Editorial: Support, don't stifle farmers
OPINION: Ministry for Primary Industries' situation outlook for primary industries report (SOPI) makes impressive reading.
Winter grazing is looming again and the Ministry for Primary Industries says it's going to increase proactive farm visits and provide practical advice for farmers in the lead up to the season.
MPI's national response manager Andrew Curtis says they will prioritise visits to farms where it can be problematic to manage soil conditions during periods of wet weather. He says MPI's proactive, on-the-ground support aims to ensure better outcomes for livestock, the environment, and farmers.
"We'll be assessing these farms before livestock start grazing winter feed and they will be closely monitored to ensure they are meeting animal welfare standards. We will do follow-up visits in June," he says.
Curtis says they have also been working with regional councils and industry groups, especially in Otago and Southland, to develop practical information to help farmers prepare.
"This includes an information flyer that contains a winter grazing checklist. Extra support is available for Southland farmers around managing their animals and reducing mud build up should they need it. Most farmers work hard to do the right thing and have carefully planned ahead to look after their animals," he says.
According to Curtis, some farmers will need to continue adapting their approaches to ensure they have more robust back-up plans during extreme weather, which can come with little warning.
He says a well-planned winter grazing system supports good animal health and welfare. He says it ensures animals have sufficient and appropriate feed, access to clean water, and comfortable areas to lie down and rest.
Curtis says from time-to-time MPI will also have a helicopter in the air so that they can pinpoint potential winter grazing problem areas. He points out that earlier this year MPI successfully prosecuted a Southland livestock grazing company for allowing hundreds of cattle to graze in mud. "We visited numerous properties throughout Southland during the winter of 2024 and found most farmers were on top of their winter grazing requirements with good plans in place," he says.
Curtis says sector groups have useful resources and information on their websites to help minimise the amount of mud created during winter grazing, such as back fencing and using portable water troughs to reduce walking distances for livestock.
He adds that animal welfare is everyone's responsibility and MPI strongly encourages any member of the public who is aware of animal ill-treatment or cruelty to report it to the MPI animal welfare complaints freephone 0800 008 333.
Southland Federated Farmers president Jason Herrick earlier told Dairy News that farmers are prepared for winter grazing every year.
However, he says they don't always have the benefit of hindsight and can't predict what weather will show up when. "It's all about controlling the controllables and having Plans B right through to Z to deal with what the weather gods throw at us," Herrick says.
He says that the winter grazing regulations introduced by the previous government were "completely unnecessary" because most farmers were already following good practice.
"There were a lot of costly, unworkable rules put in there as well which, in turn, had farmers thinking of ways to get around them because of the cost and ultimately led to some worse situations," he says.
Managing director of Woolover Ltd, David Brown, has put a lot of effort into verifying what seems intuitive, that keeping newborn stock's core temperature stable pays dividends by helping them realise their full genetic potential.
Within the next 10 years, New Zealand agriculture will need to manage its largest-ever intergenerational transfer of wealth, conservatively valued at $150 billion in farming assets.
Boutique Waikato cheese producer Meyer Cheese is investing in a new $3.5 million facility, designed to boost capacity and enhance the company's sustainability credentials.
OPINION: The Government's decision to rule out changes to Fringe Benefit Tax (FBT) that would cost every farmer thousands of dollars annually, is sensible.
Compensation assistance for farmers impacted by Mycoplama bovis is being wound up.
Selecting the reverse gear quicker than a lovestruck boyfriend who has met the in-laws for the first time, the Coalition Government has confirmed that the proposal to amend Fringe Benefit Tax (FBT) charged against farm utes has been canned.
OPINION: Years of floods and low food prices have driven a dairy farm in England's northeast to stop milking its…
OPINION: An animal activist organisation is calling for an investigation into the use of dairy cows in sexuallly explicit content…