Farmers Weekly July 17 2023

Lamb price plummets

28,000t of lamb, 8000t more than NZ.

PRIME lamb farmgate prices have fallen 50c/ kg in the past three weeks, reaching a level where for the first time in 20 years average July prices are lower than those paid in June.

Lamb prices are being driven lower by bulging inventory in China, high export volumes from Australia and the fact that global consumers are not spending.

With no immediate improvement in sight, meat companies are reluctant to predict where new season schedules will open.

AgriHQ senior analyst Mel Croad warns those opening prices in November could be below $7/kg, equating to $40-$45/head lower than the previous two years.

North Island prices this week are $7.20/kg but in the same week a year ago they were $9.10/kg. The South Island lamb price this week was forecast at 7.30/kg compared to $9.20/kg this time last year.

New Zealand exporters were making sales last month, albeit at low prices, but such is the speed at which prices are falling, Croad said, buyers are reluctant to commit to purchases.

She predicted a year ago that the Australian sheep flock was recovering after successive droughts, leading to higher lamb export volumes; this is what is happening.

Last month Australia exported

Following three years of above average rainfall, Meat and Livestock Australia reports the sheep flock has hit 78.75 million, its highest level since 2007.

Of that, breeding ewe numbers are 46.14 million.

Lamb carcase weights this year are 7% above the 10-year average at 24.70kg.

Annual lamb production this year is estimated at 540,000t but expected to increase next year to 548,000t before falling to 537,000t in 2025.

It predicts lamb prices to the end of September to increase 4.5% or 24c from its current level to AUS553c/kg, but the National Heavy Lamb Indicator, lambs greater than 26kg, is expected to increase 39c/kg to AUS569c/kg.

Keeping an anxious eye on the prices are Ashburton farmers Richard and Mariana Sim, in their first year taking up the reins of the family farm.

The couple finish several thousand lambs as part of their 250ha cropping and livestock finishing operation, and have fingers crossed for some upside in the lamb market when they come to sell lambs in spring.

Potentially, Sim said, he may be lucky to break even, expecting to lose $30-$40 on last season’s returns for his autumn bought lambs.

“There’s not much upside in the signals at this stage, with quite a

Continued page 3

Lamb traders hope for spring flush

Richard and Mariana Sim, pictured with their children Gabi and Aurelia, are keeping their fingers crossed for an uplift in the lamb market come spring. Potentially, Sim said, he may be lucky to break even, expecting to lose $30-$40 on last season’s returns for his autumn-bought lambs.

Poole makes the biggest splash of all

Emma Poole has made history twice this year. She is the first woman to be crowned Young Farmer of the Year and the first winner to follow a sibling onto the podium in consecutive years.

PEOPLE 4

Feds says the government should pull back on winter grazing consents until Freshwater Farm Plans are in place.

NEWS 5

The EU FTA should boost exports by $1.8 billion a year in 12 years’ time, Prime Minister Chris Hipkins says.

MARKETS 8

Te Anau scrubcutter and

rider Slade MacDonald is using his experience to help others doing it tough.

PEOPLE 20

Photo: Annette Scott

rodeo

Neal Wallace MARKETS Lamb

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News in brief

Fonterra delay

Fonterra has delayed its special meeting to approve the capital return to shareholders by two weeks because of a small oversight in the distribution of the notice of meeting.

The special meeting will now be held online at 10.30am on Wednesday, July 26. The proposed payment date of 50c a share to farmers and unit holders will also be delayed, to August 29.

Shareholders have until July 24 to vote online or by postal vote or to appoint a proxy or representative for the special meeting.

Scion appointments

Three new directors have been appointed to the board of Crown Research Institute Scion.

Nicole Anderson, Phil Taylor and Kiriwaitingi Rei-Russell have joined the board for a three-year term, starting July 10. They will join existing members Greg Mann, Stana Pezic, Dr Jon Ryder, Steve Wilson and Brendon Green (Ngāti Hikairo, Ngāpuhi) for their first meeting in Rotorua on July 27.

Bromley sale

The Commerce Commission has cleared the sale of day-old chicken production units owned by Bromley Park Hatcheries to the Australian-owned Inghams Enterprises.

The commission was satisfied the sale is unlikely to substantially lessen competition in any part of the NZ market.

Forestry conference

PROFIT: University of Adelaide Professor of Weed Management Christopher Preston advises growers that, when it comes to weed control, they should do it right and realise more profit.

The International Union of Forest Research Organisations, a network of forest scientists and researchers, will hold its annual conference in Rotorua next year.

The conference, named “The might of vegetative propagation for healthy and productive forests to face climate challenges”, will run over five days from March 3.

Back in 1860, exporting meat to the other side of the world seemed about as easy as nailing gravy to the ceiling. But a few determined kiwis took the bull by the horns and now our grass-fed beef and lamb is sought-after all around the globe.

At AFFCO, we see the same pioneering spirit alive and well in farmers today. We’re playing our part too – exploring every opportunity to take New Zealand’s finest farm-raised products to the world.

our pioneering spirit tells us nothing’s out of reach

Growers stung by court’s rates decision

Richard Rennie NEWS Horticulture

THE kiwifruit sector is smarting at a decision by the Court of Appeal to uphold a ruling that will more than double the rates bill for many orchardists in the Gisborne district.

The Court of Appeal upheld an earlier High Court decision allowing Gisborne District Council (GDC) to include the value of SunGold kiwifruit licences in property valuations for rating purposes.

The court ruling left the sector contemplating the wider implications of the decision across the entire country, amid fears of significant rates increases that will accompany the licence’s inclusion.

Gisborne kiwifruit grower Tim

Tietjen led the pushback against the proposal, with support from NZ Kiwifruit Growers

Continued from page 1

few headwinds and not looking so good around cashflow but it could all change in a couple of months, we just don’t know, but it is a concern,” Sim said.

Australian exporters are not dumping product but buying it cheaper and selling lower than NZ product.

Murray Behrent Alliance Group

AFFCO chief executive Nigel Stevens said prices paid for NZ sheepmeat in China between January and May this year were 31% lower than for the same time last year.

Incorporated (NZKGI). He said he had been hopeful the appeal would be successful but is now

As China emerged from lockdown earlier this year, importers built up stocks but the expected consumer demand didn’t materialise as people replenished their savings and were apprehensive about the future.

Food service in China is especially hard hit, with turnover down 30% and consumers buying cheaper products and eating smaller dishes.

Stevens hopes the market has bottomed out but such is the market volatility he cannot say what will happen for the rest of this season let alone the start of next season.

A Silver Fern Farms market report notes global sentiment remains negative with buyers and markets selective in what they are buying.

“China remains saturated with

contemplating a doubling of his rates bill from about $4000 to $8000 on his 5.8ha orchard,

a continuous flow of cheaper Australian product entering the market leading to high inventories and continuing to undermine NZ pricing.”

The flood of Australian lamb is also impacting North America and the United Kingdom, with prices falling and demand static. Demand from the Middle East, however, is steady.

Alliance Group’s interim and livestock shareholder services manager, Murray Behrent, said Australian exporters are paying about $AUS5.60/kg for animals which they are selling for about $2/kg less than NZ.

“They’re not dumping product but buying it cheaper and selling lower than NZ product.”

In recent years exporters could with some confidence make market projections six months in advance, but such is the

which includes 3.1ha of SunGold fruit.

With SunGold licences valued at about $800,000 a hectare at the last tender round, including them in his property’s valuation is an additional $2.5 million on its capital value.

“And that comes when the average Gisborne District rates increase has been about 7%.”

The action by Gisborne District Council commenced three years ago.

But Tietjen said the economic landscape was significantly different then, when returns were higher, costs lower and the area had enjoyed a good run of growing seasons.

He said he knows of a couple of SunGold orchards that have had only two seasons’ harvest history and are still to reach full potential, and have been severely impacted by Cyclone Gabrielle with flooding and silting.

“This is hard when we are told as horticultural growers we are a

uncertainty, Behrent said it could take some time before inventory levels are depleted and markets recover.

ANZCO supply chain manager Grant Bunting said a company lamb contract “with an eight in front of it” was heavily oversubscribed, indicating an abundance of prime lambs still to be killed.

The company will honour the contract even though the market is closer to $7, but Bunting said industry estimates are that the season kill could be 300,000 to 400,000 lambs behind last year.

“That’s a lot of lambs to be behind year on year when we are sitting in July.”

With the market easing and the bobby calf season about to start, he warns of space restrictions that could have lamb price implications for suppliers.

valued part of the primary sector here in Gisborne,” he said. He said the likes of apple growers may also need to consider whether their licence values will be capitalised into their property values in coming years.

NZGKI CEO Colin Bond said the group will continue to push back against the proposed rates hike. He said NZKGI is busy working through options for the sector in coming days.

Farmers Weekly understands other district councils with ratepaying kiwifruit orchards have been watching the legal to and fro closely before following GDC’s decision.

Last year Western Bay of Plenty District Council’s acting finance manager told Farmers Weekly that his council will be communicating with ratepayers the process once final wider revaluation decisions have been made.

Western Bay of Plenty District Council’s catchment accounts for almost 80% of the national crop.

