Country Life

The Country Life team take you all over the motu to hear the extraordinary stories of every day rural New Zealand.

Hosted and produced by Sally Round, Gianina Schwanecke and Duncan Smith

On air:

Fridays at 7.00pm, encore on Saturdays at 6.00am on RNZ National

An abstract heart constructed from shapes similar to rural fields seen in aerial photography sits behind the text 'Country Life'.

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FULL SHOW: Country Life for 17 October 2025

This week Country Life talks to researchers who say there’s potential for the brown kiwi to become a pest patroller in orchards and vineyards. Mark Leishman pulls on his Country Life gumboots to meet an entrepreneur behind an intriguing gateway made of the toughest timber – ironbark, and a visit to a Waikato farming family who’ve been integrating robotics and automation into their dairy operation.
New episode
Dairy farming's never been easier, with automation a key part of life on this Waikato farm.

Tech is key on this Tirau dairy farm

When it comes to farming, planning for the next season today is key, says the Coubrough family. The 5th generation dairying family is are all on the same page - they want robotics to milk the cows for them.
Brett Coubrough and his daughter Linda checking on their cows.

Ironbark - the wood as hard as steel

Ever wondered what happened to some of the damaged timber from the Lyttelton wharves after the Canterbury earthquakes? The tough ironbark they were made from was too good not to be rescued and Oxford's Steve Evans was just the man for the job, as Mark Leishman discovered.
The entryway to Re-Engineered Ironbark, showing four large upright wooden poles capped with steel with a large wooden sign. In the foreground, a gateway made of riverstones

Kiwi on pest patrol

Could growers harness the kiwi as a way of reducing pests attacking their crops? A recent study has filmed the endangered birds entering vineyards and orchards at night to feast on beetles, weevils, grass grub and other insects.
Close-up image of a brown kiwi at night captured by a camera mounted in an orchard

Rural News Wrap for 17 October

A round-up of the week's news from the primary sector.
Tractors on display at Fieldays.

FULL SHOW: Country Life for 10 October 2025

This week Country Life is in Marlborough's back country on Molesworth Station, we check out the sale action at the Feilding saleyards and learn more about Chinese mooncakes, or suncakes as one gardener views them.
For over 10 years, he's been selling vegetables at the local farmers' market.

From the Archive: Mustering at Molesworth

It's an early start for the musterers at Molesworth Station. The bulls are out with the cows for the mating season and everyone needs to beat the heat. Country Life producer Sally Round spent a day with the stockmen, the farmer and the cook, peeling back some of the mystique of New Zealand's most famous farm.
Stockmen resting after a cattle muster at Molesworth

The 'big money' changing hands at the Feilding saleyards

Global demand for red meat is driving strong prices for sheep and cattle, some of the best former Feilding farmer Eric Linklater has seen in over 20 years of guiding tours at the local saleyards.
Eric Linklater is one of several retired Feilding farmers that now shares his insights through tours of the local saleyards.

Rural News Wrap for 10 October 2025

A round-up of the week's news from the primary sector.
Dairy cows in a milking facility in New Zealand.

Mooncakes under a southern sun

David Ruan says the colourful vegetables growing in his garden are like little cakes relying on the sun for energy, hence the name Suncakes Gardens.
David Ruan's grows spray-free vegetables, which he sells at the local farmers' market under Suncakes Gardens.

FULL SHOW: Country Life for 3 October 2025

This week Country Life is inside one of Fonterra's large dairy plants and meets a Canterbury farming couple making beautiful wool coats from their family's flock.
Wool handlers including Charlotte Bell spread and sort fleeces on a table in the shearing shed while a shearer works in the background

The Clip: Wool to Wear

Driven by a desire to find a pure New Zealand wool coat, and to find more use for the bales of wool sitting idle in the shearing shed, Charlotte Bell started her fashion business The Clip. She and husband Hamish farm in Hakataramea Valley in Canterbury
Three women and a man standing in a paddock modelling coats with a flock of sheep in the background

The high-tech dairy hub feeding China's sweet tooth

A growing taste for pastries, cakes and dairy-topped drinks in China and southeast Asia is fuelling demand for New Zealand-made cream cheese. Country Life takes a tour of Fonterra's high-tech factory at Darfied to see how it's made.
Hot cream cheese being packed at Fonterra's Darfield plant for Asian markets.

The art of the auction

Feilding livestock agent and saleyards auctioneer Alex Stewart on breaking into an old man's game, human calculators and conducting the sale.
Livestock agent and auctioneer Alex Stewart from PGG Wrightson at the Feilding saleyards.

On the Farm for 3 October 2025

A wrap of conditions on farms and orchards around the country.
Hawke's Bay and Manawatū farmers are still waiting for spring to start as feed and water levels are stretched tight.

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