Crazy
OPINION: Your canine crusader was truly impressed by the almost unanimous support given by politicians of all stripes in Parliament to the recent passing of legislation for the NZ/EU free trade deal.
The Government is throwing its support behind Māori landowners eyeing a piece of the growing sheep milk sector.
Agriculture Minister Damien O'Connor says the Government is backing a project to support Māori landowners to invest in the sheep milk sector.
"We are backing the Māori Agribusiness Sheep Milk Collective, which has to ambitious goals to have multiple farms milking about 25,000 sheep and potentially employing more than 100 people by 2030," says O'Connor.
He says global demand for sheep milk and sheep milk products remains strong. Exports of New Zealand sheep milk products were valued at $20 million in 2020.
The Government is injecting $700,000 into the Collective to help it explore the potential of sustainably producing sheep milk at scale, create jobs and further grow this emerging export market.
The collective is made up of 20 Māori land trusts and incorporations that own more than 24,000 hectares of land stretching from the wester shore of Lake Taupō to the Hauraki Plains.
O'Connor says those sheep could initially produce more than 6 million litres of milk, or 1 million kgMS.
The collective was set up through the Ministry for Primary Industries' Māori Agribusiness Extension (MABx) programme, which has been allocated $12 million over four years to provide farmer-to-farmer support to Māori landowners and trustees.
The investment is part of the Government's Fit for a Better World roadmap, which aims for food and fibre sector exports to earn an extra $44 billion over 10 years.
The Government is also supporting wider industry research to capitalise on growing demand for sheep milk.
"MPI is funding a $12.56 million six-year project with the aim of building a high-value and sustainable sheep dairy industry in Aotearoa New Zealand," says O'Connor.
"Last year construction and development was taking place across several new sheep dairy farms in the greater Waikato and a new infant formula was launched as part of the project."
New Zealand dairy processors are welcoming the Government’s commitment to continuing to push for Canada to honour its trade commitments.
An educational programme, set up by Beef + Land New Zealand, to connect farmers virtually with primary and intermediate school students has reported the successful completion of its second year.
The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) has welcomed a resolution adopted by the United Nations (UN) General Assembly to declare 2026 International Year of the Woman Farmer.
Waikato herd health veterinarian Katrina Roberts is the 2024 Fonterra Dairy Woman of the Year.
Trade Minister Todd McClay says New Zealand has no intention of backing down in a trade dispute with Canada over dairy products.
Horticulture NZ chief executive Nadine Tunley will step down in August.