FARMERS HELPING FARMERS podcast – episode 12

The road to regeneration with Matt Tonkin

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Meet our guest host and VicNoTill board member Michael Gooden, who stood in for podcast host Dan Fox during harvest to catch up with farm manager Matt Tonkin in episode 12 of the Farmers Helping Farmers podcast.

Matt is a Sober in the Country Bush Tribe member and was a guest speaker at the Tran$ition23 conference dinner in July 2023. Michael travelled to the farm Matt is managing near Young on the south-west slopes of the Great Dividing Range, and after a good look around the paddocks they sat down to record this episode. The road to regeneration looks at how important it is for farmers to be profitable, not only in the financial sense but also from personal and landscape perspectives.

When Matt’s life on the land hit rock bottom he realised he needed to make big changes. Instead of a farming system that relied on chemicals and synthetic inputs he chose to start thinking about one that promoted life, took a more natural approach and had the long-term health of the ecosystem at its heart. His decision to explore regenerative farming systems also provided a life-altering jolt on how he was managing his own health and wellbeing.

“Regenerative agriculture kicked me into gear to make changes to myself. We put all this effort into improving the health of our soils, farms and natural environment but a lot of the time we forget about what we are doing to our own health.”

Matt’s goal is to play a role in changing the landscape of Australian agriculture for the better, whether it be someone gaining a different mindset, or getting their business under control and making a profit in a regenerative system. This is a Farmers Helping Farmers podcast episode you won’t want to miss.

If this episode raises any concerns for you, please reach out to your mates, family or:

• Sober in the Country
• Lifeline: phone 13 11 14
• Beyond Blue