Federated Farmers president Wayne Langford is claiming “some real success” on the 12 policy priorities it placed before the Coalition Government. In an email to his members, Langford since it has been six months since the election, the time was right to write to members and offer an update on how things are tracking with the new Government. He reminded farmers that Federated Farmers had 12 policy priorities for restoring confidence that they wanted to see picked up and implemented by the Government: he claims “significant movement” on nine of those policies. “These ranged from areas where we ..read more

Federated Farmers is throwing its support behind the Fast-track Approvals Bill introduced by the Coalition Government to enable a fast-track decision-making process for infrastructure and development projects. In a submission to the parliamentary environment committee this week, Federated Farmers says it supports the aim of the Bill to enable faster approval of infrastructure and other projects that have significant regional or national benefits. Feds board member and transport spokesman Mark Hooper says the farmer lobby agrees that “consenting major infrastructure and other projects in New ..read more

The latest report from ANZ isn’t good news for sheep farmers: lamb returns are forecast to remain low. The ANZ Agri Focus says that while global market returns remain mixed, with reasonable prices in the European and US markets, prices have weakened for lower value cuts. Schedule prices have not changed a lot in recent weeks, and lamb throughput is slower than normal, it notes. Many farmers are struggling to put weight on lambs and others are trying to grow lambs out to heavier weights to offset the lower prices. The report states that international prices for lamb vary considerably dependin ..read more

AgriZeroNZ, a joint venture fast-tracking emissions reduction tools for farmers, is pouring $5 million in a biotech company to develop a low emissions farm pasture with increased productivity gains. Founded in New Zealand, BioLumic is internationally acclaimed for its unique and proprietary UV Light Treatments which are applied to seeds to regulate their genetic expression and unlock their natural genetic potential. These treatments have been found to significantly improve plant performance across 12 crops including corn, soybeans and rice - driving double digit yield gains, improved quality ..read more

Fonterra is teaming up with wealth app provider Sharesies to make it easier for its farmer shareholders to trade co-op shares among themselves. The co-operative says the current trading platform technology for Fonterra shares has been in place since 2012 and the existing vendor agreement is due to expire shortly. This presented an opportunity for Fonterra to review and enhance the trading experience for Fonterra farmers. In partnering with Sharesies, from mid-2024, the following new features will be on offer: Share trading on mobile devices, as well as via a web browser. Notifications to al ..read more

The long-running New Zealand Agricultural Show won’t take place this year as cash-strapped organisers mull the event’s future. The three-day show, normally held in November, drew about 100,000 people. However, show board chair Stewart Mitchell points out that 12 months of costs and three days of revenue is not a great business model by anyone’s analysis. The show recorded a loss last year. While the show is postponed, organisers say livestock judging and competitions will still be held. “The decision to postpone the 2024 Show was a very disappointing one to make, but after several challengin ..read more

State farmer Pamu has appointed Ash-Leigh Campbell as an associate director and observer on its board. Campbell joined in time for Pamu’s recent monthly board and sub-committee meetings in Palmerston North. She has a strong agricultural and business background with extensive experience in the dairy sector. This includes her introduction to the sector as a relief milker whilst at high school, through to roles with Ngāi Tahu Farming as a technical farm manager, as well as being a variable order share milking partnership with 860 cows. She has also held roles with New Zealand Young Farmers as t ..read more

A near miss experienced by a North Island farmer worker when their tractor ‘park’ gear failed, has been shared as the latest Safety Alert from Safer Farms. The employee at the East Coast farm had to jump out of the way as the unmanned vehicle rolled towards him. It then continued to roll through the farm for 1.2km before it was finally halted by trees. The Alert outlines how the farm staff member was feeding silage to stock and parked the tractor in a gateway, engaging it in ‘park’ gear as he went to open the gate. The park gear failed, and the worker had to jump out of the way to avoid bein ..read more

Free workshops are being offered around the country to help farmers take more ownership of their farm business finances. The one-day Rabobank Financial Skills Workshops are facilitated by Lawrence Field, from Rural Field Consultants, and are open to both clients and non-clients of Rabobank. Six of the workshops have already taken place this year, with a further 24 scheduled over the remainder of 2024. Two Financial Skills Workshop modules are available to farmers, with Module One covering stock reconciliations, reading financial statements and what banks are looking for when assessing a farm ..read more

Sean Leslie and Casey Tilson from Middlemarch, with horses Beau and Dough, took out the Rural News Horse Plough award at the Power Farming NZ Ploughing Championships at Horotiu, near Hamilton, on April 13-14. Early on during the event, the team seemed to be a favourite to win, although at the time, Sean told Rural News, "There's still a lot of dirt to tip over yet". He says finding horses with the right temperament for competition ploughing isn't easy. While Beau and Dough have not been doing it for long, they've proved they have the right stuff. The rain showers softened up the ground at th ..read more