57 years of lambing hoggets

John Daniell mated all his Romney hoggets at Wairere for the first time in 1966.

Since then all hoggets have been mated every year, regardless of climatic conditions, lambed unshepherded with minimal animal health support.

In most years, only hoggets that scan in lamb are retained. Improving early life performance has been a focus of the Wairere breeding objective.

Easycare Early maturity Fast growth.

Wairere ewe hoggets with lambs at foot at weaning. Lambs approx 10 weeks of age

IN THE RED: Ashburton farmer Richard Sim says he may be lucky to break even, come spring, on the several thousand lambs he finishes. Photo: Annette Scott

STUNG: SunGold kiwifruit grower Tim Tietjen says such a rates increase is hard on a sector that is supposed to be a valuable part of the Gisborne economy.

Poole makes the biggest splash of all

A young mum, wife, farmer and veterinarian, now in the history books as the rst ever female Young Farmer of the Year – life doesn’t get much better for Emma Poole. She talked with

Annette Scott

THERE are opportunities aplenty for women in the rural sector and inspiring them is a key priority for FMG New Zealand Young Farmer of the Year 2023 Emma Poole.

“You don’t have to be a cowboy or a grassroots farmer to be part of the rural sector. There is a place for everyone.

“Keep your eyes open, there are a lot of opportunities,” said the freshly crowned queen of farming.

“It’s what you make it at the end of the day. There is plenty out there for everyone to do, a place for everyone in this sector.

“We need a range of skills and as many hands as we can get to take this great industry forward,” Poole said.

The Waikato-Bay of Plenty young farmer made history when she was crowned the 55th FMG Young Farmer of the year in Timaru, going into the record book as the contest’s first ever female champion.

It was double history for the contest as Poole followed hot on the heels of her brother Tim Dangen, the 2022 winner, who handed the title over to his sister, affectionately referred to as “Blister” by her big brother. It was the first time siblings have won the contest in consecutive years.

Keeping it in the family, Poole’s husband Chris was also in the 2022 Grand Final.

“We have pretty proud parents for sure,” Poole said.

“I’m absolutely rapt, honoured and inspired, not just for the achievement personally but more for all the woman who have done the hard work before me and now for the next generation I can inspire.”

Poole said all the way she wondered if she had done enough to win but she did know she had given it her all.

“I was totally overwhelmed,

absolutely buzzing, when the result was announced. I really wasn’t sure where I was going to sit.

“All the finalists have been so great throughout the competition and the three days of competition were really tough so I wouldn’t say I was feeling confident, but I knew I’d put in my best effort and that’s all you can hope for at the end of the day.”

As Poole accepted the award her brother and mentor was there to congratulate her as she exclaimed, “We’ve finally knocked the grass ceiling off the roof!

“There’s a long chain of women that have worked hard to display the important role we play in agriculture.

“All those women have given me the confidence to stand up and give it a go. I’m just a product of what they’ve all achieved,” Poole said.

“The most challenging was definitely the agri-sports. I had a pretty frustrating start with the baler and the tractor and that comes down to stress, but it’s no different to what we’re doing every day.

“Farming is tough and when stress comes on, you’ve got to find a way to adapt and carry on.”

Running around, hammer in hand, on and off the tractor, Poole contemplated giving in.

“I was so frustrated, so close to giving in, then I thought this is probably worth a lot of points so one more try. It was stubbornness in the end.”

On the 11th attempt to get the pin in the drawbar, Poole succeeded.

“It’s a reflection that we are not all perfect in everything we do and obviously I’m not a great tractor driver.

“None of us claims to be experts in everything but we all have skills in specific areas, we all know our

strengths and we play to that.

“How I came back from that is like real life. I was struggling so much it almost became comical and I thought, why take myself so seriously.”

In the end, Poole’s determination and accumulated 410.15 points were just enough to head off the runner-up, Aorangi representative Peter O’Connor, who finished on 408.60 with Otago Southland’s Hugh Jackson placed third with 384.10.

It was Poole’s second attempt at the Grand Final.

“I was there in 2019 but I have had a lot of experience and come a long way since then.

“It’s been a pretty incredible ride, I feel I can do it justice now.

“I have watched big brother come through it and seen how he took it on and capitalised on the opportunities that came his way.

“It will be an honour to be an inspiration for other people and other young women wanting to enter the industry.”

Alongside the coveted title, iconic trophy and famous Cloak of

It takes two as twins nab junior title

The competition was fierce with 14 teams from across New Zealand rolling up their sleeves in a bid to secure the coveted title.

Knowledge, Poole claimed $90,000 in prizes, courtesy of the contest sponsors.

Meantime it was straight back to the farm for calving duties on Monday morning.

And little 16-month-old Beau is pleased to have Mum back.

“His first words was ‘tractor’, that was about it. I’m pretty sure farming is in his blood.”

Emma and Chris manage a family dairy farming operation with Chris’s parents John and Anne Poole at Pirongia in Waikato.

Running a 650-cow herd with autumn and spring calving, while also rearing an additional 1000

calves, means farming life is just busy enough.

A veterinarian, Poole also likes to use her skills when she can and does a bit of embryo work for breeding too.

One of five siblings, Poole was first introduced to farming on her parents’ Muriwai dairy farm, lending a hand wherever she could.

She gives credit to her upbringing for setting her up with the skills she has today.

“Mum and Dad are incredibly creative and skilled in a lot of awesome areas.

“Dad can pretty much build anything and Mum is full of awesome ideas.

“And it’s safe to say we are pretty competitive in our family.”

She has proven a woman can do the “men’s jobs,” and more. Now she has work to do.

“I want to be an inspiration for other people wanting to enter the industry.

“Farming and family are only going to get busier so putting all that together is the future.”

TWINS representing the far south took out the title of the 2023 FMG Junior Young Farmers of the Year.

Otago siblings Zoe McElrea of Columba College and Millar McElrea of John McGlashan College secured the win after a series of challenges spanning two days in which contestants’ farming skills and general knowledge were put to the test with tasks that included crop spraying, building a planter box and straining a wire fence.

The top five teams then went head-to-head in a buzzer-style quiz at Friday evening’s award ceremony.

“I was shocked when they called out our names. It’s been six years coming and I just didn’t believe it at first,” Zoe said.

“We’re stoked. We’ve been doing a lot of work to get this point,” Millar said.

Napier Boys’ High School students Cameron Brans and Quinn Redpath were the runners-up, and Jack Foster and James Clark from Mount Hutt College, Methven, secured third place.

The AgriKidsNZ competitors also tackled a range of challenges during their event, with team Legendairy, a trio from Mt Somers Springburn School, taking out

the title of AgriKidsNZ Grand Champions.

Flynn Wallace, 10, Charlie Clark, 12, and Georgia Heaven, 9, racked up the most points after a gruelling day of challenges.

“It’s awesome that all the effort we put in has paid off.

“I think it’s fair to say we’re all feeling really happy with the win,” Clark said.

The Three Western Girls from Hauroko Valley School, made up of Sierra Bennett, Elly Hurley and Sophie Parris, were AgriKidsNZ runners-up, with Southern Boys, Sam Horrell, Oliver Chamberlain and Tomas Clarke, also from Hauroko Valley School, taking third place.

Clark also took home the prestigious title of AgriKidsNZ Contestant of the Year.

SKILLS: FMG Young Farmer of the Year Emma Poole says she found the agri-sports the most challenging round, having ‘a pretty frustrating start with the baler and the tractor’.

I was so frustrated, so close to giving in, then I thought this is probably worth a lot of points so one more try. It was stubbornness in the end.

Emma Poole Young Farmer of the Year

Annette Scott PEOPLE Young Farmers

DOUBLE ACT: Twins Zoe and Millar McElrea from the Otago Southland region are the 2023 FMG Junior Young Farmers of the Year.

Govt firm on rollout of environment regulations

THE government remains unmoved over calls to halt its controversial intensive winter grazing rules until Freshwater Farm Plans are fully in place.

Federated Farmers and the National Party are both demanding a rethink on the regulations after Environment Southland recently issued five winter grazing abatement notices to farmers, preventing them grazing parts of their properties.

Federated Farmers winter grazing spokesperson Jason Herrick said the farmers issued notices were “beside themselves, so their mental health has taken a bit of a hit”.

However, Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor said there are no plans to stop the regulations as intensive winter grazing can seriously affect water quality, animal welfare and “our international reputation”.

Environment Southland general manager catchment integration

Paul Hulse confirmed the abatement notices were issued after an aerial inspection in June identified 21 potential sites of interest. Another farmer was given a $300 infringement notice for failing to follow council advice. An abatement notice requires farmers to move stock off the identified paddock until they become compliant, through either

the deemed permitted activity or consent process. Farmers intensive grazing land on a slope of more than 10 degrees are required to meet criteria, or obtain land use consent or permitted activity authorisation.

Intensive winter grazing was initially to be addressed through the government’s Freshwater Farm Plans (FFPs), an alternative to resource consents for noncompliant winter grazers. However, the plans were delayed and will be phased in from August 1. Southland and Waikato are the first areas to implement the plans, with farmers being given 18 months from the start date to lodge their plans.

Herrick said the government should pull back on winter grazing consents until farm plans are in place.

