increase font size
Farmers are being urged to prepare their stock for transport ahead of the annual 'gypsy week' to help keep the Waikato's roads clear of effluent and safe for users.
Every year in the first week of June, the dairy industry sees a mass transporting of cows around the country's roads as farmers prepare for the new season.
Waikato Regional Council senior transport planner Isy Kennedy said responsibility for minimising the amount of effluent on the roads was the responsibility of farmers and livestock carriers.
"The traditional gypsy day now occurs over a week and with it not far away we'd like farmers to take time now to make the necessary arrangements," Ms Kennedy said.
"In the Waikato, the biggest dairy region in the country with around 1.6 million cows, there is an increased risk of effluent from animals on the move getting onto our roads and into our waterways.
"Effluent spilled from stock trucks can cause traffic crashes by making roads slippery or spattering muck on to windscreens," she said. "As well as being a health hazard for cyclists, motorcyclists and pedestrians, it's smelly and unsightly."
Ms Kennedy said standing stock off green feed for a minimum of 4 hours and up to 12 hours with water will greatly reduce the amount of effluent produced during transit.
There are a number of other steps the council would like farmers to take before cows are loaded onto the truck. These include:
• being clear on the time stock will be picked up
• moving the animals close to the loading ramp the day beforehand
• using dry feed before travel because it results in less effluent.
"Good planning means stock will be cleaner on arrival at the freezing works or sale yards, potentially increasing the premium price," Ms Kennedy said.
She added that stock truck drivers also needed to ensure effluent tanks were regularly emptied to prevent effluent overflowing onto roads and into rivers and streams.
There is one in-transit effluent dumping site on SH5 at Tapapa and there are now four dump sites at sale yards in Morrinsville, Taupo, Matamata and Tuakau. Waikato Regional Council is working with road controlling authorities to establish further effluent dump sites in the region.
Road users can report stock effluent spills to the Waikato Regional Council's freephone on 0800 800 401.
Rural Support Waikato is inviting farmers, growers, and rural communities to take a well-earned break and join us for 'Brunch on Us' - a series of all-sector, relaxed drop-in events across the region.
Waikato is home to a diverse range of lakes, and experts say they urgently need better management and restoration.
Cautiously optimistic is how DairyNZ's regional manager for the lower North Island, Mark Laurence describes the mood of farmers in his patch.
New Federated Farmers national dairy chair Karl Dean is looking forward to tackling the issues facing the sector.
The profitability of dairy farmers is likely to increase in the coming year, accordign to the latest report by the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) on the outlook for the primary sector.
NZPork has appointed Auckland-based Paul Bucknell as its new chair.
The Government claims to have delivered on its election promise to protect productive farmland from emissions trading scheme (ETS) but red meat farmers aren’t happy.
Foot and Mouth Disease outbreaks could have a detrimental impact on any country's rural sector, as seen in the United Kingdom's 2000 outbreak that saw the compulsory slaughter of over six million animals.
The Ministry for the Environment is joining as a national award sponsor in the Ballance Farm Environment Awards (BFEA from next year).
Kiwis are wasting less of their food than they were two years ago, and this has been enough to push New Zealand’s total household food waste bill lower, the 2025 Rabobank KiwiHarvest Food Waste survey has found.
OPINION: Sir Lockwood Smith has clearly and succinctly defined what academic freedom is all about, the boundaries around it and the responsibility that goes with this privilege.
OPINION: Should cows in NZ be microchipped?
OPINION: Legislation being drafted to bring back the controversial trade of live animal exports by sea is getting stuck in the…
