Meet the Need inspires Canterbury farmer to give back

Reading Time: 2 minutes For Canterbury dairy farmer Cameron Henderson, supporting Meet the Need comes down to a simple question: how can the success of New Zealand farming benefit more than just those in the industry?

Henderson and his family farm 220 hectares south of Oxford, milking 750 cows, alongside dairy support and other farming projects on leased land. It’s a fairly typical Canterbury farming system – but Henderson has a perspective on the industry that extends well beyond his own farm gate.

He first became involved with Meet the Need nearly seven years ago, while serving as provincial president of Federated Farmers. It was there that he worked alongside Meet the Need founder Wayne Langford as the concept was being developed.

“I understood the concept from the early days and really liked the idea,” Henderson said.

About three years ago, Henderson and his family decided to make Meet the Need their primary charitable focus, rather than spreading their donations across a number of different organisations.

“We had donations going to a whole lot of different entities before that and decided just to narrow it all down and put it into one cause in New Zealand. That’s when our donations started with Meet the Need.”

What particularly resonated with Henderson was the contradiction at the heart of food insecurity in New Zealand.

“As a food-producing nation we still have people that can’t afford to eat – there’s something about that just doesn’t sit right.”

He believes farmers are uniquely positioned to help address that imbalance.

New Zealand has an extraordinary ability to produce high-quality food, and agriculture is a significant contributor to the country’s economy and communities.

“We as farmers have done very well, as has the broader food production industry, and we don’t want other Kiwis being left behind.”

Henderson’s involvement across the farming sector has given him the opportunity to see agriculture from a number of different perspectives. But he said his belief in farmers supporting others has always been there.

“I’ve always had a view of wanting to not only work hard and build something for ourselves and for my family and kids and the legacy there.”

He believes farming has always been built around people supporting one another. Supporting Meet the Need is one small way of ensuring agriculture’s success is shared more widely.

“Sharing our success, even in a small way, is key to everyone benefiting from agriculture.”

It’s a message Henderson hopes other farmers will consider too.

He isn’t suggesting farmers can solve every challenge facing New Zealand. But he believes they can play their part.

Meet the Need gives farmers a direct way to help ensure nutritious, high-quality protein reaches Kiwi families experiencing food insecurity.

And for Henderson, that connection between the people who produce New Zealand’s food and the people who need it is what makes the organisation so compelling.

“More New Zealanders need to be benefiting from the success of agriculture.”

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