“That was the pathway that was promised through the Winter Grazing Task Force, from the Ministry for the Environment and David Parker.

“We feel he is using our local regional council to do his dirty work. Putting the rules in place from May 1 and their failure to deliver on what was promised is the reason for this.”

National’s agriculture spokesperson, Todd McClay, said farmers have been caught in a “bureaucratic nightmare” between central and local government. He said the government needs to “hit pause” on winter grazing regulations until FFPs are sorted.

Environment Minister David

Parker said while six farmers have been penalised for winter grazing practices, “around 3000 others in the region have done the right thing and gained consents if required”.

“Despite National’s attempt to make political capital out of this, the introduction of Freshwater Farm Plans will make no effective difference to the fact that farmers have to manage the impacts of intensive winter grazing.”

Parker said the introduction of farm plans was delayed a year at the request of Federated Farmers.

“The plans must show that

the impacts of intensive winter grazing are no worse than what is allowed for by the default conditions in the national standards – and individual councils may apply more stringent rules

“It is up to councils to decided what they do with the laggards. I don’t interfere with that, and neither should Todd McClay.”

O’Connor said the government has worked closely with the sector, especially in Southland, on getting intensive winter grazing regulations right.

“We deferred the regulations until November 2022 and this provided farmers with certainty and time for them to adjust their practices, or obtain resource consent if necessary, prior to winter 2023.”

Herrick, a dairy farmer, accepted the regional council has a job to do but said “this law should never have been put in place”.

“All this has effectively done is ruin any relationship the council had with farmers. Trust is the

biggest thing for us. We want farmers to be able to trust the regional council.”

The notices had arrived unannounced and there was no prior warning or discussion from council.

“They [the council] did claim they tried to get in contact with the farmers. Well, they didn’t try hard enough.”

Hulse said Environment Southland is continuing to provide advice and support, while monitoring breaches of winter grazing rules.

“Where farmers have concerns about their ability to comply with an abatement notice, they should contact us and we can work through their options.

“Before the issuing of the abatement notices, we endeavoured to contact the farmers to discuss their situation and have since spoken to all of them. In those calls we found people to be co-operative and genuinely interested in working to become compliant.”

Craig Page NEWS Environment

HOLD ON: Federated Farmers winter grazing spokesperson Jason Herrick says the government should pull back on winter grazing consents until Freshwater Farm Plans are in place.

That was the pathway that was promised through the Winter Grazing Task Force, from the Ministry for the Environment and David Parker.

Jason Herrick Federated Farmers

Study flags higher mortality in rural NZ

Neal Wallace NEWS Health

RURAL New Zealanders are dying at higher rates than those in the main urban centres, new research out of the University of Otago has found.

The results are worse for those aged under 30 living in the most rural communities, where mortality rates are double those of the most urban centres at 599 urban deaths per 100,000, compared with 1085 in rural areas. Researchers found higher rural mortality rates across all groups aged under 60.

Lead author Professor Garry Nixon from the University of

Otago said the study, published in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health, contradicts existing data and is the strongest evidence yet that New Zealanders who live in rural areas have poorer health outcomes.

The study uses current data,

Understanding these differences exist in New Zealand means we have an opportunity to develop strategies and health service interventions that are targeted.

a definition of rural based on population and drive-time thresholds and considers each age group separately.

The largest disparities were most evident for injury and “amenable death” – potentially avoidable if given effective and timely healthcare – but still present for cardiovascular disease. For cancer deaths, the disparities are overall smaller and evident in only some age categories.

Co-author Professor Sue Crengle, of the University of Otago, said although both rural Māori and rural non-Māori have higher mortality rates than their urban peers, the consequences for Māori are greater.

The mortality rate for Māori living in the most rural area is

4018 per 100,000 compared with 3055 per 100,000 for non-Māori.

The reasons for the disparities were not analysed, but Crengle said are likely to be “multiple and complex”, with health care likely to be only one factor.

It is also not yet understood how much of these disparities can be accounted for by socioeconomic factors.

The data should not necessarily be viewed as negative, she said, and will help inform the Ministry of Health’s new Rural Health Strategy.

“Understanding these differences exist in New Zealand means we have an opportunity to develop strategies and health service interventions that are targeted.”

Regs capture raw milk risks: NZ Food Safety

strict testing standards and only allowing sales direct from the source farm.

Biodiversity credits system in the works

BusinessDesk NEWS Environment

THE government has released its plans for a biodiversity credit system to encourage landowners to protect native habitats on their property.

The system will be part of an overall National Policy Statement for Indigenous Biodiversity.

One aim of any biodiversity credit system (BCS) will be to help – to some extent – incentivise the planting of native forests over pines under the Emissions Trading Scheme.

The government’s view is that while it can protect public land, much of the land in New Zealand, including Māori land, is privately owned and many of NZ’s at-risk species and habitats are outside the 30% of the country managed by the Department of Conservation.

The measures aim to protect native wildlife and habitats and reverse their decline from human activities.

One aim of any biodiversity credit system (BCS) will be to help – to some extent –incentivise the planting of native forests over pines under the Emissions Trading Scheme.

The BCS will allow businesses, charities and individuals to buy credits for restoration and preservation projects on private land.

The discussion document has not determined whether or not businesses and others will be able to use those credits as climate-related offsets.

One of the consultation questions is whether biodiversity credits can be used to offset development impacts as part of resource management processes.

A consultation process on the credit system will run until November 3 and is one of several calls for feedback on the biodiversity policy. The government received 7000 submissions between November 2019 and March 2020, and more submissions came in last year.

DESPITE two recalls in two weeks for raw milk products from different retailers, New Zealand Food Safety is confident the regulations governing the sale of the high-risk product are sound.

On June 28 a recall was issued for batches of organic raw milk produced by Lindsay Farm in Hawke’s Bay, on grounds the product may contain campylobacter bacteria.

Then on July 8 NZ Food Safety published an alert on the recall of raw milk batches from sale from Raglan-based Dreamview Creamery. The recall did not affect any of the company’s other pasteurised milk products.

NZ Food Safety acting deputy director-general Jenny Bishop said the fact the batches were identified through testing and isolated was a good indication regulations introduced eight years ago are proving effective.

There have been no reports of consumers getting sick from consuming the milk.

“It is a high-risk product, but these alerts mean the system is working. The hygiene and testing procedures are all part of these regulations,” she said.

Listeriosis infection can be serious among vulnerable groups like pregnant women and unborn babies, the elderly and people with compromised immune systems. Campylobacter can cause vomiting, diarrhoea, abdominal pain, fever and headaches.

The regulations were introduced in 2016 following 46 disease outbreaks traced back to raw milk suppliers between 2009 and 2016. Campylobacter was the predominant disease and many of those affected included children.

The new regulations include strict hygiene protocols when preparing cows for milking,

Bishop acknowledged that, given it is a high-risk product, raw milk regulations can prove a very challenging area for regulators.

She said from a purely public health perspective the level of risk means an outright ban on sale would be the safest pathway.

“But when we consulted in 2014 on new regulations we got feedback that consumers felt strongly about their right to buy it.

“It is never going to be risk free, but the regulations reduce it as much as we can to allow those who wish to consume it to consume it as safely as possible.”

Massey University Professor of Food Safety and Microbiology

Steve Flint said consuming unpasteurised milk is a dangerous practice, and there is good reason milk has been pasteurised for many years.

“It is hard for a government to legislate against its consumption. But a lot of people do not understand just how bad it can be.”

He said even with the farm dairy having the best hygiene practices

in the world, there will always be a risk of infection.

France, with its many unpasteurised cheeses, has regular outbreaks of campylobacter from raw milk.

Mark Houston, CEO of Village Milk, importers of raw milk farm dispensers, said he believes overall the regulations are proving effective and the timing of the two outbreaks is simply a coincidence. He said there is significantly more red tape to negotiate for producers wanting to sell raw milk but accepted that is inevitable.

“I think often the problems come from people not always knowing what they are doing. We were supplying raw milk for 10 years and never had a single case of an outbreak.”

He is concerned that the regulations do not require a lengthy period with zero hygiene alerts to prove the operator is consistent, prior to retailing the raw product.

His farm ceased supplying the product after covid, not on quality grounds but because the economics were proving increasingly challenging.

BALANCE: Raw milk is a risky product, but regulators say they have struck a balance between risk and consumers’ right to purchase it.

POORER: Professor Garry Nixon from the University of Otago says the study is the strongest evidence yet that New Zealanders who live in rural areas have poorer health outcomes.

Professor Sue Crengle University of Otago

PLANTING: One aim of the eventual biodiversity credit system will be to incentivise the planting of native forests over pines under the Emissions Trading Scheme.

Richard Rennie NEWS Dairy

Boost for trade as NZ signs EU FTA

Craig Page MARKETS Export

NEW Zealand’s groundbreaking Free Trade Agreement with the European Union should see the country’s exports boosted annually by $1.8 billion within the next 12 years, Prime Minister Chris Hipkins says.

The agreement was signed in Brussels by Minister for Trade and Export Growth Damien O’Connor and the EU Executive Vice President and Trade Commissioner Valdis Dombrovskis, witnessed by Hipkins and EU President Ursula von der Leyen.

