increase font size
Katie Milne.
Consider some new year resolutions as you work the land. And treat your farm as a biosecurity fortress, with its defences tightened to shut out pest and disease threats.
Confirmation this month that the bacterial cattle disease Mycoplasma bovis is present on a farm in the Ashburton area – bringing the number of infected properties to 14 – is the latest wake-up call.
All farms are at risk from pests and diseases. Regarding M. bovis, movement of infected animals is the main risk, then animal-to-animal contact and transmission through milk and semen; but the disease can also be transferred directly on equipment such as calving and AI gear.
MPI staff work hard to knock out biosecurity threats at our airports and ports but they’re only the first line of defence. You’re the fullback. You need a game plan to repel weeds, bacteria and other harmful substances that would hurt your livelihood.
Now for those resolutions.
First, are your NAIT records up to date? Federated Farmers will be lobbying hard for early adoption of recommendations to simplify NAIT compliance as a conclusion of a review of the National Animal Identification and Tracing scheme. Every livestock farmer’s role is to accurately and entirely record stock numbers and movements on and off their property. The M. bovis outbreak is showing us that strong NAIT compliance is crucial to the efficiency of the biosecurity response.
Next, have an onfarm biosecurity plan and make sure your staff are on board with it. The concept of your farm as a ‘separate country’ with virtual borders is not over the top. For example, if family members or farm visitors are recently returned from overseas, consider the risk of them carrying an unwanted substance on footwear or in a suitcase.
Limit unnecessary movement of people, pets and vehicles onto your property, especially in areas where animals are kept.
• Katie Milne is the president of Federated Farmers of New Zealand.
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.
Will the good times last? That's one of the key issues to come out of the latest Federated Farmers confidence survey.
Mid Canterbury Federated Farmers arable chair, Bevan Lill, said Beef + Lamb NZ data indicated that for the last six years, the average arable return on investment was about 0.8% while inflation ran about 4% - so the average arable farm was going backwards at about 3% a year.
For the first time in a quarter of a century, Federated Farmers has something positive to say about the Labour Party’s climate change policy leading into a general election.
Federated Farmers says it welcomes Labour's commitment to reviewing the Sharemilking Agreements Act, calling on other major parties to do the same.
For Canterbury dairy farmers Sian Meijer and Rick Wobben, wearable technology has become one of their most valuable on-farm tools - helping manage 1850 cows across an expansive, high-performing dairy operation while improving efficiency, mating outcomes and day-to-day decision making.
Fonterra has unveiled its annual results for the 2026 financial year, posting $27 billion in revenue and close to $20 billion returned to New Zealand farmer owners and unit holders.
The first major update to the Dairy Cattle Code of Welfare in more than a decade has been released, marking what DairyNZ describes as an important step in ensuring animal welfare standards continue to evolve alongside scientific evidence and on-farm realities.
Ravensdown shareholders have elected Jane Montgomery and Kate Acland to the Ravensdown Board for three-year terms, following a closely contested director election.
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.
OPINION: It seems Canterbury processor Synlait is still in the doldrums.
OPINION: Get offside with New Zealand First leader Winston Peters at your own peril.
