The good, the bad and the ugly – 2015 in review
Another year has almost passed us by – again – and it is time for the annual review of 2015's good, bad and ugly in regards to the primary sector as seen by the Rural News editorial team...
The Dairy Women’s Network named Katie Milne as the 2015 Dairy Woman of the Year at last night’s conference gala dinner in Invercargill.
Milne who is a Federated Farmers national board member and provincial president, farms with her partner at Rotomanu, Lake Brunner catchment on the West Coast of the South Island. They have a small high BW Jersey herd of 200 cows.
On a separate run-off the couple rear replacement heifer calves and run a localised contracting operation making silage pits, hay, baleage, effluent spreading from ponds, herd homes, and standoff pads.
The 2015 Dairy Woman of the Year judging panel comprised Mark Heer from DWN gold partner ASB Bank, Sandy Burghan from Global Women New Zealand, DWN trustee Alison Gibb, DWN chair and 2014 Dairy Woman of the Year winner Justine Kidd, and Fonterra representative Janet Rosanowski.
The panel highlighted Milne’s unselfish contribution to the dairy industry, which she delivers with passion and zest.
“She already plays in a space beyond her immediate expertise, experience and comfort zone epitomising a dairy woman determined to make a difference and thus achieving great advocacy outcomes for the wider dairy industry.”
Milne has been the West Coast provincial Federated Farmers president since 2008. She also holds a position on the national board, where she is spokesperson on adverse events, rural security, local government, ACC, and employment.
Her prize is a Fonterra-sponsored scholarship to the Global Women ‘Women in Leadership’ programme valued at $25,000. The programme will give her 12 months of exposure to globally focussed women in leadership roles across the New Zealand business sector.
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.