The animal health industry should be applauded for its contribution to New Zealand farms, vets, animals, and people. An inaugural report on its value by KPMG and Agcarm underscores an underappreciated industry that’s punching above its weight. The ‘Assessing the value of the Animal Health Industry to New Zealand’ report showcases a small industry, employing […]
Agri Business
New drive for strong wool profitability gaining impetus, Feds says
New Zealand’s wool industry is entering an exciting new era of collaboration, innovation and consumer-focus to deliver game changing profitability to farmers, William Beetham says. “We’re really pleased to see industry players work together to end fragmentation and concentrate on driving extra value from the superior attributes we all know that strong wool entails,” the […]
Blockchain links us to value capture, less tedious data entry
Of all the presentations at the Primary Industries NZ Summit in Christchurch earlier this month it was a session on blockchain technology that lit up the eyes of Andrew Hoggard more than any other. The Federated Farmers President has made better data interoperability a mission. Like most farmers he detests having to enter the same […]
Wedging open the door to additional wool sales
A group of Year 13 agribusiness students at a Dunedin College are working hard to put a bit of bounce back in wool demand, ‘one baale at a time’. Kavanagh College student company Under the Door Enterprises, competing in the national Young Enterprise Scheme, has devised a door wedge made of wool carpet off-cuts and […]
Strong Wool group goes out to market with ‘category disruptor’ opportunities
Finding entrepreneurs and companies here or offshore to spearhead branded product campaigns in the United States is the next strand of SWAG’s workplan. When the Strong Wool Action Group’s CEO Andy Caughey updated Federated Farmers Meat & Wool delegates in March, he described the in-depth US consumer research SWAG had commissioned from San Francisco-based design-led […]
David Grant is Federated Farmers Arable Farmer of the Year
Mid Canterbury Arable Farmer David Grant was awarded the “Federated Farmers Arable Farmer of the Year Award 2021” at the arable industry awards in Christchurch on Wednesday night. David’s contribution to the industry through is work with the Foundation for Arable Research, and in innovation and information sharing, made him an outstanding candidate for this […]
Machine learning aids insights into cows’ sleep
Just like humans, our dairy cows need their sleep; but AgResearch scientists have had to get innovative with new technologies to better understand the quality of shut-eye the animals are getting. Research into the sleep of cows is seen by researchers as one way of assessing their welfare, which is important to farmers and to […]
AWDT, Know your Mindset. Grow your Influence
When the pressure is on, sometimes it’s best to just pause and re-focus on what’s really important to your family, farm and community. New from @AWDT, Know your Mindset. Grow your Influence is a short, personal development programme for both women and men – designed to help you respond to change with positive, meaningful action. […]
Rural contractors change guard as challenges mount
A new President, vice-President and CEO have taken the helm at Rural Contractors NZ after an annual conference this week that highlighted compounding challenges in meeting capacity constraints which are likely to impact on some farmers and crop production. Waikato contractor Helen Slattery stepped up from vice-President to replace Southland’s David Kean who’d given 12 […]
Test your smart farming idea with Rural Professionals Fund help
The Rural Professionals Fund, established in 2020 by the Our Land and Water National Science Challenge, is now accepting applications for a second round of funding to support projects that could benefit farming communities. This is a unique research fund, specifically designed for farmers and farm advisors, to enable them to rapidly test smart ideas […]