One of the highlights of our second Regenerative Agriculture Pilot Group Workshop in Central Canterbury was hearing from Conan Moynihan of Groundshift, whose practical, easy-to-understand explanations helped bring regenerative farming concepts to life. Hosted by Vanessa Bragan at Bragan Farming on 7 May 2026, the workshop focused on real-world observations that farmers can take back to their own properties. Rather than presenting theory, Conan used simple analogies and examp

Everyone in the Mountain River Community extends our warmest congratulations to Chef Simon Levy, Lisa Levy, and the entire INATI team on being awarded a MICHELIN Star in the inaugural MICHELIN Guide New Zealand. It is a remarkable achievement and a well-deserved recognition of the passion, creativity, and dedication that define everything they do. We were privileged to experience that passion firsthand when Simon and his team prepared the dinner for our Mountain River Communi

The theme of this year’s Deer Industry New Zealand Conference was “Future Focused” - examining where future value for venison will come from and how the industry can position itself for changing global market expectations. John Sadler’s presentation outlined how Mountain River Venison is already building value through this approach - strengthening the links between farming systems, environmental credibility, human health, and premium market positioning. A key message througho

Post by Conan Moynihan of Groundshift - republished with appreciation. Last week I had the privilege of helping facilitate Mountain River Venison's Regenerative Agriculture Pilot Group in Springfield, a fantastic afternoon in good company, despite the nor'wester doing its best to remind us where we were. The MRV team brought together a great group of farmers, and we were joined by Professor Pablo Gregorini and his PhD student Emilia, who shared details of their upcoming resea

In April, John Sadler spoke at the Canterbury West Coast Deer Farmers Association Field Day about where the future value for venison is heading - and what buyers are increasingly looking for from farming systems, product quality, and environmental credibility. John reflected on Mountain River’s history, founded more than 30 years ago by Doug Hood, with a long-standing philosophy that farmers should stay connected to the marketing of their product. From the beginning, Mountain