The many farmers who are also landlords will want to check whether and how the second phase of changes under the Residential Tenancies Amendment Act 2020 will impact them. The first phase of changes took effect from August last year, with the major reform being that rent increases were from then limited to once every […]
People
Mt Beautiful Cheviot A&P Show smokin’ hot and set for success
Nothing beats a good A&P show, and in recent years the Cheviot Show has gone from good to outstanding. This is mostly thanks to the enthusiasm of six locals who took on running and revitalising the show as a team in 2019. Mike and Elspeth Loughnan lead the group as co-presidents last year, Kate and […]
The underground army
New Zealand is recognised as the world’s leading pastoral agricultural producer. Pasture-based exports account for almost half of our total exports and given the state of the rest of the world, we are quickly becoming globally recognised as gold standard food producers. Unfortunately, all that productivity puts us in the shit…. tonnes of it. It’s […]
No ordinary day for this shearer
It was an ordinary Thursday for most of us this week, but not for Southland shearer Megan Whitehead. Yesterday Megan spent nine hours tackling the women’s world lamb shearing record near Gore. Former women’s world record holder Jills Angus Burney (and the only woman to have beaten David Fagan) was supporting Megan as her mentor. “Megan achieved the […]
Nominations open for 2021 Primary Industries Good Employer Awards
Entries are open for the 2021 Primary Industries Good Employer Awards. The Awards, run by the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) and the Agricultural and Marketing Research and Development Trust (AGMARDT), celebrate primary sector employers who demonstrate exceptional employment practices. “The Primary Industries Good Employer Awards provide the opportunity to recognise and celebrate outstanding employers […]
Imagine if we could store ALL that water
The recent holiday deluge of rain in the south saw two very different reactions. There was despair from the holiday makers trying to take a break from the year we’d had, right through to joy and relief from the local farmers, who were even prepared to tolerate the disruption the flooding brought because of their […]
Fonterra responsible dairying award nominations open
Nominations to a national award that flushes out dairy farmers who demonstrate innovation and passion in their approach to sustainable dairying are open until March 20th. The Fonterra Responsible Dairying Award was introduced by the New Zealand Dairy Industry Awards to recognise those dairy farmers who are respected by their farming peers and their community […]
Summer fire prevention campaign aims to reduce risk
Fire and Emergency New Zealand’s new ‘check it’s alright’ website allows anyone about to light a fire to check to see if the conditions are right and if they’ve taken the right actions to reduce fire risk. Check out the website here: https://www.checkitsalright.nz/ . It features a quick 3-step ‘Can I Light A Fire?’ tool […]
Partnership the key to success for Canterbury sustainable irrigation award winners
Canterbury farming couple Ted and Sue Rollinson are the New Zealand region winners of the inaugural Zimmatic™ Sustainable Irrigation Awards. The Rollinsons own a 380-hectare dairy farm in mid-Canterbury. Sharemilkers Tom and Leanne Heneghan have been on farm for 11 years and milk 1,500 cows on the property. The awards aim to celebrate excellence in […]
WOMOLife Wins Wool Harvesting Training Contract
Kaiaka Wool Industry Training NZ has awarded the contract for its new $1.8 million pilot training programme to multi-format training provider WOMOLife. Kaiaka will train up to 270 shearers and wool handlers and create 150 new jobs. At least 70% of new employees will be Māori. Kaiaka will also establish two wool harvesting (shearing and […]