Leaderbrand goes electric!
One of the largest horticulture commercial growing companies in NZ has just begun using a new electric harvester and self-propelled cargo platforms to operate in its new mega greenhouse.
Leaderbrand's CEO Richard Burke says there should be no shortage of summer salads this year - despite all the trials and tribulations caused by the weather.
He says the cabbages are already in the ground because they take the longest to grow and the other plants will be going in soon. He believes that the summer supply will be excellent.
Burke says it's been an interesting six months and while Cyclone Gabrielle didn't hit them as badly as it did Hawke's Bay, Leaderbrand has still had to cope with a very wet and difficult winter. He says it will be interesting to see how spring kicks in.
"It was worse than last winter and there was no land preparation; we were always down on the amount of land that was available because of the wet summer and the cyclone," Burke told Hort News. "We have had a winter where we didn't hit our volume targets so that's been a challenge."
Leaderbrand has also had issues in Pukekohe and to a lesser degree in Matamata where the company also grows crops. Burke says the rain made planting difficult in winter and for a couple of weeks they were scratching around to get supply. He says the impacts of the cyclone and the rain may be felt for some time yet.
Burke says people need to understand what it means for them if extremes of wet and dry weather continue. He says infrastructure has generally been designed for the past and it needs to be upgraded.
"We still have to address our drainage and river management, which we used to be pretty damn good at," Burke told Hort News.
"But we have fallen off that and other things have taken priority. As a region - and probably as a country - we need to get those priorities back on track and use our infrastructure wisely."
The country’s 4200 commercial fruit and vegetable growers will vote from May 14 on a new HortNZ levy.
Meat processor Alliance Group is asking farmer shareholders to inject more capital in order to remain a 100% co-operative.
A vet is calling for all animals to be vaccinated against a new strain of leptospirosis (lepto) discovered on New Zealand dairy farms in recent years.
Dairy
Rural banker Rabobank is partnering with Food Rescue Kitchen on a new TV series which airs this weekend that aims to shine a light on the real and growing issues of food waste, food poverty and social isolation in New Zealand.
Telco infrastructure provider Chorus says that it believes all Kiwis – particularly those in the rural areas – need access to high-speed, reliable broadband.
OPINION: The new government has clearly signalled big cuts across the public service.
OPINION: Your canine crusader is not surprised by the recent news that New Zealand plant-based ‘fake meat’ business is in…