For the love of ag

The former city kid from north-western Sydney relishes his life in the bush with wife Vicki and their three children running a 2400-hectare property, “Big Valley”, at Parkes, where they also operate Timor Suffolk stud.

When comparing his past life in the city to what he has now in the bush, he says simply: “It’s bit like comparing a caged hen to a free range hen, absolutely no comparison.”

Jason (pictured) was four years old when he first developed a love of farm animals.

“My godfather Norm Davison, bought me a pet duckling which I named Esmeralda – I was initially told it was a male but then one day ‘he’ started laying eggs,” Jason said.

Five years later, while attending Northholm Grammar School, in the north-western Sydney suburb of Arcadia, Jason accompanied his father, Ronald, to a school working bee, where he found some of the school’s Rhode Island Red chooks for sale.

Still keen on chooks, Jason pestered his father into letting him buy some.

“We built a chook shed at home and got the hens a few weeks later,” he said.

“A few months after that I got some fertile Rhode Island Red eggs from a friend and hatched them – I ended up with five chickens, four cockerels and one pullet.”

The roosters had short lives but Jason was allowed to take the pullet to the annual Rhode Island Club of Australia Show held in Penrith.

There were 29 entries in the class and Jason’s little pullet beat them all.

And that’s where Jason first met Fred Eldering, who was to become a mentor to the budding young agriculturalist.

“All the old blokes in the shed at Penrith, including Fred and his mate Harry Dunn, were running around the shed asking “Who’s this Jason Barker?” Jason said.

“It was during that show the old blokes bet me $20 I wouldn’t be in the game after three years – but three years later I happily collected the $20 from them.”

Born and bred in Tamworth, Fred’s family owned a pub, and he attended Farrer Agricultural Memorial High School.

Fred served in the Second World War in Papa New Guinea, and in the years following his return home managed properties for most of his life and later retired to Crookwell.

Fred was involved in many agricultural ventures, including breeding Wyandottes and Rhode Island Reds, training and breeding Border Collies, and establishing a Suffolk sheep stud, named Timor in 1982.

In his time Fred held positions as president of the Rhode Island Club of Australia and president of the Suffolk Sheep Breeders Society.

He also participated in sheep dog exhibitions, entertaining international guests in and around the Sydney CBD including the overseas passenger terminal at Circular Key and venues in The Rocks.

Throughout this time Fred leased country and ran his Suffolk sheep stud on a small block near Laggan.

“Fred’s work with Border Collies and sheep lead to him to his claim to fame through a cameo appearance in the movie, Babe - Pig in the City – he was the sheep dog worker in the ring at the country fair when his dog bites the nose of the sheep,” Jason said.

Fred’s Greyleigh Border Collie stud was established in 1950 and Jason said Fred always had one companion dog.

“It was that special dog which got to ride up front while the others had to ride in the back,” Jason said.

“We worked out one of his canine companions had travelled more than 500,000 kilometres with him.”

Jason finished his High School Certificate and went on to study a Bachelor of Agricultural Economics at The University of Sydney.

“I liked both agriculture and economics in high school so I thought this course would be the perfect fit,” he said.

Soon after graduating he landed a job with GrainCorp as a grain merchant based at Parkes.

At 23 years of age, Jason found himself living and working in the country – with a property and a lifestyle he suited.

After eight months with GrainCorp Jason switched career paths to start his training with the police academy at Goulburn, which lasted 14 weeks.

“I had an uncle who was a police officer so along with farming, policing is something I had always wanted to do,” he said.

“Being from a non-farming background I had to have something to rely on for income while I got the farm up and going and shift work allows me time to get work done I need to get it done on the farm.

“Policing also provides job security in times of economic uncertainty.”

As a police officer Jason has worked in various locations across the State.

Having worked closely with Fred Eldering for so many years, Jason took over Timor Suffolk stud following Fred’s death in 2006, to ensure Fred’s legacy would live on.

That legacy was celebrated in April this year when one of Jason’s rams was awarded the supreme prime lamb sire at Sydney Royal Show.

“I had started my own Suffolk stud, Rodglen, in 1999 when I first came to Parkes but closed it by 2004 with the understanding that one day I would take on the Timor Suffolk stud when the time came,” he said.

“I wanted to keep Timor stud going out of respect for Fred, otherwise there would have been 24 years of breeding history lost.”

Jason credits Fred with laying the foundations for his love of the Suffolk breed.

“They are a fantastic terminal sire, with great maternal instincts and they still have a place in the commercial prime lamb industry with producers now using them to fight the effects of photosynthesis brought about by grazing paddocks infested with St Johns Wart,” Jason said.

Jason marks his ram lambs at a day old and said on one occasion a ewe had bunted him as he was marking her lambs.

“You don’t often see that type of mothering instinct in other breeds of sheep,” he said.

Fred not only helped Jason, but many other young people keen to take an interest in agriculture.

For example, Fred worked closely with many students at Moss Vale High School, which also operates a Suffolk stud and also sponsored student classes to develop youth involvement at various country shows.

“This is a philosophy I have taken on,” Jason said.

“Youth are our future so I believe we need to encourage young people to get involved in our breed – whatever that breed might be – if it’s to survive after we are gone.

“Fred was like the grandfather I never had.

“I think Fred can be pretty proud of the legacy in his sheep he left behind.”