Top wool advocate bales out
The conversion of productive farmland into trees has pretty much annihilated the wool industry.
Wool is on the cusp of a renaissance that will kick off Monday in the presence of the Prince of Wales, says Federated Farmers.
Feds' meat and fibre chairperson Jeanette Maxwell and president Bruce Wills will attend the Shear Brilliance, which the Prince is opening.
Maxwell says the Federated Farmers Meat & Fibre Council has resolved to publically support the Campaign for Wool, of which, the Prince of Wales is patron.
"Natural fibres, like wool, are the most sustainable things we can put into our homes and businesses, or on ourselves for that matter. The global wool industry has been on the back foot and as farmers, we realise the need for us to get on the front foot," says Maxwell.
"That is why president Bruce Wills and I are attending the Shear Brilliance event because wool is brilliant.
"To prove we are putting words into action, Federated Farmers Meat & Fibre Council further resolved to encourage members and indeed, all farmers, to get involved in the Wools of New Zealand discussions now taking place.
"We are publicising meetings and will provide forums for discussion because the status quo has failed us farmers. That means it is incumbent on farmers to grab the comb and get stuck in," Maxwell says.
New Zealand needs a new healthcare model to address rising rates of obesity in rural communities, with the current system leaving many patients unable to access effective treatment or long-term support, warn GPs.
Southland farmers are being urged to put safety first, following a spike in tip offs about risky handling of wind-damaged trees
Third-generation Ashburton dairy farmers TJ and Mark Stewart are no strangers to adapting and evolving.
When American retail giant Cosco came to audit Open Country Dairy’s new butter plant at the Waharoa site and give the green light to supply their American stores, they allowed themselves a week for the exercise.
Fonterra chair Peter McBride says the divestment of Mainland Group is their last significant asset sale and signals the end of structural changes.
Thirty years ago, as a young sharemilker, former Waikato farmer Snow Chubb realised he was bucking a trend when he started planting trees to provide shade for his cows, but he knew the animals would appreciate what he was doing.

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