Tuesday, 22 June 2021 11:14

Learn from the Aussies

Written by  Milking It

OPINION: It seems the Australian Government has realised how serious the labour shortage issue for its agriculture sector.

A new agriculture-specific visa will be established between Australia and the United Kingdom, allowing people to work on farms in either country. Australian media reports say there will be no age restrictions on the visa although it is not clear yet how long the visas will be valid for or when it comes into place.

Aussie farmers have been lobbying for a specific visa to recruit more people to milk cows and harvest crops. However, despite NZ farmers lobbying hard for extra overseas workers, the NZ Government has only given border exemptions in dribs and drabs. Time they took a leaf out of the Aussie book.

More like this

It's all about economics

OPINION: According to media reports, the eye-watering price of butter has prompted Finance Minister Nicola Willis to ask for a 'please explain' from her former employer Fonterra.

Red line on dairy

OPINION: As India negotiates to open its borders to more global products, dairy is proving a sticky issue.

Farmland security

OPINION: Paranoia about foreigners is at an all-time high in the US and attention is now turning to foreign-owned farmland.

Cuddling cows

OPINION: Years of floods and low food prices have driven a dairy farm in England's northeast to stop milking its cows and instead charge visitors to cuddle them.

Featured

B+LNZ launches AI assistant for farmers

Beef + Lamb New Zealand has launched an AI-powered digital assistant to help farmers using the B+LNZ Knowledge Hub to create tailored answers and resources for their farming businesses.

National

Machinery & Products

JDLink Boost for NZ farms

Connectivity is widely recognised as one of the biggest challenges facing farmers, but it is now being overcome through the…

New generation Defender HD11

The all-new 2026 Can-Am Defender HD11 looks likely to raise the bar in the highly competitive side-by-side category.

» Latest Print Issues Online

Milking It

Buttery prize

OPINION: Westland Milk may have won the contract to supply butter to Costco NZ but Open Country Dairy is having…

Gene Bill rumours

OPINION: The Gene Technology Bill has divided the farming community with strong arguments on both the pros and cons of…

» Connect with Dairy News

» eNewsletter

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter