Macfarlane Rural Business
Macfarlane Rural Business is a New Zealand farm consulting firm providing multidisciplinary advisory services in dairy, sheep/beef, arable, and deer systems, plus a FARMAX-based Dairy Systems Monitoring benchmarking platform used by over 60 farms across the South Island.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1997
- HeadquartersAuckland, New Zealand
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Macfarlane Rural Business does
Macfarlane Rural Business is a privately held New Zealand farm consulting firm founded in 1997 by Andy and Tricia MacFarlane and headquartered in Ashburton (Canterbury region). The firm serves farming families and agribusinesses across New Zealand through a team of roughly eight specialist farm consultants plus two to three administrative staff, with expertise spanning dairy, sheep and beef, mixed cropping and arable, and deer systems. Its service portfolio comprises four offerings: multidisciplinary farming advice and farm supervision; independent agronomy services including multispectral satellite and drone imagery; outsourced farm account management covering GST, payroll, and cashflow reporting; and Dairy Systems Monitoring (DSM), a benchmarking platform built on the FARMAX farm-simulation model that creates monthly-validated digital twins of client dairy farms with 24/7 online client access. Over 60 farms use the DSM software across Canterbury, North Otago, Southland, and Golden Bay. DSM is also delivered via a joint venture with Chris Lewis, Baker & Associates extending coverage into the Lower North Island.
The firm generates revenue predominantly from professional-services fees for advisory, agronomy, and account-management engagements, with DSM contributing a recurring subscription layer. Pricing is quote-based and not publicly disclosed. Go-to-market is relationship-led: direct on-farm engagement by consultants, referral-based client acquisition, industry discussion groups, and institutional visibility through Jeremy Savage's supervisory role at Lincoln University Dairy Farm and presentations for the South Island Dairy Demonstration Centre. Customer segments are horizontally distributed across farming systems rather than vertically concentrated in a single sub-sector, with mid-market farm operators as the primary buyer and one notable enterprise reference (LUDF).
Macfarlane Rural Business remains wholly owned and operated by its founders with no external funding, parent company, or public listing. Recent hires (Sarah Hawkins in 2024 adding GHG and environmental compliance expertise; Rachael Wood in 2026 from Halter bringing wearable livestock technology and FARMAX experience) signal a deliberate broadening of capability into sustainability advisory and ag-tech integration. Core technology is third-party licensed (FARMAX, Overseer) combined with proprietary benchmarking methodology and consultant validation rather than proprietary AI/ML infrastructure.
Macfarlane Rural Business firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Macfarlane Rural Business
- Legal name
- Macfarlane Rural Business
- Website
- https://mrb.co.nz
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1997
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Macfarlane Rural Business is a New Zealand farm consulting firm providing multidisciplinary advisory services in dairy, sheep/beef, arable, and deer systems, plus a FARMAX-based Dairy Systems Monitoring benchmarking platform used by over 60 farms across the South Island.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Macfarlane Rural Business industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Agricultural Consulting
- NAICS
- Farm Management Services (115116), Support Activities for Crop Production (11511), Support Activities for Animal Production (115210), Support Activities for Agriculture and Forestry (115)
- SIC
- Agricultural Services (700)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Farm Technology Enablement & Data Integration Advisory (FMIS/ERP, IoT, Decision Support) (AFACAJAG)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Succession, Governance & Ownership Transition Advisory (AFACAJAO), Capital Projects & Farm Expansion Advisory (Feasibility, Site Planning, ROI) (AFACAJAN)
Keywords
Where Macfarlane Rural Business is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Auckland
- HQ country
- New Zealand
- HQ region
- Oceania
Offices1 record
Markets served
Macfarlane Rural Business business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Farm Consulting Services: Professional consulting services providing strategic advice, farm management guidance, and agronomic expertise across sheep & beef, dairy, mixed cropping/arable, and deer farming systems. Revenue derived from advisory fees for on-farm consultation, farm supervision, and strategic planning engagements.
- Agronomy Advisory: Independent, evidence-based agronomic advice focused on maximizing crop profitability. Includes crop monitoring, seed crop physiology, forage crop optimization, cost of production reporting, and sustainable farming practices.
