about us
Rural Assist is run by farmers, providing solutions for farmers, and understand the psyche of farmers. We know that you have a lot of demands on your time, your budget, and your assets, and we want to ensure that you’re getting the maximum benefits possible from all of them.
About Rod Smillie
I’ve been involved in farming for over 50 years.
Whether it’s been farming sheep, beef, deer, and dairy, fencing, shearing, doing pest-control, contracting, or consulting, I’ve seen and done all of it. This means that I have a first-hand understanding of the challenges farmers face throughout the year.
In addition to this, I spent close to 5 years as a Biosecurity Manager doing large-scale pest control for the Regional Council, and 14 years doing Landscape Pest Control for the Department of Conservation.
In 2016 I moved into health and safety, and spent a year studying this field. This really opened my eyes to the expectations and obligations farmers now face under the PCBU. I saw from this that while most farmers have the best of intentions with their health and safety measures, they are not currently set up to succeed.
I started Rural Assist to help farmers face the challenges they are presented with, and to show that being health and safety compliant does not have to be intimidating or time-consuming. Rural Assist makes it easy.
To find out what we can do for you, please contact us.
what do you need?
We work with you to ensure you get exactly what you need; nothing more, nothing less.