Lanaco and Blueair Launch World-First NZ Wool Air Filter
New Zealand wool is reaching new heights as air filtration companies move away from synthetic products to biodegradable alternatives.
The 2013 National Agricultural Fieldays will experience a dose of SODA energy as together with the Waikato's entrepreneurship centre they launch the Fieldays Innovation Den – Pitch for Investment; a new "Dragon's Den" style event.
SODA has signed a partnership agreement with Fieldays to co-create this new event that will see New Zealand inventors pitching to investors at Fieldays 2013.
SODA will select up to 10 commercially viable inventions participating in the Fieldays Innovation Centre to showcase, and will support the inventors to get their invention pitch-ready prior to the big event.
The event will follow a similar format to the acclaimed 'Dragon's Den' programme where participants pitch their inventions to a panel of esteemed investors and business leaders in the hope of securing advice and investment.
The Fieldays Innovation Den judging panel will feature influential business moguls and investors from around New Zealand including heavyweight Ray Thompson, who is also the NZ Angel Association Chair.
The event will be a highlight of the 'Innovation Centre' and will give national inventors the chance to obtain knowledge about the business world and how to take their inventions into global markets.
"Innovation has always been at the heart of Fieldays," says Jon Calder, NZ National Agricultural Fieldays chief executive. "It's one of the principles on which Fieldays was founded and we've seen a number of individuals and companies launch new products and innovations at Fieldays, going on to achieve global success.
"Our partnership with SODA builds on Fieldays success and enables us to help foster entrepreneurship, innovation and creativity in new ways, creating a program which gives aspiring innovators a path to market."
SODA chief executive Cheryl Reynolds says SODA is excited about joining forces with Fieldays to create this new Innovation Den. "It's a great opportunity to help New Zealand investors to spot some great inventions worthy of investment," Reynolds says. "It will also provide support to Kiwi inventors who are really motivated and want to develop their skills to help build a viable business model around their inventions to take them into global markets."
The investment community is also excited about this showcase as it shines a spotlight on potential investment opportunities for NZ investors.
Striking a balance between meeting the needs of industry to speed up approval time for products but on the other hand ensuring that risks are properly assessed.
Surprised, humbled and quite thrilled. That’s the reaction of James Allen, one of the founding partners and now chief executive of AgFirst, on being made a life member of the Institute of Rural Professionals.
It was billed as a chance for all the political parties to woo the rural vote, but question marks hang over just how effective this was.
Minister of Conservation Hon Tama Potaka has appointed Susan O'Regan as Chair of the Queen Elizabeth II National Trust (QEII) for a three-year term.
Red meat farmers are welcoming Labour’s plan to review the Emissions Trading Scheme and not to campaign on pricing agricultural emissions.
Now in its fourth year, the 2026 Fencing Industry Awards, formed part of the proceedings of the FCANZ Conference, held in Nelson during August.

OPINION: The same mainstream media muppets that brought you Jacindamania in 2017 have been flat out pimping for the Opportunities…
OPINION: Your old mate reckons the atrocious way farmers in the UK are treated by their lords and masters in…