've got that many, many different types of yarns that we do use. You've got to have a couple of 100 bales spun at a time. And we only use about 75 bales, over 12 Different games each year. And if you did, all that span is allowed the last year for 10 years. But what happens is the pension changes. And you've got to separate a whole pile of cotton yarn that you can't do anything with. I mean, it just goes on and where do you store and it's got to be spun. offshore. You can't bring it back onshore, it just never stops. You know, I mean, so it is best to just buy Australian con. Well, if we don't get that we'll get you. American cop come through. Yeah.
Oli Le Lievre 24:21
So Well, I was gonna ask you, like, farming is one thing which is evolving, and that will even in the last 24 hours running cancer. It's a chance to play cancer today. But good luck. Fashion is a whole different based. Yeah, quickly that knows from season to season. How do you stay across all these things? Well,
Speaker 1 24:38
I've got very, very good. Yeah, very good designers, production people. And it works extremely well. They are courses they travel, go to the stage. You've got. It's a lot easier now with the internet, all the communications and you can use that and see different types of colours, types of styles that coming through nowhere So you don't used to be you don't have to travel as much well no it's the feel the touch and sight of all the people on our internet you probably get a million people
Unknown Speaker 25:12
visits a year at any 1.4% A lot of people by people like to walk in it for your look try on all girl that's that's terrible a lot what
Oli Le Lievre 25:31
is your day to day look like of what you do they're
Speaker 1 25:35
going to start over bloody six o'clock in the morning yeah driving and instal farm having a look around up late or around other farm or back looking at what the Aussie dollars done overnight how we can take some options to protect yourselves because all our manufacturers in US stores that we've got to pay for in Australia take Australian dollars and we've got sales wherever night I look at those. I'll look at where the currency shot. The first thing before I do anything of a morning is look at my phone and look at five weather apps every morning and every night. And you're gonna die trying to get a feel of what's going on with the wars because even it's affected by the weather. Yeah, so we constantly looking I usually Yeah, first cotton agronomists we ever had a fella called Chris lumen from now Brian Paul Chris dead near or exotic my art. But he is standing right here in that our highway. He said you know this federal Washington give your lane footprint walking across looping. And it's just not in farming is across all businesses. You walk your talk you listen to your help, are much more. It's amazing. What we can pick up on and loan payable work goes on. And that's what I do.
Oli Le Lievre 27:10
Well, I'll say it like fascinates me because it's was just so much information and things to take in. Hey, that just it's really through conversations and a
Speaker 1 27:20
bit balling. It's trusting people, where people that don't lean over people's shoulder and say, This is how you got to do it. And that's the game you got to go in and you got to let people live their lives. And if you've got a team of people running the team will will keep them going. And don't want to be part of a team like that in Sean Chandler Smalley. It's amazing. You people know the numbers, what's happening out there, what our sales are at what our costs are. What's happening out there every day. Government scoreboard. Sitting right up there, like going to a football match. You got him when he caught him. They're watching the numbers. What the sounds are what Garmin say Are they watching a large current show. All in the other thing, wheelers. I haven't put or fired anybody who's used to call it 44 inch wire. Okay, that is Chris, I got fitting with Tony. People come on board is the team that tore down I mean, there's 25 and Buddy calibrated cotton and we'll go through with the contractor and Bob and bits and pieces. I mean, it's part of the tone. Yeah. And if you've got to let the team run, go give them direction or help with direction and there's times you have to make some hard decisions. But I'll listen to what everybody's got to say. And then we make the decision together. It works that I say everybody's striving to do somebody's just not a job from nine to five from seven to six most more people work every day. I mean it's on and they're even thinking watching if they're at nighttime it's on their computers and phones.
Oli Le Lievre 29:05
And so you just try on finding there's a type of I'll say there's a top person who fits in with your to hear the
Speaker 1 29:11
Tron but now work themselves from soon yeah, it's like pick the ball up and they run with their area and go wow, this you know, yeah. These are my ownership. Nothing worse and I'll listen I'll get abroad I've been married 50 he's, oh, you're abroad that guy's got it. He got to do this. Got it.
