Rewarding farmers who embrace sustainability
Winners of DairyNZ’s Sustainability and Stewardship awards in the Ballance Farm Environment Awards have their eyes firmly fixed on progressing a positive future for New Zealand dairy.
Dairy farmers are seemingly more upbeat than they were three months ago but how long this positivity remains seems to depend on what the new Government does in the coming months.
So says Sarah Speight, DairyNZ's general manager of farm performance. She says the election of the new Government is playing a big part in the positive mood of farmers, along with the stabilisation of world dairy prices. But at the same time, she says farmers are particularly worried about the way that the new freshwater regulations are being implemented by regional councils around the country.
She says the limit setting process that is coming through from councils is a big worry - especially in places such as Southland, Canterbury, Manawatū, and Waikato.
"Some of these things are unworkable for farmers. There is a real hope that the incoming Government with its strong agricultural understanding around the caucus table will help with that and sort it out. But while farmers are positive they are wary about how much the new Government can get done in a reasonable timeframe," she says.
Speight says she's not sure that some of the councils know what the limit settings are going to mean for farmers and that is a worry. She says Northland, Southland and Otago are high on the radar for DairyNZ.
South Waikato farm manager Ben Purua’s amazing transformation from gang life to milking cows was rewarded with the Ahuwhenua Young Maori Farmer award last night.
Bankers have been making record profits in the last few years, but those aren’t the only records they’ve been breaking, says Federated Farmers vice president Richard McIntyre.
The 2023-24 season has been a roller coaster ride for Waikato dairy farmers, according to Federated Farmers dairy section chair, Mathew Zonderop.
Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) director general Ray Smith says job cuts announced this morning will not impact the way the Ministry is organised or merge business units.
Scales Corporation is acquiring a number of orchard assets from Bostock Group.
Family and solidarity shone through at the 75 years of Ferdon sale in Otorohanga last month.