“Tariff savings on New Zealand exports are $100 million from day one of the agreement entering into force, the highest immediate tariff saving delivered by any New Zealand FTA. That’s around three times the immediate savings from the UK FTA,” Hipkins said.

Between this and the United Kingdom FTA, NZ will save around $150m annually in export tariffs as well as adding billions to the country’s GDP.

NZ’s exports to the EU should gain $1.8bn per year by 2035, he said.

There will be immediate tariff relief for kiwifruit, wine, onions, apples, mānuka honey and manufactured goods. It will also apply to most seafood, and other horticultural products.

While tariffs remain on many meat and dairy products, there will be improved export access. According to the government, red meat and dairy will get up to $120m worth of new annual export revenue, estimated to reach $600m by 2030. Quotas have been established for butter, cheese, milk powders and protein whey.

Export NZ executive director Josh Tan said the FTA opens up a market for goods previously obstructed by tariffs on NZ products.

“The winning sectors on the day are the likes of horticulture, seafood, wine, and honey, who will be delighted with the outcomes.

Our two largest goods export sectors, red meat and diary, however, would have been hoping for more commercially meaningful outcomes for their exports.

“Unfortunately the EU has not backed its own farmers to be competitive with meat and dairy farmers in New Zealand, and has maintained tariff protection for them.

“This is not only to the detriment of NZ exporters from our meat and dairy sectors, but it means that EU consumers will be paying more for our high quality, sustainably produced food.”

Tan acknowledged the hard work NZ’s negotiators put into securing the deal.

O’Connor said the FTA will cut costs and support exporters to grow and diversify their trade.

“This new access will help to

accelerate our post-covid recovery, while providing a boost to our regions as they grapple with the longer-term effects of Cyclone Gabrielle,” O’Connor said.

Unfortunately the EU has not backed its own farmers to be competitive with meat and dairy farmers in New Zealand, and has maintained tariff protection for them.

Based on current trade figures, NZ will have the opportunity to provide up to 60% of the EU’s butter imports – up from 14% today. NZ cheeses could also make up 15% of the EU’s imported cheeses, up from 0.5%, he said.

The FTA contains another important “EU first”– a Māori Trade and Economic Co-operation chapter that will create a platform for greater engagement with the EU on Māori economic and trade interests.

The deal has been welcomed by many in the sector.

“We are thrilled that the agreement also includes the definition of mānuka and a separate tariff recognising the inherent distinctiveness of mānuka as a taonga species exclusively from Aotearoa New Zealand,” Apiculture NZ chief

executive Karin Kos said.

“The EU’s recognition of mānuka as a taonga species is significant in helping progress the next step in securing geographical indications for mānuka honey, an initiative that is strongly supported by both industry and iwi.”

NZ’s honey exports to the EU have grown in recent years to around $60m per year.

The New Zealand onion industry said the elimination of tariffs costing over $6m annually on

onion exports will address barriers to trade.

“The EU is the No 1 market for New Zealand onion exports. Tariff savings of 9.6% puts the New Zealand onion industry on a level footing with competitors such as Chile and South Africa,” Onions NZ chief executive James Kuperus said.

In the year to March 2023, NZ exported $143m worth of onions to 45 countries, and the sector employed 1050 people.

Caring relationships help save lives

THERE are two memorial sites on one of the Pāmu West Coast farms Jack Raharuhi oversees as business manager. They remember workers who lost their lives in accidents there in 2010 and 2015.

For Raharuhi, who has worked in the Pāmu business for 16 years, the tragedies are etched in his mind. In 2010, he was a young dairy assistant but the lessons he took from them have shaped his approach as he progressed in his career, to become a manager committed to building a culture of care around health, safety and wellbeing and working to ensure that flows through his entire team.

Raharuhi welcomed the Half Arsed Stops Here campaign and Farm Without Harm strategy to help prevent injuries and fatalities resulting from accidents on New Zealand farms.

“When the first fatal accident happened, I was a teenager and the person who passed away was aged 17 and a close friend of mine,” Raharuhi said. “I was young and playful, I’d thought I was bulletproof, but that is where my passion for health and safety began.

“As I moved into farm manager roles, I took that with me. I picked up very quickly on the importance

of the links between a good health and safety culture and an overall good culture. For a lot of people, health and safety is about the helmets, the high viz and compliance but the pastoral care is critical.

“When you grow maturity into a workplace culture, it becomes more caring. Showing care for your people and building caring relationships across your team –

for me that is the golden nugget that will stop serious accidents happening on farms.

“Those are the messages of the Half Arsed Stops Here campaign –around talking to one another to find and share the solutions that work best for you, and rejecting complacency and the things and attitudes that put you or those around you at risk.”

In 2015, a second fatal accident

occurred on the same farm. Like the 2010 accident, it involved a quad bike rolling.

“By that time, I was manager on the farm next door,” said Raharuhi.

“The accidents had a massive impact that has been long term, for the people involved, the wider workforce and the company.

“We still have people working here who were at work on those days and it is a difficult subject for them.

“They were huge losses. You go through dark days and you do feel doubt. You think, ‘Is there anything I could have done or said, was there anything in my power to stop this happening?’”

Following the 2015 tragedy, Pāmu replaced its fleet of quad bikes with side-by-sides with rollover protection.

“Everyone now also has a radio and a personal locator beacon on a holster, so if they can’t get to a phone or are trapped they can raise the alarm,” said Raharuhi.

Raharuhi, who is now 31, was the 2017 winner of the Dairy Manager of the Year title for the West Coast Top of the South, and Ahuwhenua Young Māori Farmer of the Year in 2016. The memorials remain a focal point of Pāmu’s West Coast farms.

“On the anniversaries of those days, when the accidents happen, we bring all our teams together

at the memorial sites. We have a barbecue and we remember our colleagues and we talk about how this can happen.

“It may be that you haven’t chosen the right vehicle for the job, or come to work in the best state of mind or health or haven’t checked if the bike has been serviced. It may be that you aren’t taking conditions into account, like wet ground or heavy rain.

“We will always have new people and entry level people so it’s about helping them to understand there is high risk to this business and it is everyone’s job to take responsibility, to look out for yourself and for one another.”

The Half Arsed Stops Here campaign includes a pledge industry members are encouraged to sign up to, committing to become active drivers of change and to make health, safety and wellbeing a genuine priority across the sector.

The campaign co-ordinates with a new Farming Without Harm strategy developed by the Agricultural Leaders Health and Action Group (Safer Farms), the organisation dedicated to leading and inspiring a safer farm culture throughout NZ.

MORE:

For more details, see www.saferfarms.co.nz

SHIPPED: There will be immediate tariff relief for kiwifruit, wine, onions, apples, mānuka honey and manufactured goods.

Josh Tan Export NZ

Staff reporter NEWS Safety

STRATEGY: Pāmu West Coast farms business manager Jack Raharuhi welcomes the Half Arsed Stops Here campaign and Farm Without Harm strategy.

AgResearch expands work on GM grasses

Neal Wallace TECHNOLOGY Arable

AGRESEARCH is expanding its development of genetically modified or gene-edited grasses, adding clover and endophytes to its High Metabolisable Energy ryegrass, which has undergone field trials in the United States.

AgResearch has temporarily withdrawn an application to trial its High Metabolisable Energy (HME) ryegrass in Australia due to the complexity and volume of information required by regulators.

It has two other genetically modified products in development: a high-condensed tannin white clover, which early research shows can reduce methane emissions by 15%, and gene-edited endophytes to enhance pest protection while also reducing potential toxicity to animals.

An AgResearch spokesperson said scientists working with seed companies have identified

what it believes is a molecular master switch that accelerates the production of condensed tannins, resulting in significant levels in white clover leaves.

“Condensed tannins are known to reduce urinary nitrogen and methane production from grazing animals, reduce bloat, reduce internal parasite burden, and improve animal productivity.”

We are confident that we can address the issue with access to trials in Australia and in due course, the programme will revisit the application to the regulator.

Richard Scott AgResearch

Further research is needed, including animal feeding trials. Similarly, scientists working with seed companies are seeking to enhance the value of endophytes, organisms that live within grasses and deter pests.

That pest resistance role has

benefited the sector, but some endophytes contain compounds toxic to animals.

“The technology presents an opportunity to design endophytes, enhancing pest protection while also reducing potential toxicity to animals.”

Claims by GE Free NZ that the application for HME ryegrass field trials was withdrawn due to issues such as tainted milk are wrong, AgResearch science team leader Richard Scott said.

Following five years of field trials in the United States, Scott said, an application for field trials was recently lodged with Australia’s Office of the Gene Technology Regulator (OGTR).

The OGTR requested additional detailed analysis on an allergen known as sesame oleosin, that may be present and could be released in the pollen of the ryegrass.

“While AgResearch testing done previously had demonstrated that sesame oleosin is not expressed in the pollen of HME ryegrass, a more rigorous standard of testing is required by OGTR.”

Scott said given the time frame and complexity of this additional

analysis, it was decided to withdraw the application, but it will be submitted again later.

In the interim, containment research will continue in New Zealand to prove the efficacy of the programme and to progress commercial application.

That includes further growing and animal feeding trials and plant breeding by the project’s commercial partners Grasslanz Technology, PGG Wrightson Seeds and DairyNZ.

