Science fiction
OPINION: Last week's announcement of Prime Minister’s new Science and Technology Advisory Council hasn’t gone down too well in the…
“WHEN FONTERRA sneezes a lot of people [may not] catch a cold but it makes a lot of them shiver,” says David Minnock an Irish dairy farmer from Co Offaly, west of Dublin. He was referring to the fact that when Fonterra auction prices drop, his company is quick to alter its prices as well.
FARMERS IN the central and lower North Island are numbed, bewildered and frustrated by the One Plan outcome in the Environment Court.
JAMES MORRISSON’S recent article* is illuminating on cooperative purpose. It reminds us a cooperative exists first and foremost to serve its members, in Fonterra’s case to ensure the highest possible percentage of milk value ends up with the farmer.
THE MILK payout used to be the main driver of the farm property market, but not anymore, says Bayley’s country property specialist, John Barnett.
ABOUT 25% of dairy farms will “have significant liquidity risk” this year on current forecasts for costs and milk price, says DairyNZ senior economist Matt Newman.
AS THE soil starts warming up over the next few months, farmers will be preparing to fertilise their paddocks. For business efficiency and environmental protection it’s important to bear in mind the risks of applying too much fertiliser, and applying it in the wrong place or at the wrong time.
OVER HALF the papers at this year’s Grassland Association conference, November 6-8, are directly relevant to dairying, say the organisers.
TAKING EXTRA care of young stock and strategically adopting once-a-day (OAD) milking have allowed a Northland couple to halve their calving spread while increasing production.
OPTIMUM FEEDING is a balance between the quantity of available feed and the quality of that feed.
Fonterra Shareholders' Council chair, Ian Brown says the decision by the Fonterra Board of Directors to retain the services of Henry van der Heyden and Ralph Waters into 2013 would provide stability for the introduction of Trading Among Farmers (TAF).
More...
Fonterra is considering consolidating brands to arrest a decline in its Australian business.
Beef and Lamb NZ's latest new season outlook has beef production pegged for a 7.8% lift to 2.3 million head in the 2012-13 season. This is largely linked to the carryover of cull cows from last season given the excellent conditions though fewer beef cow replacements are being retained and more dairy culls are likely, given the ever expanding NZ dairy herd.
A number of buyers may have opted to sell to ease the pressure on slow growing paddocks and to benefit from the strong market prices, but that may well have had a detrimental effect as prices, for younger cattle seemed to readjust to the increase in numbers.
Bulls over 12 months entering the dairy industry can be tested for free for bovine tuberculosis (TB), says the Animal Health Board (AHB).
Milking It
Bye bye Paris?
OPINION: At its recent annual general meeting, Federated Farmers’ Auckland province called for New Zealand to withdraw from the Paris…
Popular Reads
25 years on - where are they now?
To celebrate 25 years of the Hugh Williams Memorial Scholarship, Ravensdown caught up with past recipients to see where their…
Ngāi Tahu freshwater case could reshape farming and rural communities
Ngai Tahu's legal action seeking self-determination (rangatiratanga) over fresh water could have huge implications for the future of farming, the…
Taranaki dairy farms saved by $10/kgMS payout
Only this season’s $10/kgMS bumper payout has saved some dairy farms along the Taranaki coast from absolute disaster due to…
