The loss of her Hawke’s Bay home didn’t stop OSPRI regional partner Tess Appleby doing what she could for her community when Cyclone Gabrielle hit.

Now, thanks to the Kellogg Rural Leadership Programme, she’s also better equipped to help farmers address other challenges.

Appleby has spent the past four years of her professional life supporting and helping farmers and landowners stay on top of NAIT and tackle bovine tuberculosis (TB).

She actively engages with farmers, iwi and industry stakeholders, advocating for targeted education, increased awareness, and helping to break the stigma associated with disease-affected farms.

In 2023, Appleby’s personal resilience was tested when Cyclone Gabrielle swept through Hawke’s Bay, leaving devastation in its wake, including the loss of the home she had bought only four weeks earlier.

Despite her personal challenges, Appleby remained steadfast in her commitment to supporting the farming community during difficult times.

“OSPRI were incredible in giving me the space I needed to deal with the devastation,” she said.

“But I also wanted to be there for the farming community. Hawke’s Bay is my tūrangawaewae and it was incredibly hard to see how the devastation had affected its people and the landscape.”

Later that year, Appleby’s professional journey took a significant turn when her manager, Helen Thoday, recommended she take part in the Kellogg’s Rural Leadership Programme.

“I always thought it would have been out of my reach because it seemed to be targeted at senior management level, but then Helen suggested I do the course and supported me to give it a go.”

Thoday saw Appleby as the perfect candidate for Kelloggs.

“Tess’s commitment to the TB story in the Hawke’s Bay is difficult to rival. She has experienced the impact of TB circulating in a community first hand and that experience is crucial in our recovery planning. I thought she’d get immense value from being part of a cohort which would help her gain a broader perspective of the agriculture industry, beyond her focus on the Hawke’s Bay.”

The six-month course provided Appleby with valuable insights and tools to delve into agriculture related topics, including her research project, titled  Eradicating Complacency in Long-term Disease Control.

This project idea stemmed from her experiences during the Hawke’s Bay bovine TB outbreak in 2021-2022, a period that deeply impacted farmers in the region. Now that the disease was more under control, would farmers become complacent?

A strong history of TB eradication in New Zealand has brought 1700 infected herds in 1995 down to fewer than 20 in 2024. But the final push is the most difficult and complex part of the journey.

To achieve eradication, it’s important to access areas that are difficult to reach, treacherous or steep, or where there is a lack of owner consent to undertake pest control operations.

“My research aimed to review and analyse the current understanding of the ag industry’s knowledge and perception of bovine TB among farmers and industry professionals,” Appleby said.

Through surveys, thematic analysis, interviews and literature review, Appleby explored various aspects of disease management strategies and the human-centred approach to disease eradication.

There was shared agreement among the respondents on the importance of education, transparency and ongoing support for the TBfree programme. There was also agreement that complacency was an issue and there remained a gap between those who had experienced TB in their lifetime and those who hadn’t.

One significant aspect of the findings was the importance of storytelling in creating empathy and understanding among stakeholders.

“Sharing people-centered stories and case studies can complement technical information and foster a deeper understanding of disease management strategies,” Appleby said.

In order to combat complacency, it is important to keep the stories of bovine TB and other animal diseases top of mind. In some areas of the country, for example, they haven’t had TB and so they don’t know what it’s like to experience such a disease.

Some of the areas of education were around the importance of highlighting traceability and its role in tracing TB infected animals. Another suggestion for mitigating the spread of TB through animal movements was to provide information about where stock comes from and what questions are helpful to ask when buying from high-risk areas.

“We must tell a different story, one that inspires action and collaboration. By working together, we can achieve TB-free herds and wildlife, ensuring a healthier future for our farming communities,” Appleby said.

In Focus Podcast: Red meat and the wellness sector

 Bryan looks at some new research that highlights an opportunity for red meat exporters to tailor their products and marketing to the wellness sector.

AgResearch senior scientist Carolina Realini says More than 90% percent of survey participants across the two countries indicated interest in purchasing red meat to improve their wellness status, while about 85% indicated their willingness to pay more for red meat for potential wellness benefits.

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