Methane emission target reset
OPINION: For close to eight years now, I have found myself talking about methane quite a lot.
There is a limit to what farmers can do to improve security on their farms, says Federated Farmers Dairy chairman Andrew Hoggard.
His comments follow the publicity surrounding the news of a 1080 threat to infant milk formula. At a news conference it was suggested farmers should secure their milk supply.
But Hoggard points out that farmers need to keep their sheds and facilities open at all times for tankers to collect their milk. Beyond installing a security camera they can do little more, he says.
“In the modern cowshed there is quite a bit of technology and kit but we have to leave everything open for tankers,” he told Dairy News.
“More and more farmers are installing security. I have tried a number of different cameras including game trail ones. The worry I have with those is that the criminal could quite easily steal it and I’d never know who the criminal was.”
Hoggard has a camera connected to his computer providing pictures of anyone entering his cow shed. Plenty of equipment is being stolen from cows sheds, an ongoing problem, he says. – Peter Burke
Three New Zealand agritech companies are set to join forces to help unlock the full potential of technology.
As the sector heads into the traditional peak period for injuries and fatalities, farmers are being urged to "take a moment".
Federated Farmers says almost 2000 farmers have signed a petition launched this month to urge the Government to step in and provide certainty while the badly broken resource consent system is fixed.
Zespri’s counter-seasonal Zespri Global Supply (ZGS) programme is underway with approximately 33 million trays, or 118,800 tonnes, expected this year from orchards throughout France, Italy, Greece, Korea, and Japan.
Animal owners can help protect life-saving antibiotics from resistant bacteria by keeping their animals healthy, says the New Zealand Veterinary Association.
According to analysis by the Meat Industry Association (MIA), New Zealand red meat exports reached $827 million in October, a 27% increase on the same period last year.
OPINION: Dipping global dairy prices have already resulted in Irish farmers facing a price cut from processors.
OPINION: Are the heydays of soaring global demand for butter over?