HME ryegrass is the result of genetically modifying two genes to increase lipid content in the leaf

and enhance photosynthesis in the plant.

This increases the nutritional quality of ryegrass but the research also suggests environmental benefits such as reduced methane emissions and nitrogen loss.

“The trials done in the US achieved their purpose of proving the ryegrass could be successfully grown in an outdoor field trial setting with the increased lipid and energy content,” said Scott.

“We are confident that we can address the issue with access to trials in Australia and in due course, the programme will revisit the application to the regulator.”

Genetically modified ryegrass research ‘promising’

Neal Wallace TECHNOLOGY Arable

CLAIMS by GE Free NZ that AgResearch’s genetically modified ryegrass is underperforming in trials and is tainting milk are rejected by the science organisation.

AgResearch science team leader Richard Scott said High Metabolisable Energy (HME) ryegrass “looks highly promising” compared to other forages.

“We’re excited about the potential of the HME ryegrass for not only increased animal nutrition and methane reduction but also potential reductions of nitrous oxide emissions.”

The possible reduction in nitrous oxide stems from the plant improving animal nutrition, which reduces urine nitrogen excretion and results in lower nitrate leaching and reduced emissions. A further aspect being examined is the potential for HME plants to influence the composition of the soil microbes, which could benefit the nitrogen cycle.

“As with methane, we will know more about the scale of potential nitrous oxide reductions when we do animal feeding trials.”

GE Free NZ claims HME is changing the composition of milk, which was also rejected.

Scott said the milk composition of grazing lactating cows can be influenced by changes in forage

composition during seasons and by the use of different supplemental feeds. HME ryegrass increases plant fat levels mainly in the form of oleic and linoleic acids, which are already present in ryegrass.

The HME technology leads to the accumulation of these natural fatty acids.

“Therefore, it is likely HME ryegrass will have an influence on the fat composition of milk of cows grazing HME ryegrass.” The extent of any change to milk composition can only be assessed by animal nutrition trials on lactating cows, which will be assessed in animal feed trials.

A further claim that United States field trials produced

insufficient dry matter yields to conduct the trial, were similarly rejected.

Scott said the five years of trials were intended to assess the shift of traits from containment to field conditions of plant lipid content and gross energy.

A published paper on the transition showed no significant yield penalty for these traits. HME ryegrass did struggle in extreme hot, dry summer conditions but Scott said this occurred in an environment more harsh than the temperate regions where ryegrass is traditionally grown.

Scott said that GE Free NZ claims that HME ryegrass has genes from sesame seed and

nasturtium containing para influenza and E coli vectors, are dated.

Scientific methods used to develop earlier versions of HME used proteins and bacterial vector in the preparation and assembly of the genes, but these are not present in the version being trialled.

“The HME ryegrass now in development does not contain this bacterial vector DNA mentioned above, as demonstrated by whole genome sequence analysis of the plant.”

Scott said the potentially significant benefits from improved animal nutrition and environmental gains, outweigh any risks to farming systems.

Aotearoa Forest & Woodlot Owners

Aotearoa Forests Limited (AFL) is a well-established log exporter looking to purchase your standing trees in order to supply regular customer demand in China.

In selling your forest standing, you remove the risk of operational costs and volatility of log prices.

AFL use a local and reputable Forest Manager to organise the harvesting operations to ensure industry best practice is followed for environmental compliance and harvesting practices, which gives confidence that the forest owners objectives are also met.

At AFL we are not just harvesting Radiata Pines, but we are also specialised in these minor species, Blackwood, Cedar, Cypress, Eucalyptus, Larch, Old Man Macrocarpa, Poplar and Redwood.

We are interested in hearing from you and will be happy to have an obligation-free discussion about the protection provided to you by our contracts and how the process is managed.

IN CLOVER: AgResearch is adding clover and endophytes to ryegrass as part of its work on genetically modified or gene-edited grasses.

Sow the seeds of success

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Changing the conversation in Southland

hill country, native bush, peat bogs, horticulture, coal mines and cultivated flat land.

SOUTHLAND has 35 community catchment groups but the challenges they face are far from uniform.

Members of four of the groups told the South Island Dairy Event in Invercargill in June about their activities, which address water quality and greenhouse gas emissions, looking at the contribution from landscape, geology and farm management.

They all noted that catchment groups are as much about social and community cohesion and interaction as environmental improvement.

A key factor behind the proliferation of catchment groups in the province is the involvement of Thriving Southland, a community-led entity that provides resources, administration and support through a network of five co-ordinators.

Simon Topham, a member of the 60,000ha HedgehopeMakarewa Catchment Group, said its topography includes steep

By mapping the catchment they can extrapolate the impact of activities on water quality.

A case study on four farms assessed soil erosion, topography, hydrology, particulates, nitrites, sediment and nitrous oxide, giving an understanding of farming impacts on the environment.

“The conversations have changed from not knowing, to knowing and asking ‘What can we do?’”

The Waimatuku and Lower Aparima Catchment Group incorporates 636 farms, and group member Luke Templeton said community activities, including stream walks and water testing, help them understand their impact on waterways.

The use of water testing has doubled in the past three years, identifying high risk areas.

Templeton said surveys revealed a large percentage of farmers have adopted Farm Environment Plans, which shows the level of commitment to improving the environment.

Other activities include experimenting with sediment trap

design to determine which is the most effective.

Templeton said the momentum from these projects is providing a foundation for the future.

The Dipton Catchment Group is looking at the levels of on-farm agricultural greenhouse gases and options to reduce them.

Group member Charleen Withy said the social aspect of uniting the community on projects such as this is of equal importance.

Last November the group decided to front-foot the climate change issue by launching a project to measure on-farm greenhouse gas emissions and determine if they could become carbon neutral.

This involved case studies on five farms – two dairy and three sheep and beef.

From that they could assess the viability of tweaking or changing current systems or adapting technology to reduce them.

“We felt this was relevant given the topic of climate change, emissions trading scheme and He Waka Eke Noa,” she said. Overseer was used to measure nutrient losses, biogenic, nitrous oxide and carbon dioxide emissions as carbon dioxide equivalents. It did not include fossil fuel emissions.

The FarmX programme was used to assess the economic impact of four farm system scenarios.

Charleen and Chris Withy milk 440 cows on 143ha, rearing 115 replacement heifers and grazing cows off farm.

A draft assessment of their farm reveals emissions of 2183t of CO2 and 65kg N/ha/year.

The four scenarios measured

were: installing a herd home, which would increase emissions to 2186t but lower nitrogen loss to 55kg/ha; a lower stocking rate, 2060t and 54/kg; lower replacement rates 2157t, 55kg; and growing 20ha of oats for milk 1770t and 67kg.

A herd home would increase earnings before interest and tax (EBIT) by 1%, a lower replacement rate by 3.2%, but lower stocking rates and oat milk would decrease EBIT by 5.7% and 23.8% respectively.

Options for sheep and beef farmers included forestry, changing the sheep to cattle ratio, incorporating dairy support and selling lambs as store.

The issue on the Orauea River in Western Southland was sediment affecting water quality, the source of which was not previously obvious.

Simon Topham Hedgehope-Makarewa Catchment Group

Ginny Crawford from the Orauea River Catchment Group said research determined that 59% of the geology in the 48,300ha catchment is mud stone, which is weak, has a high clay content, moves easily and creates sediment on which E coli can piggyback.

This has a significant impact in the quality of the Orauea River. Crawford said the soil in the catchment has been mapped to identify high-risk areas, which include 3400 watersheds.

Landowners can click on an online map to find the soil on their farm, which helps with management.

The group holds field days to promote land management using tools such as fencing and planting.

Neal Wallace NEWS Environment

MAKING CHANGES: Representatives from four Southland Catchment groups spoke at last month’s South Island Dairy Event. From left, Charleen Withy, Ginny Crawford, Luke Templeton and Simon Topham.

GRASSROOTS: Farmers from the Dipton Catchment Group in Southland attending a field day.

The conversations have changed from not knowing, to knowing and asking ‘What can we do?’

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Visit corteva.co.nz to view our range of online brassica resources.

Educational resources for schools & students

Read, listen to, and watch what is happening in Aotearoa New Zealand’s food and fibre sector by scanning the QR codes or following the links. Answer the questions to complete the exercises.

What made Winston focus on lame cows?

Winston Mason grew up in the city, but during a placement for his vet studies he discovered a passion for helping cows. bit.ly/lame-cows

Have a go:

1. What university did Winston attend?

2. What does he love about his job?

3. Why is it important to combat lameness in cows?

Stretch yourself:

4. What does Winston say is the key to being able to make a difference in any role?

5. What led him to set up his own research company, EpiVets?

6. How is lameness monitored and managed in the United Kingdom compared to in New Zealand?

Did you know?

How did Leander end up consulting on orchards?

There are thousands of jobs in horticulture across New Zealand. Read about Leander Archer’s journey to being an AgFirst Horticulture and Environment Consultant. bit.ly/adviser-orchards

Have a go:

1. At school what were Leander’s passions?

2. What are some of the tasks Leander does as a consultant?

3. What does Leander love about working in the horticultural industry?

Stretch yourself:

4. Fruit growing and the environment are complex, linked systems. How do you think the systems are linked? Can you give some examples?

