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FOR E FUTURIA G R R S! U E N E R P
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Volume 45 I March 1, 2021 I email: agined@globalHQ.co.nz I w w w.farmersweekly.co.nz
How clean and green are we? In New Zealand we pride ourselves on our ‘clean green’ image. We produce some of the best (if not arguably the best) fruit, vegetables, meat, milk and grains in the world. Our farmers, agronomists and horticulturists all work very hard to keep producing top quality products and these are very well received with strong demand from our international markets. Have a think back to the last time you were in your local supermarket. How were the fruit and vegetables presented? Were they free flow (i.e., not already bagged or in containers?). How much of the produce was in containers or bags? What are these containers made from? WHAT ABOUT THE MEAT CABINETS? HOW IS THE MEAT PRESENTED AND PACKAGED? If you look in the milk aisle what do we package our milk and cream in? What are the bottles made from? Historically most people supplied at least a portion of their own food whether it was through vegetable plots, fruit trees, home kill meats or having a house cow. Even people who were not in rural areas usually shopped at smaller local markets, greengrocers, and local butcheries. When people shopped in these places, they mostly used their own reusable bags (yes amazingly these are not a new invention, in fact far from it). Butchers wrapped meat in waxed paper and newsprint. Your milk was delivered in glass bottles which were then returned to the factory sterilised and reused again and again. There is an upswing in a resurgence of people wanting/needing to be more self-sufficient and things like vegetable gardens have gained popularity, with even people in the cities having small vegetable and herb potted gardens and community gardens are also gaining momentum. However, on the whole people are time poor and want/need the convenience of readily packaged or easily accessible foodstuffs. As it stands currently, we are producing a mass of plastic based products which are hard and, in some cases, impossible to recycle and they do not disintegrate well in any environment.
willing to buy something that they cannot see for themselves), without plastic trays and clingfilm? What is the alternative for plastic milk and cream bottles? Is there another way that we could group fruits so that someone can easily buy several without having them in a plastic bag or container? (Again, do not forget people want to be able to see what they are buying.) Is it a matter of changing our packaging or changing our behaviours? E.g. remembering to take your own bag so you don’t have to buy the prepacked fruit or vegetables. How do we keep, reinforce, and grow the clean green image that Kiwi’s know, love and aspire to? We would love to hear your thoughts or even better your ideas and creations for alternatives! Tell us what you think at: agined@globalhq.co.nz
THE GOLDILOCKS BELT OF WEATHER It's been said that Planet Earth sits in the Goldilocks belt of our solar system - not too far from the sun so that it's cold, not too close to it that we burn up. New Zealand is in the Goldilocks belt of weather in the Southern Hemisphere of Planet Earth. We're not too close to the tropics, but again not too close to Antarctica. The placement of air pressure systems near NZ make all the difference to our temperatures as they 'reach' up to the tropics and pull down tropical air - or do the opposite in the south, dredging up polar air. The anticyclonic and cyclonic winds from these highs and lows mix up the hot and cold airflows over/near NZ. In this map, which city has the cold southerly? Dunedin in NZ, or Hobart in Tasmania?
But there's a much more localised wind event which can make some parts of NZ extra hot. It's called a foehn wind - and it's when dry, warm, winds slide down the slope of a mountain range and heat up. (eg, the Canterbury nor'westers). In this map, which NZ city is getting the warmer air flow? Queenstown or Napier?
OUR QUESTION TO YOU IS, WHERE TO FROM HERE? We are producing amazing top-quality products on farms that are then packaged in a simply unsustainable manner. How can we present our meats in supermarkets so that consumers can still see the product (because not many people are
This graph has been supplied by the team at NZX dairy and shows the value of whole milk powder (WMP) in US dollars per ton. Dairy is one of New Zealand’s biggest export earners. 1 How do values over the last few weeks compare to the previous two seasons? 2 When have values been at their highest level? 3 When have values been at their lowest level? 4 Can you name two dairy companies in New Zealand?
STRETCH YOURSELF: 1 What is whole milk powder used for? 2 Why do you think WMP prices have been increasing? 3 What country is the biggest importer of dairy products? 4 If overseas prices for our dairy products are strong, how will this affect NZ dairy farmers? 5 What are some advantages NZ dairy products have over other countries?
Every part of NZ has a slightly different 'warm' wind and 'cold' wind. What is your warmest wind direction where you live and which direction is usually the coldest? (Btw: It's not always northerly and southerly!)
Got your own question about how the weather works? Ask Phil! Email phil@ruralweather.co.nz with your question and he could answer it on the Weather Together podcast!