Doug McKay is PGG Wrightson wool representative for Mid Canterbury, Central Canterbury and Banks Peninsula.

His patch is one of the country’s biggest finishing units, where tens of thousands of lambs are brought into the region to be finished. However, stretching from the Rangitata River in the south to Lees Valley in the north, including the Ashburton, Rakaia and Waimakariri Gorges, it also covers a wider range of farm types, as Doug explains.

“On the Mid Canterbury flats few traditional sheep farms are left, and you can drive into some areas in December and January and not see a lamb, then go back in April and May and there are lambs everywhere, being finished on the easy, well-grassed country.

“On the other hand, the farms in the gorges and beyond are completely different, with few lambs finished. As a result I see all different wool types, from Romneys to Merinos.

“Lamb finishers have wool at times of the year when traditional farmers are quieter with their wool. Procuring from them keeps the flow of wool from my area regular, compared to areas dominated by traditional farms, which have big spikes of wool from Christmas to February, then another intake in July and August. My area is so diverse there is activity ticking over every month,” he says.

Doug grew up in Kaiapoi, leaving school to work for Bakers Woolstore, then attended Lincoln College graduating with a certificate in wool, before becoming a wool puller for several seasons at the local Kaiapoi freezing works. His last season was spent assessing the kilograms of wool on the sheep’s back in the yards. During the off season he worked with Irrigation and Pumping in Ohoka, the business that eventually became PGG Wrightson Water. Irrigation is a theme in Doug’s story: his father Bruce was an irrigation consultant for 43 years.

“Growing up there were plenty of irrigation conversations in the house, with dad often on the phone until late in the evening. Having a passion for wool I went in a different direction. Mind you, I’ve introduced myself to plenty of clients in my time to be told ‘Your dad did the irrigation on this farm,’ so it goes around.”

When the freezing works closed in 1991, Doug picked up a job at Belfast Wools, a company he ended up managing, and which was purchased by PGG in 1996, setting Doug off in his present role.

Showing up his trading background, when advising clients Doug most frequently tells them the first price is generally the best price.

“You are best to move your product. You need to sell your wool while its fresh: although it’s not perishable, it doesn’t keep forever.

“Exporters generally look for fresh wool they can scour straight away, and it always scours brighter if it is recently shorn. Therefore, if you have a willing buyer, you are better off taking that money and moving on,” says Doug.

As well as his regular job, Doug is one of PGG Wrightson Wool’s South Island auctioneers, a role he has had since around 2000.

“As an auctioneer you have to be able to listen and think quickly on your feet, otherwise you will be eaten alive,” he says.

Also quick on his feet on the rugby paddock, Doug played over 200 games as an outside back for Kaiapoi RFC seniors, has stayed involved as a coach and administrator since his playing days, still lives across the road from the club where he is now a life member, and has supported son Josh from the under-fives through to professional rugby, which so far has been five seasons in the Canterbury NPC team, three seasons as a Highlander and one season as a Crusader. Victory in the black jersey at the 2017 World Rugby Under 20 Championship in Georgia has been a career highlight so far, with Doug in the stands to cheer his boy on, and Josh recently signed a two year contract with Glasgow Warriors, heading to Scotland next month.

Doug and wife Sue also have two daughters, Katie and Kristel, and aside from rugby, he loves fishing and diving, and is a keen whitebaiter.