increase font size
Ngai Tahu Farms Ltd chief executive Andrew Priest.
Ngai Tahu Farms Ltd chief executive Andrew Priest says all farmers should be embracing and adopting the sustainability measures his organisation is committed to.
Sustainability practices should not be regarded as a cost, but as a benefit, he says.
He was addressing a field day Ngai Tahu staged recently as a finalist in this year's Ahuwhenua Trophy competition to determine the top Maori dairy farm in NZ. Ngai Tahu is one of three finalists.
Ngai Tahu's farms Te Ahu Patiki and Maukatere, located near Oxford, Canterbury, were formerly forest, now cleared. The farms are irrigated from the Waimakariri River.
At the field day about 300 people heard that Ngai Tahu is moving to ensure its dairying farming is sustainable. Its projects include placing lyscimeters around the property to accurately measure environmental factors.
"This is based on a concept of tikanga (culture) which says you can do things well and you can do things right, but there is difference between doing that and the 'right thing'," Priest told Rural News.
"What I mean is we could do our farm environmental plans and we could meet our consents. But we want to go further than that; we want some of these projects onfarm to go above and beyond what we are required to do."
He believes if the wider dairy industry adopts the sustainability measures developed by Ngai Tahu it will be more competitive and will resonate well with international markets and make the NZ sector more competitive.
Irrigation is the key to the success of Ngai Tahu's farming operations near Oxford, especially given the land has only recently been converted to dairying and is of poor quality.
Ngai Tahu Farming Ltd chair Gill Cox referred to the business's profitability, achieved responsibly. It takes marginal land and turns it into productive land. Ngai Tahu people farm the land as good corporate citizens for NZ and helping NZ's productivity.
"We harness the water, use it responsibly, treating it as having real value and being a scarce resource we use in the most efficient way," Cox explains. "Many people, especially those from urban areas, see irrigation water linked to dairying only, and dairying has been linked to the word 'dirty'. But irrigated land [is not used only] for dairying."
Ngai Tahu has a lot of land, much of it unsuitable for dairying. For example, it has 30,000ha in high country stations and a new block it's developing at Balmoral, likely for beef farming. Long term Ngai Tahu will look at horticulture and cropping options, Cox says.
"[We respect] the land, using it productively for the benefit of Ngai Tahu and other people and for the overall benefit of the NZ economy."
Ngai Tahu's legal action seeking self-determination (rangatiratanga) over fresh water could have huge implications for the future of farming, the viability of farming businesses, and our wider rural communities, says Federated Farmers national vice president Colin Hurst.
Recently two of New Zealand's top Maori sheep and beef farms held field days as part of the prestigious Ahuwhenua Trophy competition. The two are: Whangaroa Ngaiotonga Trust, northeast of Whangarei, and the proprietors of Tawapata Onenui farm on Mahia Peninsula in southern Hawke's Bay. Reporter Peter Burke attended both field days.
In February I enjoyed the opportunity to present a keynote address at Climate Action Week Marlborough on the reasons why climate change is the most significant long-term challenge facing our industry and what the short-term opportunities are for members to take action to reduce their carbon emissions.
Farms from Northland and northern Hawke's Bay are the finalists in this year's Ahuwhenua Trophy competition for the top Māori sheep and beef farms.
The New Zealand wine industry Environment Strategy goals highlight key objectives across six different focus areas: Water, waste, plant protection, soil, people, and climate change.
Farmers appear to be backing the Government's recent Resource Management Act (RMA) reforms announcement.
For the first time, all the big names in agricultural drone technology are being brought together under one marquee at the National Fieldays.
Fonterra has announced an improved third quarter performance – with a profit after tax of $1.15 billion, up $119 million on the same period last year.
The Fieldays Innovation Awards competition has attracted a diverse and impressive array of innovations from across the primary industries, highlighting the growing importance of technology shaping the future of farming.
Coming to the fore following the carnage of Cyclone Gabrielle, Starlink became well known for providing internet access even in NZ's most inaccessible places.
From this winter farmers will have a greater choice of feed types and blend options than ever before, thanks to Farmlands' purchase of animal nutrition company SealesWinslow.
OPINION: Imagine if the Hound had called the Minister of Finance the 'c-word' and accused her of "girl math".
OPINION: It's good news that Finance Minister Nicola Willis has slashed $1.1 billion from new spending, citing "a seismic global…
