Opinion

What the 2026 Election Means for Rural Landowners

OPINION: The farm policy on the table this election, what it could mean for land, and why the market you're in today still matters most

Who Decides Farming's Future?

OPINION: Most farmers know which company collects their milk, processes their meat, supplies their fertiliser or lends them money. But how many know that many of those same companies are investing hundreds of millions in technologies designed to intervene in the natural digestive process of our animals? Did anyone ask…

Vote 2026: Finding the Adult in the Room

OPINION: Being the father of four, children’s books from our local library were regularly at our place.

Editorial: Making Water Storage Easy

OPINION: Making it easier to collect rainwater and use it to grow crops and livestock is a no brainer.

Making Farming A Matter of 'Core National Resilience

OPINION: New British Prime Minister Andy Burnham has said that farming and food production is a matter of ‘core national resilience’ and must be spoken about in Whitehall at the same level as issues with ‘defence, energy, water and steel’.

The Heart of Rural Wellbeing

Sam Whitelock is an All Black rugby great, Farmstrong Ambassador and working dairy farmer in the Manawatu. Having stepped away from professional sport and returned to his roots on the family farm, he talks about balancing farm life with advocating for rural wellbeing.

Editorial: No Small Challenge

OPINION: There could hardly be a more appropriate theme for a conference than the one chosen by the red meat sector - Navigating Volatility.

Paris Agreement: What Are the Costs and Returns to NZ?

OPINION: We are only weeks from the election, and my vote is looking for a home.

More To Overall Health Than Bugs and Viruses

OPINION: More than three decades ago, I was part of a group who received a monthly audio cassette tape from international leadership statesman, Dr. John Maxwell.

Editorial: Arable Woes

OPINION: Warning bells are ringing in the arable sector.

It's The Margins That Matter

OPINION: It appears to be difficult for people who haven’t tried to run a business to understand the difference between assets and cash.

Editorial: Drones Are Not Toys

OPINION: David Seymour and James Meager's plan to make it easier for farmers and orchardists to operate drones can best be described a 'courageous' move.

Election Is Coming, It's Time For The Freebies

OPINION: Flicking through some global news headlines just recently, I spotted something tucked away, which in my opinion rather conveniently had less visibility than it deserved.

Lies, Damned Lies, and Statistics

OPINION: In the 1980s, concern was expressed in West Germany about the falling birth rate. Some simple analysis was performed by Professor Helmut Sies, physician and biochemist at Dusseldorf University. His letter ‘A new parameter for sex education’ was published in Nature in 1988:

Editorial: Time to Boost Organics

OPINION: The time has come for the Government to back the organic sector.

Why NZ's Transport Network Is Key to Food and Fibre Exports

OPINION: As a country that prides itself on being a trading nation, New Zealand's transport infrastructure has a critical role to play in supporting future growth and resilience.

'LinkedIn Greens'

OPINION: The same mainstream media muppets that brought you Jacindamania in 2017 have been flat out pimping for the Opportunities Party, labelled by some as the 'LinkedIn Greens' for their corporate spin on Green-esque 'tax the rich' policies.

Time for Reality, Not Fantasy Scenarios

OPINION: Back in April, the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change delivered an update that should have triggered an 8.5 magnitude earthquake in the world of climate change policy.

UK Warning

OPINION: Your old mate reckons the atrocious way farmers in the UK are treated by their lords and masters in Westminster is a salient warning for us.

One and One Don't Make Three

OPINION: Since when did one and one make three? Who didn't smell an elephant-sized rat when our leaders decided to give $60 million to save the cement factory in Northland?

Editorial: RSE Review - A Timely Move

OPINION: A simpler, clearer, more effective Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) scheme.

New Mates

OPINION: Proponents of regenerative agriculture tend to be naturally aligned with a 'green mindset', so they will be nonplussed with their new mates in the US of A.

Levy Scrutiny

OPINION: Mike Chapman, former chief executive of levy-funded HortNZ, has thrown out a challenge to farmers and growers to put their levy-funded industry organisations under the same scrutiny as fertiliser, electricity, labour and freight.

Bird Flu: Keep Distance, Wash Hands, Report It

OPINION: It's a tough pill to swallow that bird flu (avian influenza) has finally arrived in New Zealand. This is a moment many of us have hoped would never come.