110,000 visitors!
OPINION: It's official, Fieldays 2025 clocked 110,000 visitors over the four days.
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.
A brilliant result and great news for growers and regional economies. That's how horticulture sector leaders are describing the news that sector exports for the year ended June 30 will reach $8.4 billion - an increase of 19% on last year and is forecast to hit close to $10 billion in 2029.
Funding is proving crucial for predator control despite a broken model reliant on the goodwill of volunteers.
A major milestone on New Zealand's unique journey to eradicate Mycoplasma bovis could come before the end of this year.
We're working through it, and we'll get to it.
The debate around New Zealand's future in the Paris Agreement is heating up.
A technical lab manager for Apata, Phoebe Scherer, has won the Bay of Plenty 2025 Young Grower regional title.