Closing the Loop: Carbon Amendments & Vineyard Soils
New Zealand’s wine industry produces around 100,000 tonnes of grape marc waste annually, while the forestry sector generates over five million tonnes of wood residue.
Lincoln University have appointed Dr Alan Renwick as Professor of Agricultural Economics, to further strengthen their teaching and research in this area.
Renwick is currently domiciled in Dublin, Ireland, where he is Professor of Agricultural and Food Economics at University College Dublin (UCD). He will join the Lincoln University team later this year.
“Dr Renwick has exactly the background we need to further strengthen Lincoln’s teaching and research in agricultural economics, and I am personally delighted with the appointment,” says Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Scholarship and Research, Stefanie Rixecker.
“Alan spent many years at the University of Cambridge in the Department of Land Economy, before heading the Scottish Agricultural College’s Land Economy and Environmental Research team.”
“We have managed to secure his skills from his current role in agricultural and food economics at UCD, where he is teaching into their BSc in Food and Agribusiness Management, and their Master’s in Food Business Strategy, as well as supervising research students and undertaking his own research in this field. His background will complement the team within Lincoln in an area that is key to this University, and to New Zealand as a whole.”
The role of Professor of Agricultural Economics sits within Lincoln University’s Faculty of Agribusiness and Commerce. This year the faculty has announced the appointment of Crawford Falconer of the OECD to the Sir Graeme Harrison Professorial Chair in Global Value Chains and Trade, and will see the appointment of another two professors over the coming months.
“Lincoln University has been through a period of remarkable change in the last couple of years,” says Dean of the Faculty of Agribusiness and Commerce, Professor Hugh Bigsby.
“The appointment of Dr Renwick to this senior academic role signals another step-change in the development of our core areas of expertise. The role is one of four senior positions to be appointed this year.”
The Professor of Agricultural Economics will support Lincoln’s new Bachelor of Commerce (Food and Resource Economics) and research Masters’ and PhD supervision in the field of agricultural economics, as well as supporting the faculty’s agribusiness research and teaching more generally.
“I am looking forward to joining what is already a world-renowned university with a well-established reputation with the agricultural sector in New Zealand, and helping to build this reputation in the area of agricultural and food economics through my own research, presentations, publications and commentary. It is a very exciting time to be heading to New Zealand and joining the Lincoln University team,” says Renwick.
Renwick will also play a role in OneFarm - Centre of Excellence in Farm Business Management, a joint research centre with Massey University and will work closely with the University’s Agribusiness & Economics Research Unit (AERU).
Forestry Minister Todd McClay has today congratulated the winners of the 2026 Growing Native Forests Champions Awards at Fieldays.
The Government has announced $60,000 to provide one-off grants of $1,000 to each of the 60 New Zealand Young Farmers (NZYF) clubs across the country.
New Zealand’s rural sector has once again demonstrated its generosity, with the second Rural Industry Leaders Dinner, Debate and Auction raising an impressive $400,000 for the Rural Support Trust.
There has been another twist to the Federated Farmers annual election fiasco.
Analysis of decades of research has revealed the implementation of good farming practices plays a critical role in reducing nutrient losses to improve freshwater outcomes.
Yesterday the Government used the opening of Fieldays to announce a major investment, as part of its Land Use Flexibility package, to support a more productive and sustainable future across six sectors including dairy.

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