- Farm Account Management: Financial administration services including cashbook data entry, GST reporting, wages and PAYE preparation, and cashflow reporting. Offered as standalone service or integrated with consulting.
- Dairy Systems Monitoring (DSM): Advanced benchmarking software and service. Digital twin simulation of dairy farms with 24/7 online access. Joint venture with Chris Lewis, Baker & Associates for extended geographic coverage.
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels3 records
Macfarlane Rural Business product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Macfarlane Rural Business is a New Zealand farm consulting firm that provides multidisciplinary advisory services to farming families and agribusinesses, covering sheep & beef, dairy, mixed cropping/arable, and deer farming systems. Its offerings span hands-on farming advice, independent agronomy, farm account management (GST, PAYE, cashflow), and Dairy Systems Monitoring (DSM), a FARMAX-based benchmarking platform with 24/7 online access used by 60+ farms across Canterbury, North Otago, Southland, and Golden Bay.
Product overview
Macfarlane Rural Business operates as a farm consulting and advisory firm offering integrated services to farming families and agribusinesses across New Zealand. The company's service portfolio comprises four core offerings: Farming Advice and Guidance providing multidisciplinary expertise across sheep & beef, dairy, mixed cropping/arable, and deer systems; Agronomy Services delivering independent crop management, monitoring, and sustainable farming advice; Farm Account Management handling financial administration from GST to payroll; and Dairy Systems Monitoring (DSM), an advanced benchmarking platform leveraging FARMAX simulation modelling. These services are delivered through a team of specialised farm consultants and are designed to work together, providing comprehensive support from farm operations through financial management to strategic planning and succession.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Farming Advice and Guidance Comprehensive multidisciplinary farm consulting across sheep & beef, dairy, mixed cropping/arable, and deer farming systems, covering production optimisation, farm supervision, financial planning, irrigation design, nutrient management, succession planning, and business structures for New Zealand farming families and agribusinesses.
- Agronomy Services Independent, evidence-based agronomic advisory service for mixed cropping/arable farmers, including crop husbandry, seasonal crop management plans, frequent crop monitoring, seed crop physiology, forage crop optimisation, cost of production reporting, drone and satellite multispectral imagery, and sustainable farming practices.
- Farm Account Management Financial administration service for farming operations, including cashbook data entry, GST reporting, wages and PAYE preparation, and cashflow position reports with further analysis from consultants. Offered as a standalone service or integrated with broader farm consulting engagements.
- Dairy Systems Monitoring (DSM) Advanced client-focused benchmarking system using the FARMAX dairy farm simulation model to create precise digital twins of dairy farm systems, with inputs including milk production data and monthly farm data (areas, stock numbers, supplements, crops, nitrogen). System is revised and validated monthly by consultants, with clients accessing information 24/7 via an online program; delivered as a joint venture with Chris Lewis, Baker & Associates and used by 60+ farms across Canterbury, North Otago, Southland, and Golden Bay.
Quantifiable outcome
- 60+ farms using Dairy Systems Monitoring software across Canterbury, North Otago, Southland, and Golden Bay
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Macfarlane Rural Business
Customer profileNamed customers1 record
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Macfarlane Rural Business technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature4 records
Macfarlane Rural Business partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Chris Lewis, Baker & AssociatescoreJoint venture partnership for Dairy Systems Monitoring (DSM) service delivery. Chris Lewis and Baker & Associates provide DSM services to Lower North Island and Southland clients, extending MRB's geographic coverage beyond Canterbury operations.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Macfarlane Rural Business competitors and assessment
Company assessmentEmerging players
- Halter: NZ agtech company offering GPS cow collars and farm management software; comparable as an emerging platform that integrates with farm systems (where MRB's newest hire previously worked) and increasingly competes for the farmer's technology and advisory budget that MRB's DSM platform also addresses.
Broad incumbents
- DairyNZ: NZ dairy industry good-body that funds research, extension and farmer-facing advisory including discussion groups; comparable because Trevor Gee previously worked at DairyNZ and MRB's dairy consultants operate in DairyNZ's ecosystem of regional discussion groups and demonstration farms.