Oli Le Lievre 29:32
You don't want to be like that
Speaker 1 29:35
Daddy's got four kids. I had four girls I got Buddy seven Grange eight grandchildren now and I told him that was enough. The oldest is 23 and the youngest is six and we're very very likely person will help me know sort of mission tomorrow night. No, no, because we haven't any basketball regime managers. We got to get on revamp everything. The other problem that the farming have is exactly what you're trying to do. And that's why I like education. We've been able to feed that mob to use that we haven't been over to educate them on Helston. Everybody thinks this all food and fibre comes from a 20 acre farm in Tasmania. This is the real this is where it all happens. This is where it's done professionally and sustainably. Most people before they come out here on our bustles, no subroutine, which started at Buster which was to educate people. And that was only years ago. I'll put that on the circus but goes on. Paul does work six days, go up to operators and running. And we do have a farm and town tool. But it was to, to show people are sky. Everybody watches television, and they go on well, that counts. I use a three quarter garden hose. Let me use it. And then coming out here Lego. Well, and this is one of the smallest cotton farms in the matador Valley, outgrowing its original one the most small. And it's incredible what what people pick up from what we've had. There's a lot of people that don't like the cotton industry. And they come in and I got like, really start to understand what's happening. I mean, the world produces 120 million bales of cotton each year, we produce three and a half 4 million bales of cotton. So I'm really upset. But we are 12% of the world's spinning market. The length, the strength and our fondness in our cotton fibre is magnificent. built, the world wants it. It's something that's very much sought after. You've got to have cotton, the current views anything else the world wants it. And when you start looking at, it's not just made into T shirts or garments, you've got hospitals, bandages, swabs, I mean it's everywhere. And people talk about us using water. Of course we're gonna use water. Everything uses water, the cement in this for us water. But as I said earlier, we're growing. We used to grow bile per millilitre. And now we're going to barf. I mean, it's faster. Wheat and barley are exactly the same soya beans. Corn uses more water. I guess I'm not alone and for some reason, the press over the years but come back to the education part of it. It's all spring Palm Beach, and we're getting worse much worse because actually the Bibles are Yes. And you get Instagram. What time pages goes by how about a farmers using mortar? And then next minute gets worse much worse? Yeah, no. Stop. So and those spiders are hurting us or taking the resources away from us. That's what's so education's and we run out about there's about three and a half or without and people do a farm tour. We
Oli Le Lievre 33:17
somebody started it at education,
Unknown Speaker 33:20
just pure education and
Oli Le Lievre 33:21
was it hard to get people initially or just an open gate policy?
Speaker 1 33:25
It was funny political. Kim Frankel Kim Frankel. That caravan park in Uganda renewed one Thursday afternoon he arrives and you should leave him you should I got people every weekend. Do you want to do something wrong? All you said I just want to hold him another night. He said can you take them out to your farm and show him this episode afternoon. Monday morning. We had the school bus at nine o'clock. We had 23 people on the bus during the whole school bus in the driver and then we put a person on board and then we put them on and you tell you on Yeah, just keep going. But it's a costly thing to run but it really promotes it to our area in agriculture. Yep, we set this up now we started really starting to set up we had to pick Are you that one of those Oh, is
Oli Le Lievre 34:20
this funny original? Yeah well I haven't even when it comes to like trading off machinery was it this had sentimental value that you didn't sell it along the way at work. Oh
Speaker 1 34:33
just bloody didn't die five or something like that. And then we went to four o's and now we're that pub pick a bylaws now message him and his buddy you still don't pick up on the week me? Yeah, yeah, love our own wheat and barley and that type of stuff. No drawling, enchanting irrigation but basically my llama drone and my love are cognitively magnificent. They're really easy. It's one of the best interviews we've ever made mixed up in with them. Now, when you look at cattle, we will see real grind and Bichon bushes, but the cotton industry is magnificent. It runs well extreme.
Oli Le Lievre 35:13
Tell me a bit about what you guys are doing with. Well, we were putting recycled cotton back on the farm.
Speaker 1 35:19
Well, we forward go be the dish. We wrote the starter COVID We had all in school buses booked for English coast to come out for three days. Yeah. And do this farm a feedlot and one of our weight pounds. Men COVID That's why Wednesday want to go back to you forgot to energy you start booking those kids. I'm out here sit in the shade here and then let you say to their parents no, they don't use that much water and the reason they did that's wrong.
Oli Le Lievre 35:59
Oh come on the tilbyr video and then we're going to get one in the classrooms and homes as well
Speaker 1 36:02
actually I'll get a lot more technology to put in here with our new Tom probes and we're going to bring change all this issue but then I'll go start bringing schools back on board Yeah, nothing can stop doing
Oli Le Lievre 36:15
community Yeah, yep.
