Ravensdown partners with Footrot Flats to celebrate Kiwi farming heritage
Ravensdown has announced a collaboration with Kiwi icon, Footrot Flats in an effort to bring humour, heart, and connection to the forefront of the farming sector.
Former Federated Farmers national president Bruce Wills has been elected as the new chair of fertiliser co-operative Ravensdown.
Current chair, John Henderson will conclude his term on May 31, after 8 years in the role and 18 years on the board. Wills was voted in as a Ravensdown director in 2015 and has been working closely with Henderson during the past year.
Wills says he is excited about the co-operative's future, which is focusing on improving farmers' and growers' environmental and productive performance.
"I am passionate about Ravensdown's role as nutrient leaders in the areas of science, supply and solutions for an ag sector striving for more sustainable ways forward."
Wills is the current chair of the Primary Industries Training Organisation, the QEII National Trust, Apiculture NZ and the deer industry primary-growth partnership. He was awarded the Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit last year for services to agriculture and the environment.
Wills has thanked Henderson for his work at the fertiliser co-op, describing him as a stalwart leader in the sector.
Henderson had been scheduled to retire from the board last September but was asked to continue on for a further 12 months to provide continuity with new chief executive Garry Diack taking the helm.
He says he is particularly proud of Ravensdown's focus on the science and technology behind its nutrient expertise.
"In my time as chair the issues confronting the co-operative, its farmers and growers have changed dramatically," Henderson says. "Our team is confronting this challenge and establishing themselves as trusted advisors and chosen partners in the ag sector."
He believes the co-op's solutions will assist the ag sector in dealing with greenhouse gas emissions, water quality and productivity.
New Zealand's diverse cheesemaking talent shone brightly last night as the New Zealand Specialist Cheesemakers Association (NZSCA) crowned the champions of the 2026 New Zealand Cheese Awards.
Tracing has indicated that the source of the first velvetleaf find of the 2025-26 crop season, in Auckland, was likely maize purchased in the Waikato region.
Fish & Game New Zealand has announced its election priorities in its Manifesto 2026.
With the forage maize harvest started in Northland and the Waikato, the Foundation for Arable Research (FAR) is telling growers of later crops, or those further south, to start checking their maize crop maturity about three weeks prior to when they think they will start silage harvesting.
Irrigation NZ is warning that the government's Resource Management Act (RMA) reform risks falling short of its objectives unless water use for food production and water storage infrastructure are clearly recognised in the goals at the top of the new system.
More than five million trays, or 18,000 tonnes, of Zespri’s RubyRed Kiwifruit will soon be available for consumers across 16 markets this season.