Chris McElroy became a full-time farmer around seven years ago, after a successful career as a stockbroker in Sydney and as a weekend farmer in Goldburn. Chris talked to Show Radio about the differences between his city and rural lives and how self-isolation is just a way of life for people working seven days a week on the land.
Chris and his wife Deb moved to Tarcutta, a small town of about 450 people, around halfway between Sydney and Melbourne around three years ago and the area is in drought. And Chris said that recent rains, while filling some of the 28 damns on his property, weren’t sufficient to change the drought status.
But Chris is content living on the land, despite the challenges. He believes he is much healthier physically, doing what he calls daily “constructive exercise” running the farm. And while drought is at the forefront of his mind, the farm remains financially viable, supported by recent strong cattle-yard sale prices, which have been facilitated with an efficient online cattle sales platform, where beef prices can sometimes be better than those achieved in physical cattle sales.
We interviewed Chris at 7:00 am, at the beginning of his farming day, which typically ends around 5 pm. Deb, his wife is equally busy, running a successful small business called Bumble Bee Wraps, where she hand makes beeswax food wraps which she sells at regional markets, online through her own website and globally through the Buy from the Bush campaign.
Listen to Chris talk about his life in Tarcutta to Show Radio:
