Cam Clayton Eyes Last Shot at FMG Young Farmer Title
“Pack your thinking caps. You need more than just farming knowledge for this one.”
A mate of the Hound reckons the outcome of this year’s Young Farmer of the Year contest should be a real concern to New Zealand’s Young Farmers and the annual competition itself.
This year’s winner – the youngest ever in the competition’s history – is not a farmer, but a Fonterra marketing executive in Auckland.
Neither were the runner-up or third place winners farmers.
They were, respectively, a technical field rep and a vet.
Says this old mutt’s concerned source: the fact that none of the winners actually endure the real, daily rigours of farming makes the title of the contest – perhaps the event itself – somewhat questionable.
Signing up to a benchmarking tool is not about competition, but about improving collectively, says Ximena Puig and Alvaro Luzardo who are 50-50 sharemilkers at a 164-hectare (effective) dairy farm in Eketāhuna in the Lower North Island.
A leading British farming politician says he's impressed with the positive attitude of New Zealand farmers that he met during his recent trip here.
OPINION: With 10,500 dairy farms, New Zealand continues to punch above its weight around the world.
The Southern Dairy Hub (SDH), which runs a demonstration farm for South Island farmers, has a new general manager.
Esther Guy-Meakin has been announced as the new chief executive of the New Zealand Meat Board (NZMB).
According to a progress report on the Aotearoa Horticulture Action Plan (AHAP), New Zealand's horticulture sector is making real progress on the big issues facing growers.

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