Foot-in-mouth
OPINION: The Hound hears from his canine pals in Southland that an individual's derogatory remarks on social media have left them wishing they had kept their mouth firmly closed.
Southland’s state of emergency has been extended.
The state of emergency, which includes Fiordland, has been extended until Tuesday 18 February.
The decision was made by at a joint committee meeting, says Emergency Management Southland controller Angus McKay.
Members of all the local councils and other emergency services partners were at the meeting.
“We are still assessing the impact of the floodwaters in many areas in Southland and we have parts of Fiordland that are closed and need to remain so,” says McKay.
A co-ordinated response led by Civil Defence in Southland is still needed at this stage.
“We are working hard to plan the recovery phase and that will happen in due course.”
Southland and parts of Otago were flooded after a bout of heavy rain last week.
Federated Farmers says almost 2000 farmers have signed a petition launched this month to urge the Government to step in and provide certainty while the badly broken resource consent system is fixed.
Zespri’s counter-seasonal Zespri Global Supply (ZGS) programme is underway with approximately 33 million trays, or 118,800 tonnes, expected this year from orchards throughout France, Italy, Greece, Korea, and Japan.
Animal owners can help protect life-saving antibiotics from resistant bacteria by keeping their animals healthy, says the New Zealand Veterinary Association.
According to analysis by the Meat Industry Association (MIA), New Zealand red meat exports reached $827 million in October, a 27% increase on the same period last year.
The black and white coat of Holstein- Friesian cows is globally recognised as a symbol of dairy farming and a defining trait of domestic cattle. But until recently, scientists didn’t know which genes were responsible for the Holstein’s spots.
According to the New Zealand Dairy Statistics 2024/25 report, New Zealand dairy farmers are achieving more with fewer cows.

OPINION: Winston Peters has described the decision to sell its brand to Lactalis and disperse the profit to its farmer…
OPINION: The Hound reckons a big problem with focusing too much on the wrong goal - reducing livestock emissions at…