Editorial: Agri's mojo is back
OPINION: Good times are coming back for the primary industries. From sentiment expressed at Fieldays to the latest rural confidence survey results, all indicate farmer confidence at a near-record high.
The Jacson Cube, a portable all-in-one boot cleaning and disinfecting system that folds to go into a ute or car boot, alows rural professionals to arrive and depart farms without raising disease risk levels.
Jacson3 business partners Rusty Knutson and Jacqui Humm have spent two years developing the idea after Knutson – whose work was collecting calves for export – saw many farmers struggling to prevent rotavirus and cryptosporidium spreading between mobs of animals.
Cleaning and disinfecting boots on and off farms was hard to do thoroughly with only a bucket, brush and spray bottle combo. Hence the Jacson Cube for any kind of footwear cleaning and disinfecting.
The polypropylene Cube has three main components: body, lid and car-boot tray/footbath, which weighs 10kg empty and 15kg filled with water or disinfectant.
It has a rotating brush mounted on an aluminium spindle, in turn attached to a rhino-plastic grating designed to keep debris and contaminants away from the boot. A hand-brush can be used to shift stubborn debris while using the integrated handle in the lid for support.
The unit’s spray applicator draws disinfectant from a 3L reservoir and has a spray tip with enough pressure to shift debris.
It takes about one minute to set up and a couple more to pack away.
A ball-valve trap controls liquid flow and the body of the unit has storage for disinfectant, gloves, wipes and hand sanitiser.
For set-up the unit is connected by a 13-15mm hose-tail which directs liquid up to the brush assembly where it cascades over and under the footwear, with the motion causing the brush to rotate.
A tray is provided for holding the unit in a car boot; this can double as a footbath if used with an optional integral disinfectant mat.
The Cube can operate without a water source by using the integral reservoir. Price $549 + gst.
Boutique Waikato cheese producer Meyer Cheese is investing in a new $3.5 million facility, designed to boost capacity and enhance the company's sustainability credentials.
OPINION: The Government's decision to rule out changes to Fringe Benefit Tax (FBT) that would cost every farmer thousands of dollars annually, is sensible.
Compensation assistance for farmers impacted by Mycoplama bovis is being wound up.
Selecting the reverse gear quicker than a lovestruck boyfriend who has met the in-laws for the first time, the Coalition Government has confirmed that the proposal to amend Fringe Benefit Tax (FBT) charged against farm utes has been canned.
Holstein Friesian excellence was front and centre at the 2025 Holstein Friesian NZ (HFNZ) Awards, held recently in Invercargill.
The work Fonterra has done with Ballance Agri-Nutrients Ltd, LIC and Ravensdown to save farmers time through better data connections has been recognised with a national award.
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