Crazy
OPINION: Your canine crusader was truly impressed by the almost unanimous support given by politicians of all stripes in Parliament to the recent passing of legislation for the NZ/EU free trade deal.
The Government says it will take time to carefully consider the report from the He Waka Eke Noa partnership.
Agriculture Minister Damien O'Connor says advice from the Climate Change Commission will be sought on the proposals.
He thanked HWEN partners for their work, which has been under way since the Government, farming leaders and Māori agreed to a world-first partnership to reduce primary sector emissions in 2019.
"The sector and the wider public will have the opportunity to provide their view before Cabinet makes final decisions towards the end of the year on how to effectively price emissions," O'Connor says.
"We are all committed to pricing agricultural emissions to ensure their reduction from 2025, and reiterate that commitment today.
"It's really important that we get this right. Customers around the world are demanding higher levels of sustainability in the products they buy, so there is the potential for real competitive advantage here if we can get this right and continue moving to sustainable farming systems that are ready to respond to a warming world."
O'Connor says the Government committed almost $380 million over four years in Budget 2022 to accelerate efforts to lower agricultural emissions.
"It sees us establishing the new Centre for Climate Action on Agricultural Emissions as a joint venture with business to accelerate the product development of tools for farmers to reduce emissions.
"We're also developing specialised climate-focused extension services and expanding our support for Māori agribusinesses," O'Connor says.
Climate Change Minister James Shaw says the agriculture sector has a crucial role to play in meeting the recently set emissions budgets.
"We need to urgently cut emissions across all sectors of the economy - and that includes agriculture."
The country’s 4200 commercial fruit and vegetable growers will vote from May 14 on a new HortNZ levy.
Meat processor Alliance Group is asking farmer shareholders to inject more capital in order to remain a 100% co-operative.
A vet is calling for all animals to be vaccinated against a new strain of leptospirosis (lepto) discovered on New Zealand dairy farms in recent years.
Dairy
Rural banker Rabobank is partnering with Food Rescue Kitchen on a new TV series which airs this weekend that aims to shine a light on the real and growing issues of food waste, food poverty and social isolation in New Zealand.
Telco infrastructure provider Chorus says that it believes all Kiwis – particularly those in the rural areas – need access to high-speed, reliable broadband.