Speaker 1 36:17
And look and get and feel and in the maizing the people that sit in the field and guys it should be more food fibre comfortable this is you're really looking after yourself late. If I don't we don't look after these I don't get fed I can't go again Catholic Lord. You got to believe in you got to trust us just on my decision. I said this is where I come from. If you hate us style and all of a sudden hit some of my my shot. I hope you're really looking at where we are. Your yields are going up we're holding more moisture with more pliable soil. And they are really happy with that because it's the basis of life number one so we set this up Bubba ship roadshow so that no other picking takes place. You know, the spindle caught up the bushes that come through Bubba bar in the right way shirt or little cotton gin over here. Good this if you see these sores, you might be able to see him saw was through slot these better so they're short saw the rotary souls as the principal of a gene that the word gene comes from engine. It used to be in the States when they picked the cotton and put them in a bag on their back. They walked up to the engine. Now the souls free slot, and what happens is you see the seat, pillar seat in that in that column. The seats got to be that will engage to gene that's what the separation is, is a feed from money linked calm, the link goes to one child and seed goes out as food. And a third of what you see on my cotton plant is food which goes to feed lots shaped cradle. machine if you have a loop coming up. Yeah. But that's a principle for Virginia and teach them that. Yeah, and the lid guys that suit come back this way. The suit goes out into big shade at the back. And then you've got your length. And back then on the other side of the circle is the Murray Darling Basin dried dividing round when we show him what's happening with our water. If you look at the what the Murray Darling Basin, it starts down here Bathurst runs all the way up. Right up to Toowoomba. What around the malls, brought up to tame by Tony Hungerford. That footage down into Wentworth where the Darling river comes in. We can each mashes area would contribute about 14 to 15% of the water to look to the merit that We contributed a chi dama we're getting more and more restrictions put on water up here as irrigators, which is hurting our towns and the productivity in our towns, and the underwriting of the the town, the government are gradually taking more and more water off at the Murray Darling Basin to push more watered down through here. It won't get the it doesn't get there on in major floods, that the other thing that's happening is all a farmer in that area have all being able to store more moisture. All our yields are going up on air drawling all the cattle, the sheep, they're all storing more moisture in the ground to go better crops or more grass tops not running off as much. What we're trying to say now is because that's happening. Let's say that we're not getting the border down to go on into the dark into the mountain. So they're taking more more of the irrigators. More I will watch, right. That's what's happening. And we show people that and watch going on food shoots.
Oli Le Lievre 41:26
And so well, if you guys are storing, like you're storing more, but you say you wished we're not using more,
Speaker 1 41:33
it's just not really it's not running off. See what happened held in one you will spend held in the ground. So even the farmers that shape farms, out this way ball on columella outlet area played by had the shape we looked down so far. And then the Roos would come in and just get dammed up like that. And every 34 points or 40 points are used to run Yes, now. They've got exclusion fencing in aka kangaroos contain kangaroo population. And the grass is growing more, there's more water penetrating the soil, the soils are getting better. They're more productive and more microbes in the soil. Because of you Mr. spiking down into the soil is gradually we are getting better and better at retaining more and more I'm not familiar, go straight to the recirculation thing. That's Kamala product. We put down the first year, each garments and some sheets that we shredded, and we sped that was three years ago, because this is all real. This is all the garment garments from sheet. We put that down on our field just over here, we'll just go ahead with that now. And it was gone within about four or five months, the barrier or the silage will get buried or put it just spread it around and calibrated to do it within the microbes increase in microbial activity was unbelievable. In the microbes just love the butcher in their pets all wounds and coffin whatever was incredible what happens. blood guilt, I can show you some are they on the figure? Well, yes, we do. We spent this year we spent this year that's cotton shooting and clash pitcher clay and we put it down a couple of times of the hectic we put down kintone on the land over there in the soil. It's time to go now but it is retaining 20% more moisture in that area at this particular time than where it hadn't been managing what's happening.