- Foundation for Arable Research (FAR): NZ levy-funded arable research and extension organisation; comparable because Anton Nicholls previously worked at FAR and MRB's arable advisory services draw on FAR's research, making it a partner/incumbent in the same farmer-facing agronomy space.
- KPMG New Zealand Agribusiness: Big-4 agribusiness advisory practice serving large NZ farmers, processors and investors with strategy, transactions, and tax; comparable as a higher-end incumbent that competes for the same large-farm and corporate-agribusiness clients MRB targets with succession, governance and strategic advice.
Direct peers
- AgriBusiness Group: NZ consultancy providing farm systems analysis, Overseer nutrient budgeting, environmental and farm management advisory; directly comparable because it overlaps MRB's service stack, particularly on environmental compliance and FARMAX-style modelling.
- AgFirst Consultants (NZ): One of NZ's largest farm consultancy networks with offices across the North Island; directly comparable because it offers farm management consultancy, agronomy, environmental planning, and FARMAX benchmarking to the same dairy, sheep/beef and arable farmer segments as MRB.
- FarmRight: NZ farm management and consultancy firm that supervises farms and provides financial, environmental, and farm systems advice; directly comparable because it competes for the same farmer clients with multi-disciplinary advisory and FARMAX-based benchmarking.
- AbacusBio: NZ-headquartered agri-consulting firm combining farm systems analysis, animal breeding, and economic modelling; comparable because it serves a similar farmer and agribusiness client base with quantitative, FARMAX-adjacent decision-support services.
- Perrin Ag Consultants: NZ-based rural consultancy providing farm supervision, financial management, succession and FARMAX modelling; directly comparable to MRB in scale, service mix, and Canterbury/South Island farmer client base.
- Baker & Associates: NZ rural business consultancy with deep Canterbury roots; directly comparable because it is MRB's DSM joint-venture partner and serves an overlapping client base of dairy, sheep/beef and arable farmers with farm management, financial planning and FARMAX-based advisory.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Macfarlane Rural Business social profiles
Digital presenceMacfarlane Rural Business financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Macfarlane Rural Business leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles12 records
Macfarlane Rural Business funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Macfarlane Rural Business M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Macfarlane Rural Business
What does Macfarlane Rural Business do?
Macfarlane Rural Business is a New Zealand farm consulting firm that provides multidisciplinary advisory services to farming families and agribusinesses, covering sheep & beef, dairy, mixed cropping/arable, and deer farming systems. Its offerings span hands-on farming advice, independent agronomy, farm account management (GST, PAYE, cashflow), and Dairy Systems Monitoring (DSM), a FARMAX-based benchmarking platform with 24/7 online access used by 60+ farms across Canterbury, North Otago, Southland, and Golden Bay.
Is Macfarlane Rural Business a public or private company?
Macfarlane Rural Business is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Macfarlane Rural Business founded?
Macfarlane Rural Business was founded in 1997. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Macfarlane Rural Business based?
Macfarlane Rural Business is headquartered in Auckland, New Zealand, in the Oceania region.
How does Macfarlane Rural Business make money?
Four revenue lines are on record. Farm Consulting Services are the primary driver. The others are agronomy Advisory, farm Account Management and dairy Systems Monitoring (DSM).
Who are Macfarlane Rural Business's main competitors?
Halter is listed as an emerging player. Broad incumbents are DairyNZ, Foundation for Arable Research (FAR) and KPMG New Zealand Agribusiness. Direct peers are AgriBusiness Group, AgFirst Consultants (NZ), FarmRight, AbacusBio, Perrin Ag Consultants and Baker & Associates.
Does Macfarlane Rural Business have an API?
No public API is recorded for Macfarlane Rural Business.
What industry is Macfarlane Rural Business in?
Macfarlane Rural Business's product category is Agricultural Consulting. Its primary akta.pro industry code is AFACAJAG, Farm Technology Enablement & Data Integration Advisory (FMIS/ERP, IoT, Decision Support), with a secondary code of AFACAJAO, Succession, Governance & Ownership Transition Advisory. Its NAICS code is 115116 and its SIC code is 700.