Federated Farmers: Rural Voices Must Shape Reform
Certainty and a clear understanding of the needs of rural communities is a critical outcome in the series of government reforms that are taking place at present.
OPINION: This old mutt suggests the new government is going to have to move fast to rein in a number of district and regional councils around the country who seem hell-bent on trying to push through their own agendas.
A good example is the Otago Regional Council (ORC), which has been warned against ploughing ahead with a controversial water plan, despite recently meeting with Resource Management Act Reform Minister Chris Bishop to discuss how the new government's plan to update national freshwater management policies would affect the council's under-development land and water plan.
When Bishop informed the ORC in December that their June deadline had changed, the ORC issued a statement the following day saying, no, it had not.
Bishop needs to let ORC know - quick-smart - who is in charge and that it's not them!
The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) says no new cases of H5 bird flu have been detected following a case found earlier this week.
Two months after unveiling a major upgrade to its beef product, Halter says its farmers are on track for major production gains and additional grass growth.
New Zealanders are being urged to be alert following a confirmed positive case of H5 bird flu this week.
With a third of NZ dairy farmers still running outdated refrigerants, the country's largest farm refrigeration company says the opportunity for quick, meaningful emissions gains has never been clearer.
OPINION: Farmers are being put on notice by the Green Party.
As dairy farmers lock in plans for the upcoming mating season, a partnership between Fonterra and Silver Fern Farms has been formed with the aim of making it simpler to create additional value from calves not entering the replacement herd.

OPINION: Central Hawke's Bay farmer Mark Warren recently told the Hawke's Bay Times it's time for a conversation about allowing…
OPINION: A nation that relies as heavily as NZ does on functional global shipping lanes will have to do its…