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Kōrero: Government and agriculture

Ruakura research station

In the two decades after the Second World War the government’s research station at Ruakura, in the Waikato, made a major contribution to research to improve dairying. This clip from an annual field day shows that Ruakura was also active in farmer education and offered practical management advice.

Te whakamahi i tēnei tūemi

Archives New Zealand - Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga

Reference: Pictorial Parade 143. National Film Unit, 1963

Permission of Archives New Zealand Te Rua Mahara o te Kāwanatanga must be obtained before any re-use of this material.

Ngā whakaahua me ngā rauemi katoa o tēnei kōrero

Me pēnei te tohu i te whārang

Tony Nightingale, Government and agriculture – Subsidies and changing markets, 1946–1983, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/mi/video/18073/ruakura-research-station (accessed 4 June 2026).

He kōrero nā Tony Nightingale, i tāngia i te 1 March 2009.

Comments

John C. Jury
30 March 2025
During the mid-'70s I lived in Hamilton and worked as a bench tech. The place I worked was known as Number 5 Dairy. We were in a compact full lab on the lower level. There was an enormous walk-in flash freezer where large flat packets of grass could be stored for months if needed. I lived at the on-site residence, The Homestead, with a lot of others. We had our own small rooms and three very filling meals, plus a late supper seven days a week. It was great, there were places to go and so much exploring to do. I can still see parts of it when I close my eyes and relax. I'll never forget it or the many friends I was able to get to know. I still miss Ruakura and NZ, and I always will. I wish that I had been able to return, but things didn't turn out that way. I wish my email address could be shown, but it won't turn out that way either. John Jury Ottawa Ontario