5. Check out career pathways at gohorticulture.co.nz and list the steps you would take to become a horticultural adviser.

Why does native biodiversity matter?

The importance of native biodiversity is looked at in this Beef + Lamb New Zealand video, which also gives information about planning and management. bit.ly/native-biodiversity

Have a go:

1. What does New Zealand’s native biodiversity include?

2. What are the benefits of managing our native biodiversity?

3. When implementing a biodiversity plan, what type of tasks are recommended to tackle first and why?

Stretch yourself:

4. What does a biodiversity plan need to include?

5. What is the difference between operational monitoring and outcome monitoring?

See more at beeflambnz.com

Did you know?

How do consumers pick quality beef and lamb?

Quality ingredients are vital for any recipe. When consumers select beef and lamb with a New Zealand Beef and Lamb Quality Mark, they can be assured that the meat is top quality. bit.ly/pick-quality

Have a go:

1. What year was the Quality Mark established?

2. The Quality Mark is guaranteed through regular auditing. What is auditing and how does it guarantee quality for consumers?

3. What are six characteristics of Quality Marked beef and lamb?

Stretch yourself:

4. Looking at the six characteristics, why do you think each is important to a consumer?

5. How does the Quality Mark help with marketing on a global stage? What might it do for the producer of the beef and lamb in New Zealand?

Watch this

What are the five freedoms?

Learn about industry standards for animal welfare in this Agricademy video. After watching the video, complete the online quiz to test your knowledge.

bit.ly/animal-freedoms

Have a go:

1. The Animal Welfare Act 1999, the updated Codes of Welfare 2018 and the Dairy Cattle Code of Welfare are the basic legislation and guidelines that determine how dairy cows should be treated on the farm. True or false?

2. What is the Animal Welfare Act based on?

3. Why is good animal welfare important?

4. What are the characteristics of a good stock handler?

5. List the actions a farmer can take to make sure cows are free from hunger and thirst.

6. Good observation and prompt treatment are important to ensure that cows are free from pain, injury and disease. True or false?

7. Cows don’t need much space and they are happy on their own without other cows around. True or false?

8. From the video, list three actions that help keep stock free from fear and distress.

The big issue

Why is BVD tricky to manage?

Bovine Viral Diarrhoea (BVD) is a serious disease. In this video, MSD animal health veterinary technical manager Jo Holter explains biosecurity measures for BVD. bit.ly/in-out-over

Have a go:

1. How much is BVD estimated to cost New Zealand annually?

2. What are three ways BVD can spread?

3. What does PI stand for?

4. What is biosecurity and why is it important?

Stretch yourself:

5. What is a “trojan cow”?

6. Explain each part of the “in, out and over” framework, along with why each part is important.

For more see bvdfree.org.nz

Why have a cup of tea and a kōrero?

Trevor Waikawa is a catchment adviser, passionate about supporting landowners to get better outcomes for the taiao (environment). He does this through listening to the landowners and their aspirations, working for the benefit of the people and the land (whenua). “Healthy land means healthy people”, he says.

https://bit.ly/adviser-catchments

Have a go:

1. What gives Trevor the most buzz in his role?

2. In Trevor’s catchment area what is the main issue?

3. Why is it beneficial for an adviser like Trevor to take the time for a cup of tea and a kōrero?

Stretch yourself:

4. Trevor says if the environment is healthy, our people are healthy. Explain what this means.

5. List all the people Trevor says are needed to collectively achieve the best outcomes. Why do you think it is important they are all included?

RESOURCES FOR EDUCATORS

Parents and teachers sign up to receive Ag&Ed in your inbox.

agrihq.co.nz/our-education-resources

...is back!

...is back!

Learn about on farm scenarios, use real life case studies and understand what it takes to work in the ag sector in New Zealand. Students also have the opportunity to apply for our Ag&Ed Innovation Challenge, where 20 lucky students will work in teams to address key issues in the ag sector.

Learn about on farm scenarios, use real life case studies and understand what it takes to work in the ag sector in New Zealand. Students also have the opportunity to apply for our Ag&Ed Innovation Challenge, where 20 lucky students will work in teams to address key issues in the ag sector.

Applications are now open!

Applications are now open!

Thinking about a career in the primary sector?

Thinking about a career in the primary sector?

Whether you’re just starting out, or looking for that next step, there are education and training options. Some training options are even on the job, which means you’ll upskill and learn while you are earning.

Whether you’re just starting out, or looking for that next step, there are education and training options. Some training options are even on the job, which means you’ll upskill and learn while you are earning.

Other courses are free of charge, or have support options available.

Other courses are free of charge, or have support options available.

From the Editor

Another beacon for women in agriculture

Bryan Gibson Managing editor

IF YOU can dream it, you can become it, or so the saying goes.

But surely if you can actually see it, the goal becomes even more attainable?

This week, about half of the young people who aspire to making a life in the food production sector saw that it’s possible. That’s because for the first time in its 55-year history, the Young Farmer of the Year is a woman.

Emma Poole may be the first woman to win the title, but she knows her path was paved by many before her.

“There’s a long chain of women that have worked really hard to display the important role we play in agriculture,” she said.

“All those women have given me the confidence to stand up and give it a go. I’m just a product of what they’ve all achieved.”

The annual contest encompasses all of the skills a farmer needs to succeed, so in some ways it’s surprising that it has taken a woman more than 50 years to win it.

But as we know, although New Zealand

Letters of the week Desperate rush looks suspicious

John Veysey Coromandel

YOUR article “Regs slowdown would not serve sector: PM” (July 10) revealed a prime minister rushing to lock in restrictive measures on farming method before the elections in October. None of these measures have been shown to slow or mitigate the effects of climate change in any way.

Surely a more measured approach would be more logical. Chris Hipkins’ desperate push looks highly suspicious. It is clear there is no consensus on this matter in Wellington and this may explain Hipkins’ rush to install impositions on farmers which may not help the country let alone the world in any way whatsoever.

We have seen the same haste from this government rushing in measures like Significant Natural Areas and Three Waters, which have clearly not been thought through beforehand.

Our own experience: a gang of council staff wearing the white coats of authority tramping across the paddock to view a hillside of old mānuka, which from an aerial photo on their computer screen back at base looked to them like a definite SNA. They haven’t been back.

It might be sensible to slow Hipkins down at this stage until we can see where this rush is taking us.

boasts a few firsts in the advancement of human rights, there’s still work to do.

We were first to give women the vote, in 1893.

In 1999, Georgina Beyer became the first openly transsexual mayor and Member of Parliament.

These are all positive signs.

But there’s a lot more to do and that’s why organisations like Rural Women NZ, the Agri-women’s Development Trust and the Dairy Women’s Network are so important.

They identify and nurture talented women who may once have been overlooked, or confined to the boundary fences of the farms they help build.

The alumni of these great programmes are proof that we’re better off as an industry when our leadership group is diverse and dynamic.

If we’re to thrive as an industry we need to call on all of the skills within it.

We’ve had women in positions of power at various times over the past few years and women make up almost half of parliament.

Trailblazers like Cath Tizard, Theresa Gattung, Jenny Shipley and Jacinda Ardern, Eliza McCartney, Lisa Carrington and Lorde all provide the younger generation with a light to guide their way.

Māori farming is thriving, as the Ahuwhenua Trophy shows, and our indigenous farmers are now influencing the direction of travel for all of us.

Some people like to point out our social and business structures have always been merit-based.

But it’s hard to look back through the years at the boards of directors and senior leaderships teams of our agribusinesses and come to that conclusion.

Poole’s success shows the young women and girls who live in the farming world that their skills and strengths are enough.

It’s not about winning at a man’s game, it’s about winning the game in your own way.

Poole FMG Young Farmer of the Year 2023

HASTE: John Veysey advises Prime Minister Chris Hipkins to slow down until the way ahead becomes clearer.

Make like mycelium and share your data

Sagi Katz

Dr Katz is vice-president of agronomy at agri informatics company Agmatix

WHEN looking to increase crop yields, a stable biological environment is the ultimate goal. Environmental needs vary from crop to crop, but the one constant is that each crop has an optimal environment to support maximum yields and crop quality. Creating and maintaining this environment is key to a successful farm.

The biological environment encompasses many sub-factors, such as soil health, water retention, biodiversity, and chemical composition, just to name a few. With so many factors at play, it can be hard to know where to start, and what should be the priority.

We can’t determine what to prioritise without communication. Trees show the value of communication, transferring food, water and information with other trees through underground fungus mycelium. To ensure that our businesses thrive, we must also transfer knowledge and communicate more as an industry. What’s more, this communication of data on a global scale will enable us to be more sustainable and help us to solve global food poverty.

Just like the trees, farmers have been sharing knowledge through conducting field trials and sharing

their results with fellow farmers. Driven forward by the need to comply with new regulations, increase yields in a sustainable way, future-proof the farm and drive profitability, more and more farmers are looking at data as a solution. By considering available research, including data gathered through individual field trials, we can determine which factors have the largest effect on yield and crop quality.

In time, this data can be aggregated on a regional, national or international basis.

