Skip to content

Mere Ratu

Senior Operations & Assurance Analyst

A Practical Approach 

For Mere, helping people and making a positive difference is her greatest motivation. Her daily work involves supporting farm managers with compliance challenges, improving systems, and reducing the administrative burden so teams can focus on farming. 

Farming Roots 

Mere already knew Pāmu well from a farm family perspective. Her husband, Jacob Ratu, has worked for the company for almost 20 years, progressing from Dairy Assistant at Resolution to Farm Manager at Broadlands. Over the years, Mere supported him on farm with calf rearing, records, and compliance. When the Compliance Analyst role came up in 2022, she saw a chance to combine her farming background with her interest in operational support. 

Te Ao Māori 

Incorporating te ao Māori is the foundation of how Mere approaches everything in her life and work. She is passionate about supporting Māori and women in farming, creating inclusive environments where people feel valued and able to succeed. 

"Te ao Māori is about recognising the mana and mauri of people, animals, land, and the environment, and understanding that everything is connected."

Life as a Compliance Analyst

The variety of the job is a major highlight for Mere. No two days are the same, ranging from audits and farm visits to training. Mere particularly enjoys working with the organic farms. It requires strong observation, planning, and teamwork, and it challenges people to think differently. 

For Mere, the most rewarding part of her job is seeing others succeed. She feels most valued when people trust her and seek out her support.

"Farming excellence is about balancing great farm performance with great people outcomes. It is about continuously improving, identifying risks early, and supporting people to do their best work."

Working Shoulder-to-Shoulder

Of all the values at Pāmu, Mere connects most with Shoulder-to-Shoulder. She references the whakataukī “Ehara taku toa i te toa takitahi, engari he toa takitini,” which speaks to the importance of collective strength and collaboration. 

A large part of her role is supporting others and finding solutions together alongside farm managers, business managers, and support teams. For Mere, the best outcomes happen when people feel supported and involved rather than directed. 

Looking Ahead

Over the next five years, Mere hopes to grow into a regional leadership role focused on compliance and risk management. She wants to keep building on Māori engagement, inclusion, and positive team cultures to make a genuine difference for people across the business. 

More farmer profiles