NZ Catchment Groups Thrive with ‘Source to Sea’ Approach
The most successful catchment groups in NZ are those that have 'a source to sea' approach.
A Mid Canterbury farmer who has already lost his dairy herd to Mycoplasma bovis believes MPI is repeating the mistakes it made last year.
Frank Peters says the region’s farmers are “just bloody up in arms” about the surge in M. bovis notifications.
Peters says MPI was told last year to make sure it had everything done before the change of season, yet here was a surge happening at the start of May.
“Suddenly now they’re hot on the case again? Well, come on, you’re supposed to be on it all the way through,” he told Rural News.
Peters has restocked after destroying 1220 cows last year. Although his farm is self-contained with its own winter grazing, he says the new insecurity for those who needed winter grazing, and for the graziers, was “horrendous”.
Meanwhile, he is still waiting for compensation money “but that seems to be normal practice”.
“That seems to be the worst part about it,” Peters added. “They say compensation is like-for-like, but we will never ever be like-for-like when they finish this.”
New Zealand's longest running television programme, the iconic Country Calendar, celebrated its 60th birthday in style in Wellington last week.
State farmer Pāmu (Landcorp) has announced Dave Nuku is its new Associate Director, joining the board as an observer from 1 March 2026.
Ospri is reducing TB testing frequencies and movement control measures as the disease risk subsidies in parts of the country.
Farmgate beef prices remain at record levels and show no sign of easing.
Buyers trying to secure supply are keeping dairy prices at elevated levels.
Labour supply, and not geopolitical events, remains New Zealand dairy farmers' biggest worry, says Federated Farmers dairy chair Karl Dean.
OPINION: Expect the Indian free trade deal to feature strongly in the election campaign.
OPINION: One of the world's largest ice cream makers, Nestlé, is going cold on the viability of making the dessert.