Conducting a field trial can be a complex undertaking, leaving one to question where to start, and what factors to prioritize. As the medium in which you grow your crops, and the factor most likely to determine crop quality and yield, soil health is the most important element to consider. When looking to assess this, the best indication is biological activity in the soil – otherwise known as biodiversity. A highly biodiverse environment brings many additional benefits, ultimately improving yield and crop quality.

When looking into soil health, an important factor to measure

is chemical composition. This can be relatively quick and easy to improve through the correct nutrition plan, so it is a great place to start. That said, it does depend on the chemical you’re looking to alter. For example, increasing the amount of carbon in the soil is much harder than increasing nitrogen.

Once results are gathered, the most effective way to begin

implementing changes towards optimising your soil nutrient balance is through the use of an agro-informatic tool. These tools can determine the right amount of chemical fertilizer and optimal application time, factoring in all the variables of your specific field.

These tools can also advise growers on farming practices that will aid the development of a highly biodiverse environment,

such as no-till agriculture, or the cover crop approach. Biodiversity and its benefits vary greatly depending on the organism present. However, one overarching theme is that the presence of one organism encourages the presence of others, creating a positive “snowball” effect. A natural bio stimulant, it’s an important factor for farmers to consider.

If you get the balance of this ecosystem right, yields will increase year on year, and carbon emissions will simultaneously decrease. Agro-informatics tools can provide information on the impact these regenerative farming practices – and the biodiversity benefits that they bring – will make on yield and crop quality. Not only this, but they can help to track carbon emissions, allowing farmers to more easily make use of carbon credit schemes.

In agriculture, the decisions you make today will have a lasting impact for months, and even years down the line. So, it’s important to drive your decisions with high-quality data, collected through well-planned, accurate field trials. There’s no better way to obtain specific data about your farm than to conduct your onfarm experiments. Ultimately, if we are to ensure the long-term success of the industry, as well as reduce our impact on the environment in a meaningful way, we must also share this data with fellow researchers and farmers through open data programmes –communication is the key.

An open letter on climate change policy

Colin Jacobs

Colin Jacobs is executive director of investment banking and corporate advisory firm Lewis Tucker & Co

Dear Minister Shaw

With just over six years until the Paris 2030 Climate Accord deadline, we are deeply concerned about New Zealand’s climate change response.

The country is on course to fail to meet its climate change commitments and is facing a potential emissions bill of more than $23 billion. Investor confidence in critical areas of the economy, including gross emissions reductions and forestrybased carbon removals, is being seriously damaged by constant uncertainty.

The consultations around the fundamental direction of the Emissions Trading Scheme (ETS) and forestry sectors have been particularly disappointing. The ETS, until late last year, sent the price signals to encourage investment in emissions reductions and supported investment in forestry as the country’s bridge to a low carbon economy.

At present, emitters covered

by the ETS pay for 100% of their emissions in NZ, yet the government has failed to incentivise decarbonisation of the agricultural sector, in which biological emissions represent half of the country’s total. Tradeexposed emissions-intensive industries remain heavily subsidised.

The current review of the ETS is being attributed to a failure to cut gross emissions. However, it is government decisions and subsequent uncertainty that have driven this failure, including more than halving the price of carbon (from nearly $89 to $38), blocking the price signals required to drive behaviour change and directly subsidising fossil fuels. Add to this the lack of agricultural emissions pricing and it’s hardly a surprise that gross emissions are not reducing fast enough.

We support the government partnering with industry to drive gross emissions reductions. The NZ Steel agreement is a good example of this; the Clean Car Discount scheme another example of effective policy. But the carbon market and the ETS must drive rational economic decisionmaking. At present, both are paralysed and there is a lack of

confidence among those wishing to make long-term investments in decarbonisation or sequestration. At a time when the country needs long-term certainty and confidence in our climate change policy settings, we have less than ever before.

Lewis Tucker is an agri advisory firm that was set up 10 years ago to help the country’s agricultural sector innovate, raise capital and invest in its future. We are passionate about what diverse, innovative, and well-capitalised agricultural and forestry sectors can deliver for our economy, rural communities and our climate change commitments.

Our operations are clearly aligned with the government’s economic and environmental objectives. The forests we plant are on marginal hill country and we ensure that productive farmland remains in pastoral farming. We actively support native regeneration across the land we manage and undertake large-scale professional pest control, with remarkable results.

It is our view that no changes to the ETS are needed and that government should explore alternative means to incentivise gross emission reductions and

ensure responsible exotic rotation forestry.

We reject the notion of “permanent” exotic forests and cannot understand why any organisation would leave a valuable timber resource in the ground to simply fall over. The implications for rural communities of “permanent” exotic forestry are profoundly negative and the science as to the long-term environmental impacts of these forests is unclear, at best.

We are also very surprised at how quickly the government has adopted the concept of “transition forestry” (the idea that through selective management, an exotic forest can transition to an indigenous forest over time) despite the absence of robust science. This speculative concept is not in the interests of rural communities, particularly if attempts at transition prove unsuccessful.

However, all landowners should have the same rights and responsibilities for their land, and the suggestion in the recent consultation document that planting permanent exotic forests be allowed only for Māori landowners has the potential to heavily distort the rural property

market and give unfair advantage to some over others.

We understand that people have concerns about poor forestry practices. We share them. Forestry has to be done well, on the right land, and be subject to appropriate controls and regulation. Like permanent exotic forestry, blanket planting of productive farmland is unacceptable.

We share your view that forestry is no silver bullet for the climate. However, forestry buys the country the time it needs to cut emissions and provide a stepping stone to a low carbon economy.

The Climate Change Commission has repeatedly stated that we cannot meet our climate commitments without a strong contribution from forestry over the next 25 years. If we plant the right trees on the right land, realise the value of high-quality timber products in both the domestic and international markets, and build value-adding timber processing facilities in our regions, responsible forestry can make a profound contribution to our climate and economy.

MORE:

Read the full text at: farmersweekly.co.nz

RESULTS: Just like the trees, farmers have been sharing knowledge through conducting field trials and sharing their results with fellow farmers.

If you get the balance of this ecosystem right, yields will increase year on year, and carbon emissions will simultaneously decrease.

Kudos for tech that ticks all of the boxes

Alternative view

designed to quickly tell farmers which cows in their herd have mastitis, so no money is wasted giving antibiotics to a clean cow.

Simply speaking, there is a small container that has a chip with the cows’ details on it, including all the information on the ear tag.

Milk is then taken offline, into the container and onto a multimedia plate. Photos are taken of the plate and sent to the vet and the farmer. The farmer gets the results in 24 hours.

Alan Emerson Semi-retired Wairarapa farmer and businessman: dath.emerson@gmail.com

I’VE had the honour of being part of the judging panel for the Primary Industries Awards for a couple of years now and I never cease to be amazed at the innovation going along quietly in our farming sector. There are a lot of dedicated and committed people across a wide range of organisations all working to improve life in the provinces. Those people provide an interesting cross section, from highly qualified scientists to technicians to grassroots farmers. They’re all making a considerable contribution to the New Zealand economy.

One such person is Murchison dairy farmer James Bourke, who, with several colleagues, is kickstarting DairySmart NZ. DairySmart is a mastitis management initiative. It is

Mastitis, as any farmer knows, is the most common disease costing dairy herds due to reduced yield and poor milk quality.

International studies put the cost at US$147 ($236) per cow per year or $US6.7 billion annually. Locally, DairyNZ estimates the cost at $280 per cow or $180 million annually.

The cost of subclinical mastitis is estimated at an additional $600m through higher cull rates and lower production.

When farmers are drying off a herd, many give antibiotics to all their cows in case they have the disease. It is known as dry cow therapy. That practice has many problems, including wasting money treating healthy cows. The larger problem is the threat of antimicrobial resistance, which the World Health Organisation estimates could kill up to 10 million people by 2050.

It is a trade barrier in waiting.

The NZ Veterinary Council acknowledged the issue and has issued an edict that by 2025 vets will be unable to prescribe blanket dry cow therapy for herds. It is a responsible position to take.

cost us.

We trade in a variety of sensitive international markets and any excessive use of antibiotics will cost us.

So, the problem is that currently there is no quick and accurate test available to farmers to let them know which cows are affected by mastitis. It’s estimated that blanket treatment wastes $50m each and every year by treating healthy cows.

Murchison dairy farmer Bourke milked 1300 cows over two farms. He and colleague Chris Brook saw a problem and set out to fix it. They were joined by Rangiora dairy farmer Mike Prattley. Between them they raised capital, set up plates and started

screening. They’ve since been joined by Ben Davidson of the Rangiora Veterinary Centre and dairy farmer Tony Reynolds.

They’ve been working in the Canterbury area and plan to move into Southland and the North Island. To do that they need $1.3m. They’ve currently raised $1m from farmers so they’re nearly there.

To me that is an amazing success story that has come directly from NZ farmers. Bourke is impressive and extremely focused. I’d be surprised if his co-directors don’t share those traits.

For me it is just one other example of farmers seeing a problem and then going out to fix it. Bourke believes the on-farm gumboot approach certainly made a difference.

The company spent some effort analysing the cost of mastitis in NZ and it came up with a staggering $773m. The cost per cow is $160.

The programme ticks many boxes.

