Russell has been associated with the rural community all his life and as a result has developed a large network of acquaintances.  He was raised on a sheep and beef property in the King Country and attended Massey University, graduating with an Agricultural Science degree, before spending a year as an agricultural consultant with the Department of Agriculture.He managed, then purchased a Romney ram breeding property at Kiwitea, north of Feilding, adding two more sheep and two cattle studs before selling the majority of it in 1998. He has retained an 11 hectare lifestyle block where he now lives.Since retiring from farming Russell has been involved in the farming community as the Beef Genetics Co-ordinator for Beef and Lamb New Zealand and is a part-time agricultural journalist.Russell’s interests include gardening, sport, working with wood, and repair work.