Oli Le Lievre 43:58
So had you ever come across that like putting old sheets and we're also kind
Speaker 1 44:04
of political Oliver Knox. He's at the university or was at the University of armour now. And he about five or six years ago, he buries on the page Danowsky might have to but anyway, after astonishment, we're relief. About six months later he went back and dug them up. And it had eaten normal. And we'd known for a long time that fabrics just the microbes eat them and put it back in the soil. So Ollie was the one that sort of didn't mind and said come off, you know and we already been started doing it shredding our garments and putting them back into soul. And all he was the one that said Kent has got it Sheraton sheets and CRD so together and we did our first call here about three years ago with cotton and stone. And yeah, really Well, so now we've done the first large scale call over 10 hectares per country to see what's going to happen. What we're worried about is the dies back in our soil trash will. But we're not seeing any detrimental problems from dies, none whatsoever. We are seeing more microbes, and we are seeing more more Chahal credible I didn't go out there to throw on carbon pollution as soon as people heard about this, all the carbon lights came out of Brisbane and Sydney and, and light and as soon as they found out that they was gonna get that much carbon more they were known, they were hoping to really crack down on the carbon run. It will move to carbon and it will help and in top its head we've spent some amount of grass countries on our cattle farms. And the increase is unbelievable. It's just magnificent. So this way we run a bus to six days a week. lol we shall make a saddle syphon the dirty at the moment you get a round bale out of a pig Randy Oh miniature bio.
Unknown Speaker 46:23
All he takes him in a
Speaker 1 46:26
moment you say yeah, we know what happened buddy. And by all our ducks got good buddy make sure you're
Oli Le Lievre 46:38
following this doggy
Speaker 1 46:40
wardrobe I would love to be mindful and bloody Yeah, that'd be got a drink in their bag please heard Oh good.
Oli Le Lievre 46:52
Thank you had that coffee before
Speaker 1 46:55
you have to be on that stage of life but I have to show people what's going on in time and help more young younger generation the truth with we're not bad people we're good people we the people here know my understanding is just education.
Oli Le Lievre 47:20
Because well if you don't mind me asking how old I am. Sherman
Speaker 1 47:26
seven and Gladding 60 I still remember the dialtone 60 long in bed she'll feel a bit bloody was on table 100 friggin seven I'll accept and cross have just done and you go you're trying to think but nothing's happening and you've been through it you know I'm gonna get home back and
Oli Le Lievre 47:50
say this is the trial and he
Unknown Speaker 47:53
picked his TV days by a lecture on beta TV.
Oli Le Lievre 47:58
The full run is the trial Oh,
Speaker 1 48:01
we spent it well. It was sold the ground on top of the ground but my shorts been working on just lots of bloody ufone pretty good to the to show that the grass is just bloody. The microbes in the are just eating that away. It's just incredible amount that's happening.
Oli Le Lievre 48:31
And so what they used to be 10 until
Speaker 1 48:33
it's all gone it'll be gone by the February March area it'll all be just go back into the show in micron activities incredible. Wishing you see it right down through the Red Beach. Only gives you probability Gotcha. Deep when you want to punch me count blank for no longer it's been bloody chewed away it's gone. But see the squeeze here the flowers are just about to pop out. Here was the buds that are coming through the buds are cotton. This year is the yields going to be astronomical. Magnificent they really are. It's just a breeding ground for cotton. Never saw the clock.
Oli Le Lievre 49:36
So what is it that about this year that makes it different to others again, I
Speaker 1 49:40
spent a little bit of humidity. It's perfect. 20 degrees overnight. Up to 3435. During the day, perfect growing conditions. You're getting northeasterly winds most of the time. We're not westliche. That dry or cruel. It's a number of things more superb research on before in the soil monitor. And there's one up the top end of this block outside the troll area. Yep, this one a year in right in the middle, Alicia is holding back 20 to 22% more moisture. And he couldn't cotton count of 9% of its water value. White. And it's really buddy putting it in. But it'll be interesting to see what the yields are. So is that an old? Well, that's something else. Oh, now that's one way to go. Here. So it's just about it hadn't been unlike the sort of shiny button on top, depending on the speed issue, but it's not alarmed me and something. I thought Oh, my God. Oh, shoot, you know, but see, we what happens if we can get this going. And it's gonna take a long time to get going. It wouldn't get 50 or 100,000 Come shredding factory in Ghana windy, and people stopped sending their waste. Back to here. It starts another industry. For the butcher, the baker, the candlestick maker. Yeah, it secures an area and an income, no matter how much rain or how little rain. Yep, it coming back into the town all the time. It is just an that Tepes young people here. Not like each one finished. You got to have young people. That's why they pay. That's why he's not still paying for the bores. Got to have those people. Yeah, it and you got to have women. And you've got to have kids. And there's, again 100 kids at school in Gunnedah. We knew this for school. And we can't go on Oh, we've got to be able to grow and attract and hold those people. But we've been lucky. I mean, our values are going up, our land values have gone up mainly because of the super funds and that type of thing and coming in and buying overseas Superfund land values and bits and pieces. We've had low interest rates yet, you know, over the last 20 years. I mean, we live through buddy 20 20% interest rates during the 80s. Late 80s. Early 90s I mean, honey, Jesus hit it back my head you
Oli Le Lievre 52:30
guys get it? Look what
Speaker 1 52:34
the banks didn't want to see us go down. We bullshitted every farmer about the bad news? Yeah, sorry. The natural, I'm just gonna have a pitch. And we bullshitted the bank is they only wanted to sit in the office. So anyone might come in and start cyphers or trial my bank? You know, uncountable.
