• Published date: 06 August 2021

In fact, Laurie Paterson and Bryce McKenzie have never been involved in any sort of protest during their lengthy farming careers. Until now.

The co-founders of Groundswell NZ have ultimately been responsible for the biggest protests some towns have ever seen.

Being described as an activist took Mr McKenzie (68), a semi-retired West Otago farmer, by surprise.

‘‘I said, ‘I’m not an activist’. They said, ‘what are you?’ I thought, ‘what am I?’ Somebody that’s concerned about what’s happening to New Zealand, that’s all I am.’’

As to the origins of the Groundswell juggernaut, Mr McKenzie good-naturedly blames his wife Karen.

‘‘That was the start — it was me complaining to my wife.’’

She told him to stop moaning and do something about it, so he wrote a Facebook post in August last year in which he outlined how he was ‘‘struggling to understand what the politicians who make the laws are trying to do to the farmers and people of New Zealand’’.

It had more than 7000 shares and led to another wife urging her husband to act; Greenvale farmer Sharon Paterson suggested to her husband that he give Mr McKenzie a call.

The pair had met probably only several times previously. Now Mr Paterson quipped they should have a ‘‘special line put through’’.

Mr McKenzie has spent all his life on the land, including about 45 years farming on his own account. His sons now farm the same land he and his father farmed — ‘‘I’m back to being the boy; I’ve done the full circle’’ — and his roles now include driving a tractor, rearing calves and filling in.

He has also been involved with the award-winning Pomahaka Water Care Group, a farmer-led catchment monitoring group.

He knew the protest was going to be big but, to actually see it, was humbling.

‘‘I was emotional in the morning. It was really tugging at my heartstrings. I thought, ‘I’ve got to get over this. I’ve got a job to do. I need to be clear-headed in what I’m doing.

‘‘That talk-to seemed to bring me right,’’ Mr McKenzie said.

Despite issuing a statement prior to the event emphasising the need for respect and safety, he had still been worried it could go sour, that people could be so annoyed they would ‘‘do something stupid’’.

As the day wore on and it became apparent that was not going to happen, he started to relax. By the time he drove his tractor home in the late afternoon, he was ‘‘absolutely stuffed’’.

He went to a club rugby game the following day ‘‘just to get away from it — but that didn’t really achieve much because people...