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Women of Beef

Kate Acland: First Woman to Chair Beef + Lamb New Zealand and Mt Somers Station Farmer

A former vineyard owner who farms a diversified Canterbury station and became the first woman to lead New Zealand's sheep and beef farmer body.

Who Is Kate Acland?

Kate Acland farms Mt Somers Station in Mid Canterbury and in 2023 became the first woman to chair Beef + Lamb New Zealand, the body that represents the country's sheep and beef farmers. The board elected her chair at the end of the organization's annual meeting in New Plymouth, replacing Andrew Morrison. She had been deputy chair since midway through the previous year. The Otago Daily Times report is the main source here, while the organization's own announcement covers the election. Only her public professional record is covered. Because available detail is limited, this profile is marked thin.

Mt Somers Station Today

The station is a mixed operation. It runs a large Romney sheep flock and an Angus and Hereford beef herd on about 2,400 hectares. It also includes an 870-cow dairy herd on a dryland 330-hectare dairy platform, about 270 hectares of forestry and 480 hectares reserved for native bush. A separate honey business keeps 400 hives and produces manuka, honeydew and clover honey. About 30 people work across the station and other businesses, including cafes. Acland runs the station with her husband, David.

The mix matters for how the beef herd fits in. Cattle share the property with a sheep flock, a dairy platform, trees and bush, so the station does not depend on one commodity price. The ODT report does not say how many beef cattle the station carries or how they are bred, so those details are left out.

From Vineyard to Station

Before moving to the family farm, Acland developed her own vineyard and winery, Sugar Loaf Wines, with an export business in Marlborough. That experience in building a brand and selling overseas is a different path to beef leadership from the more usual route of growing up on a sheep and beef property.

Leading Beef + Lamb New Zealand

After her election, Acland called the appointment an exciting opportunity to represent farmers. Her chair election followed Geoffrey Young's win of the Southern South Island farmer director seat. A B+LNZ news release titled B+LNZ chair named Rural Woman of the Year reports that she later won that award at the Primary Industries Awards in 2026.

The Key to Her Success

Acland's path shows how a mix of enterprises and a record of board service can support farmer representation. The points below are drawn from the reports reviewed.

They stop short of financial detail, which the reports do not give.

  • She farms a diversified station, with beef, sheep, dairy, forestry, native bush and honey on one property.
  • She keeps beef as one part of a wider mix, with Angus and Hereford cattle on about 2,400 hectares.
  • She set aside about 480 hectares of native bush, alongside about 270 hectares of forestry.
  • She brought a business background from founding a winery with an export arm.
  • She served as deputy chair before becoming chair, a normal progression through the board.
  • A fair limit on the record: herd size, breeding policy and finances are not in the sources reviewed.

Learn More

For more on New Zealand beef and sheep farming, visit the ranching section of farm.FM. A related read is a farm.FM story about New Zealand sheep and beef farmers.

Timeline

  1. 2022Becomes deputy chair of Beef + Lamb New Zealand, around midyear
  2. EarlierDevelops Sugar Loaf Wines, a vineyard and winery with an export business in Marlborough
  3. 2023Elected first woman chair of Beef + Lamb New Zealand at the annual meeting in New Plymouth, replacing Andrew Morrison
  4. 2023Geoffrey Young wins the Southern South Island farmer director election at the same meeting
  5. 2026Named Rural Woman of the Year at the Primary Industries Awards

Frequently asked questions

Who is Kate Acland?

Kate Acland farms Mt Somers Station in Mid Canterbury and was the first woman to chair Beef + Lamb New Zealand, elected in 2023 after serving as deputy chair.

What cattle does Mt Somers Station run?

It runs an Angus and Hereford beef herd on about 2,400 hectares, along with Romney sheep, an 870-cow dairy herd, forestry and honey hives.

What is Beef + Lamb New Zealand?

It is the organization representing New Zealand's sheep and beef farmers. Acland became its first woman chair in 2023.

What did Kate Acland do before farming Mt Somers?

She developed her own vineyard and winery, Sugar Loaf Wines, with an export business in Marlborough, before moving to her husband's family farm.

Sources and further reading

Profiles are compiled from public sources and reviewed against them. See our editorial policy to suggest a correction.

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