Oli Le Lievre 52:55
Yeah, they will. Yeah, I still want a job. So they needed to Yeah, and
Speaker 1 52:59
I just thought went to hard work paid 25% interest rate. And they will show every four years. In three years I had I owed. I had no equity whatsoever. Where it was all gone. And yeah. And a lot of people were in the same boat. But we had good production. And we were able to produce early 90s were bad because we had drought years. That was hard, really hard. But we held on to all our people, the boys Hill, all that bridges that type of stuff, because we knew it would ride. Yep. If you think it's not gonna remind me official get out of the bush, you know, gather coat fill up, go to the car. Yeah. It's a lot of any business or anything to do is commitment. It takes years to build a slug gun. And when he caught him, I help them even 30 years, but it hasn't made any money. Unlock that pot five, six years ago started to make a bit. Most of our income comes from our phone. It's just pure commitment, long term commitment. And you stick there and you will hold it. You change directions within those companies, or ways the strategy to do that is part of a commitment. I mean, as I said, I've been married for two years now. She did bloody well the last or audit bloody well love to put honey on the river referred to us because I you know, she said very good commitment. Well,
Oli Le Lievre 54:36
so it's interesting, like you're saying before about how you came in, everything's so important. How far into the future you kind of look like with your, with
Speaker 1 54:45
Ghana when you were out there two years, developing them as prototypes coming through for winter 25 now coming in, and we're looking at summer 26 colours and those type of things and styles coming through. Yeah, sure. How you got to be out there poor take your time, but it's farming and business is like driving down the road. You got to be over to see what's coming in from the right, what's the left, what the speed is what's behind you, what's coming straight at you. And I turned to my grandchildren, I know he was in the wrong and he ran into you and killed her, your date, you have to be working out what helps look and what's happening in the future. It's just like driving any business. He's just like driving is looking at it, and be able to predict what's coming in ahead of you, and what you do to get around it. And you know, that's a problem coming up. So we're going to do B. And then if that looks a bit akin when we get to a we'd go to C It's like driving from here to Brisbane a tree over the road or I mean, you got turned around. You've got to know where to get out and get around it. You just don't sit there little buddy. Here. It's quite Giba. Yeah, come on.
