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Katie Milne.
Federated Farmers' conference last week was a great success, says president Katie Milne.
The federation joined forces with a commercial conference organising company to stage the event at Te Papa Museum in Wellington.
Milne says they decided to do something different and bring primary industries into Wellington to connect closer with politicians, academics, government officials and agribusiness people.
“It’s gone well and good feedback from everybody showed this format has worked. People made the connections we wanted them to make.
“We had great speakers from overseas and New Zealand and the conference had a different buzz.”
Milne says the farming sector is pretty flat at present despite prices being good.
The conference was aimed at helping the public and decisionmakers to better understand farming. Attendees aired their concerns, chiefly on government policies. And alternative proteins were also heard as a worry.
“Typical concerns were, what effect is the Zero Carbon Bill going to have on farms? and what must farmers do today about water policies?
They are uncertain what the impacts will be, Milne said.
“We also don’t think the regulatory impact analyses and cost benefit analyses have been properly done on a lot of these things, in particular the flow-on effects.”
Milne says the challenge is to deal with such issues while simultaneously identifying opportunities for the primary sector and seeing a clear path to achieve goals.
Central Otago District Council (CODC) has voted against a plan to spread treated sewage sludge from Cromwell and Alexandra on farmland near Lauder, a decision Federated Farmers says reflects strong opposition from rural residents.
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Federated Farmers says new legislation replacing the Resource Management Act will cut red tape, unlock investment and help grow New Zealand's export-led economy, after the Planning Bill and Natural Environment Bill passed their third reading in Parliament yesterday.
Leading figures from the major political parties will be questioned on their primary sector policies at the Rural Issues Debate at Mystery Creek Events Centre, Hamilton, on 30 September.
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National’s much-touted free trade deal with India featured in the Rural Issues Debate at Mystery Creek, Hamilton on Wednesday night.
New Zealand's 2026-27 freshwater fishing season has opened, with anglers encouraged to head to rivers and lakes over the coming days as conditions look favourable across much of the country.
Central Otago District Council (CODC) has voted against a plan to spread treated sewage sludge from Cromwell and Alexandra on farmland near Lauder, a decision Federated Farmers says reflects strong opposition from rural residents.
Pāmu has released its FY26 Integrated Annual Report, reporting a Net Operating Profit of $113 million, more than double the $49 million recorded in FY25.
Meat Industry Association data, released alongside the Red Meat Sector conference in Wellington, shows export value climbing across the US, China, UK and Canada.
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