Finally, a deal is here
News that NZ and the UK have agreed 'in principle' to the terms of the free trade agreement (FTA) will come as welcome news to the dairy sector.
UK farmers are urging their Government to implement its 25-year TB eradication strategy immediately and in full to ensure farmer support for it remains strong.
NFU president Meurig Raymond says farmers support the strategy but are frustrated at the lack of action to introduce its various elements.
“The farming industry needs to see more urgency in the implementation of the whole strategy and better communication of its measures and aims. Now is the time to build on the determination of the farming industry to eradicate this disease which is destroying farming businesses and families.”
Raymond says different elements of the strategy are urgently needed in different parts of the country and needed to be introduced as a matter of urgency.
“We need appropriate and proportionate measures to keep the disease out of the low risk area of England.
“We need more targeted measures to stop the spread in the edge area (between the high and low risk areas). In particular we need better information on the local infection rate in wildlife in this area.
“And we need further pilot culls in the high risk area. Farmers are committed to playing their part in this but need to see that commitment reciprocated by the Government.”
Statistics released by the UK Government in April show the provisional incidence rate for January 2015 was 3.9% compared to 4.5% for January 2014.
However, it states that care needs to be taken not to read too much into short term figures, especially as this figure includes a number of unclassified incidents.
The number of new herd incidents in January 2015 was 494 compared to 534 in January 2014.
The number of cattle compulsorily slaughtered in January 2015 was 2977 vs 2923 in January 2014.
Bankers have been making record profits in the last few years, but those aren’t the only records they’ve been breaking, says Federated Farmers vice president Richard McIntyre.
The 2023-24 season has been a roller coaster ride for Waikato dairy farmers, according to Federated Farmers dairy section chair, Mathew Zonderop.
Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) director general Ray Smith says job cuts announced this morning will not impact the way the Ministry is organised or merge business units.
Scales Corporation is acquiring a number of orchard assets from Bostock Group.
Family and solidarity shone through at the 75 years of Ferdon sale in Otorohanga last month.
The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) has informed staff it will cut 391 jobs following a consultation period.