Vanessa Dickie of Three Sticks Gotland Sheepskins takes on The Country Fast Five

Vanessa Dickie is the founder of Three Sticks Gotland Sheepskins. Photo / threesticksnz.com

New Zealanders often hear about farmers being the backbone of the country but do we really know what makes the primary industries tick?

With that in mind, The Country’s Kem Ormond has compiled a list of questions for everyday Kiwis in agriculture.

This week it’s the turn of Vanessa Dickie, founder of Three Sticks Gotland Sheepskins.

Vanessa and her husband live on their family farm in the heart of Taranaki, “on New Zealand’s wild west coast – raising our beautiful Gotland sheep and our three wonderful children”.

She said the Three Sticks name refers to the kids and the New Zealand saying that remote, rural places are out in the “sticks”.

“Nothing makes me happier than growing and sharing our own beautiful produce, enriching the lives of our family and friends”.

If you would like to be part of The Country Fast Five series, get in touch with Kem at kem.ormond@nzme.co.nz or fill in the form here.

What drew me to farming?

I married a farmer!

I met my husband in the city where we both worked before coming home to his family farm.

When I was little, I grew up on a sheep farm and I was always the first out by the bike waiting for Dad to come and take me to work.

I always adored being around the animals, having the job of looking after them and being outside.

So I feel pretty lucky I get to do that now.

What excites me about every day?

Every day is different.

Each day, a different job on the farm needs to be done, which keeps it interesting.

We’ve got a few things going on with our dairy farm, sheepskin business and our “That’s It” mānuka oil products, so there is a huge variety of jobs to do.

But mostly, I love our animals, many of whom have been pets, so I enjoy catching up with them for a quick pat and cuddle.

What being a farmer means to me.

I think being a farmer is doing your best to provide a top-quality product, for us it’s the milk, the lamb, sheepskins and our mānuka oil products.

It makes you feel proud when you produce something great for others to enjoy too.

We see ourselves as stewards of the land, we try to look after it and do our best to ensure it’s still here and workable for the future.

Three words to describe a farmer.

From what I’ve seen from farmers around us, I think farmers are:

Problem solvers – every day there is a new problem to figure out or a better way to do a job, and there is always something to fix.

Patient and calm – with the stock, staff and the land.

Hard workers/determined - never give up, you’ve just got to get up and keep on going.

What do I do in my spare time?

As a family, we love the outdoors.

We spend a lot of time running, hiking, mountain biking and skiing.