Oli Le Lievre 55:56
So all went well. You do somebody interesting stuff. If you were coming into ag today with everything that's going on, where like what would be your dream role, if you entering agriculture today as a young fella, again, you stay I mean, I discourage
Speaker 1 56:09
everyone, or see where a young bloke coming on to farms should be coming in and working for companies like us though. And they are professional companies produce a massive amount of technology now. I mean, if we hadn't moved to technology 20 years ago, and kept moving built, we'd have been out of business, Marcus Holman, places like that, then through to camp like this then overseas packet, its attention to detail, your learn and get the jobs done properly and on time in agriculture, like all businesses, asked to be done on time. There's no if batter in adults, but it's got to be done to die. And that's the number one rule but to bring young people back into agriculture and to gradually own farms, I would go out and loose or share farm for me and if somebody will lend you the money to buy something you take the money and power go for just go for it no matter what happens. It's what have been the banks the banks are in the business of lending money if they want to lend you money and they reckon your character and your Westlife good enough you go on board and get into it him okay I didn't 10% borrowed to America just go for your plan but your your goal you got to have his commitment. That's all you got to have. And you will ride because Ryan did more take another year, but you're gonna hold out till it runs it will run and that's what adduction not price is always been our problem, lack of production. And it's been droughts and hence why that why some of our farms have got irrigation gotta have a turn right? The rest of the farming in the rest of the jobs in large file and we have about 120 permanent people the family doesn't permit and then we've got casually said from
Oli Le Lievre 58:14
what have you learned from being like so close to the point of failure? Like
Speaker 1 58:19
Obernai 110% for and that was all now valuations know the bank evaluations are brother been annoying dive on rail, but it was disaster. We're on dip right number of dollars. But if you have that commitment in Spain budgets, externalise budget actual difference there's no I remember the days when we couldn't write out $100 change unless we rang the bank. So boy, you
Oli Le Lievre 58:53
couldn't have been on blocks down the road. We've
Speaker 1 58:57
just gone in and work and went for it. Anyway, it's that commitment. Gotta be out there. We love it all. And I love those days too. He was challenged by that outside China got the ball thing get through gets a pass that buddy that's on Tinder in the fullback you know that challenge is there it got a hold with challenge now there's we lackey there's a lot of people look mourn in Australia, a comfortable living and they won't they don't want to take any changes and they want to work there. Five days a week, six days a week technically, I don't want to spend with their families convinced opponents don't mean that's fine. We're the Amazon we work six seven days a week we're also doing something in my mind low carb stop not because I like it we do is we are not another study and then form a committee to that we can make a decision which full on it. They will be, there is holy logs with an engine, and you got to back out. But you got to buy the back end of that and you go up on each one and keep going. You cannot, you gotta go unload over rounded through it. If you can't get it, you got to be able to find a way around it. Don't sit there and say, well, there's a log in the middle of night, I can't make it yet God got to do it, you might be a bit like, Toby got to happen. Each spot in the door, no pushing the people that way. We get random, we're gonna do a run into Los Angeles, where their garments, and I'm happy to the next couple of months is going to cost a couple of 100 to get there with social media and all that type of stuff. Now the website, blah, blah, blah. But we slow at the moment, the websites Australia's wide a slow, I couldn't sit there, and we haven't got production, you got to have production. We don't make any money under a 70 cent dollar. But done when it caught at 6667. Where we are now we're not making $1 Because it's us. You know, everything's paid for in US dollars. Yeah. And we have to good
Oli Le Lievre 1:01:10
for AG, bad for you.
Speaker 1 1:01:13
And it's very hard on my side because you got h boots. And then we got input the pins here you told me Do we
Oli Le Lievre 1:01:20
which one is more firing for you know,
Speaker 1 1:01:24
definitely export it. Yeah. But again, when you call them and you sit in mental protest, and they're all They're all $3 and change, the
Oli Le Lievre 1:01:32
only careful what you wish for. And
Speaker 1 1:01:35
this is where you're going to come down and build a new building right? The Garden of Eden garden. Right on February
Oli Le Lievre 1:01:44
1 in the lunchtime, sorry, you'll be able to go
Speaker 1 1:01:47
over the cover up to the pub. whereby you're going to have unreal. Now run the town legend new building in we need new things. Say that if you take a look at the street, it's nice, allowed to claim that they were old. You gotta have new things new but you young people want new things. We need painting we need a facelift in order binders. I mean, while I should be driving around my Willys Jeep. I've gotten air conditioned by the Toyota with a dog sitting in the back I mean, it and the people that come to work in town or get jobs in town, they got women that want to go within 20 minutes with a buddy coffee shop. In the schools, you know the guy and you want parents to be able to go to the sports stage and those types of things. I mean, that has to happen. And you got to have that if you want people out here that's the way it is. Everybody says all they can leave a letter or no bullshit. They want a condition they want a fridge, all that type stuff has to happen, meaning you don't
Oli Le Lievre 1:02:59
want to stop recording this game. And thank you so much. Well, that's it for another episode from us here at humans of agriculture. We hope you're enjoying these podcasts. And well if you're not, let us know hit us up at Hello at humans of agriculture.com. Get in touch with any guests recommendations topics, or things you'd like us to talk and get curious about. If you enjoyed this episode, please share it with a friend. Right subscribe, review it, any feedback is absolutely awesome. And we really do welcome it. So look after yourselves. Stay safe. stay sane. We'll see you next time.
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