Leading by example Former World Young Shepherd Champion Mitchel Hoare says ‘walking the talk’ is critical to a good health and safety culture on the farm. Mitchel, who was Waikato Bay of Plenty 2020 FMG Young Farmer of the Year winner, was raised on a sheep and beef farm at Te Kuiti and is now second in charge at Moketenui Station in the King Country. “Reminding people about things like wearing a helmet, planning ahead to take the safe approach and always doing so yourself is important,” he says. “We’ve also got strong systems in place around staying in contact and being able to raise the alarm if needed.” Mitchel is a graduate of the Waipaoa Station cadet programme and Lincoln University. He worked at Puketiti station at Waitomo and Arohiwi Station in Hawke’s Bay, before moving to Moketenui in 2019. “Puketiti was a very good introduction to a good health and safety culture,” Mitchel says. “The team would be brought together at the end of the day to discuss things that had happened, such as near misses and anything the manager and others might need to know. It was in a relaxed, unhurried environment and reporting a near miss didn’t mean paperwork for you. For me, good leadership around health and safety comes down to that kind of good communication.” Mitchel says that also extends to talking about the safest ways to do a job.
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“In my role now, we catch up at the start of the day and discuss what we are going to do and any potential hazards and the best tools and vehicles for the job. An example is talking about the best routes to take, especially if you are going out with stock or mustering and what the best tools and vehicles to use in order to do that safely are. “There may be three or four ways to go, but there is only one best way and that may change according to the seasons. It’s important to know about that beforehand and not find out when you are dealing with stock out of step and out of position.” Mitchel says a daily list is also drawn up, detailing what everyone is due to be doing and where they will be. “Everyone gets a copy of that, so you know where everyone is meant to be. We all have radios and check in during the day and we all carry personal locator beacons on our belts, but the list adds that extra layer. If you haven’t seen someone, or you see something that hasn’t been done, then you check in on them. Vehicle safety is a strong focus. The farm has a ute, four quad bikes, a side-by-side and two tractors. “We have very good lanes on the farm, so access is very good for the vehicles,” Mitchel says. “The basic rule here is that if you have to go off the track, in hill country, then you get off the vehicle and "take the waewae express (start walking).”
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