Farmers were wasting money treating healthy cows as there was no quick, cost-effective and easy testing regime. DairySmart addresses that.

The international rules around excessive antibiotic use are only going to get a lot more stringent, and the project helps address that issue.

We pride ourselves on our clean green image, and the excessive use of antibiotics is totally contrary to that.

The major factor for me was that a farmer and technician saw a problem and went out to fix it. They teamed up with like-minded people and raised over $1m so far to develop a sustainable solution.

Finally, I’ve used DairySmart as an example of what is happening in the rural sector today.

The key point is our sector is doing what it can to improve itself.

I look forward to seeing more examples at next year’s Primary Industries Awards.

Healing the land one kiwi at a time

Meaty matters

their own farm and subsequently across the island from the Kaipara Harbour to the Hauraki Gulf.

Gill is the fifth generation of her family since 1868 to farm the 1300ha Mataia property at Glorit, which they ran for 28 years, before leasing it out and spending two years in the Solomon Islands.

There they observed the massive amount of deforestation because of torrential rainfall, which completely changed their perspective on how to look after the land.

Allan Barber

dump, which successfully took out hundreds of possums with the immediate benefit of protecting the pohutukawas that were being stripped by the pests.

The Mataia Restoration project was initially established in 2006 on 450ha to increase the biodiversity of the property with 100ha in forestry and the remaining land now farmed by their daughter and son-in-law, on which they run ewes and beef cows, with the farm area now including a further 400ha that was previously leased by a neighbouring farmer.

With the possums under control, the next stage of the project was to trap rats, weasels, and stoats before starting the process of translocating kiwi from Motuora Island in the Hauraki Gulf to Mataia, which posed the additional challenge of gaining agreement from the two iwi in the respective areas.

stations eat the dead rats.

Meat

industry commentator: allan@barberstrategic.co.nz, http:// allanbarber.wordpress.com

NORTH Auckland couple

Kevin and Gill Adshead have an impressive track record of establishing effective programmes for the eradication of pests and increasing biodiversity, initially on

They recognised the potential impact of tree felling on the health of the waterways and the stability of the land, and realised the importance of planting native bush. On their return home they applied to the Department of Conservation (DoC) for a grant, prepared a restoration plan and began by setting possum traps.

This coincided with the Auckland Council’s five-yearly cyanide

Thousands of metres of fencing have been erected to protect the wildlife from outside predators and 150,000 native trees planted since 2005 with volunteer help. More recently the Adsheads have partnered with Kaipara Moana Remediation, which matches expenditure dollar for dollar to preserve the health of the land and the Kaipara Harbour.

They can’t wait to return to their off-grid cottage on the farm where they will be able to hear all the native birds without interference from double glazing.

Predator control is now managed by 1080 bait stations every three years, which is effective in controlling the rat population, while the stoats that cunningly teach their young to avoid the bait

After a three-year translocation programme, the kiwi population was firmly established at Mataia. However, the Adsheads were advised by DoC that a minimum of 10,000ha is necessary to achieve a sustainable kiwi population, so they decided to set up the Forest Bridge Trust in 2014 with funding for traps from the Environment Ministry. The trust’s vision is “to create a connected landscape of healthy forest and indigenous wildlife from the Kaipara Harbour in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east”.

The Forest Bridge Trust began with three contractors and now employs 24 fulltime equivalents and four contractors as a result of $8.5 million funding from DoC’s Jobs for Nature programme, which finishes in 2025.

Unlike the initial grant in 2014,

Continued next page

WINNER: James Bourke and Elke van der Meijden, AsureQuality group manager at the Primary Industries Awards.

We trade in a variety of sensitive international markets and any excessive use of antibiotics will

Farmers Weekly’s new column, Eating the Elephant, will be written each week by one of four millennial farmers and agri-professionals with progressive views on farming. Brought together via the Nuffield farming scholarship programme, they are parents of young children and come from a range of backgrounds, from the New Zealand Army to start-up life in San Francisco, agri-consultancy and urban communications.

They describe themselves as having skin in the game in the form of their family farming businesses, and feel that pro-change, progressive perspectives are missing from the sector dialogue. They want to see positive changes happen further and faster, and are open to big ideas and experimentation to meet entrenched challenges.

Change will deliver us from the wolf

Eating the elephant

that history would undoubtedly thank them later. Once I had finished, I waited expectantly for the interpreter to finish his translation and the applause to start. It didn’t. Faces grew colder, feedback was given and some of the group started to drift off.

My interpreter translated back. “Ben – they say they don’t give a s*** about democracy. They just want to get home before they freeze and the wolves come out.”

Fast-forward a lot of years and other embarrassing lessons in life and leadership, and it’s hard to see the challenge the New Zealand government has in translating its international and social obligations to its farming audience.

change when we so often struggle to just deal with the present. It’s no wonder we push back when change is presented as a cost with no benefit in sight.

ALONG time ago in a previous life I decided to give an inspirational speech. My audience was a group of tired and cold Afghanis who were helping me set up a camp for one Afghanistan’s first democratic elections. It was late in the day, winter was fast approaching and I was in a hurry to finish the job before the snow arrived and the mountain passes closed.

Knowing that everyone loves a good motivational speech, I took my place on a nearby rock, paused for effect, and held forth. I spoke of what fine people they were, the great importance of what they were doing for their country, and

which covered only projectrelated expenditure, the current funding can also be applied to employing people. The aim is to establish 54,000ha of predatorfree area from coast to coast and a mark of progress is the successful translocation of 10 pairs of kiwis to Mt Tamahunga on the East Coast with a similar number to be move in next year.

The Adsheads were awarded the Queen’s Service Medal in 2021 for services to conservation, being the first people to introduce kiwis to private land, and in 2022 the two generations involved in the Mataia property won three awards at the Auckland Ballance Farm Environment Awards for their soil management, livestock and business management. The judges complimented them on running a thriving farm with challenging soils and diverse income streams that enabled the protection of waterways and excellent conservation practices.

The Adsheads are very enthusiastic about the social impact of the Forest Bridge Trust’s work on whole communities, noting the successful return of Logue’s Bush near Wellsford to

It’s hard to be an agent of change when your audience has more pressing concerns, like rebuilding from cyclones, and keeping one’s stock and family fed. Our wolves are of a different nature but they are no less fierce and they take their toll on a daily basis. Many NZ farmers are currently hanging on by their fingertips, and their ability to take on more is limited at best.

However, the vast majority of farmers are not naïve about the world around us. We understand our international obligations, we too want our children to swim in clean rivers, and we want NZ’s public to be proud of us. We are also not blind to the climate changing around us.

However, it’s hard to embrace

the DoC, although this attractive scenic reserve is now closed because of the threat of kauri dieback.

Much work has also been done in schools through the award-

NZ farmers have a lot to be proud of. We care for our farms, we care for our stock, we care for our families and we care for our communities. We do this because we understand how dependent we are on each other and the environment in which we are fortunate enough to live.

But change we must. We need to change to a sector that is vibrant, profitable and environmentally sustainable.

Some farmers may argue that there is nothing to change, but I’m willing to bet that number is small. It’s true that many of our rivers are polluted. It’s also true that we are not profitable, at least not in comparison to other industries, not in comparison to our supermarkets and not in comparison to our banks. It’s also true that our consumers are demanding more from us, as are the voting public.

Change would be a good thing and it would be about time.

But positive change won’t come

winning Forest Bridge Defenders programme, which helps children to understand the threats to wildlife and teaches them important skills like improving their trapping.

DROWNED OUT: Fearful of the ‘wolves’ threatening their flock, farmers and growers can be less than receptive to the message of positive change, says Ben Anderson.

by itself. It won’t come via a glossy picture and an aspirational vision statement from a public relations company.

It won’t come from a bureaucrat in shiny new Red Bands, and it won’t come from an industry leader with two feet in the past. It especially won’t come from industry leadership with a vested interest in the status quo.

Change will come through

The next big challenge for the trust is to secure future funding beyond 2025 and it is currently working out what it will cost to monitor the protection activities now in place as well as what is

farmers looking at the problem with fresh eyes. It will start with us understanding what the consumer wants, what the voter wants and what we need to flourish. It will gain momentum by farmers working together and creating the structures that serve those interests, not the interests of others. And change won’t finish, because that’s not what change does.

required to expand the present activities. It would like to be able to increase the area covered to plug the geographical gap between other projects further to the north and south with similar objectives.

Another of Gill’s areas of focus is as the local representative of the Rural Support Trust, which does much-needed work with farmers suffering mounting pressures from severe weather, finances, relationships, and work. A current RST initiative is to distribute care packs including a $150 Prezzy card and a few essentials, which she has given to local meat buyers and stock agents to help reach farmers in need of support. This small gesture has been much appreciated, as there are a lot of farmers in the Kaipara who have been affected by the past few months of appalling weather events.

Kevin and Gill show no real signs of slowing down any time soon, although they can’t wait for the weather to improve sufficiently for them to return to their off-grid cottage on the farm where they will be able to hear all the native birds without interference from double glazing. Their commitment to nature, conservation and community is a joy to see.

Ben Anderson

Ben Anderson lives in the Central Hawke’s Bay and farms deer, cows and trees.

Photo: Wikimedia Commons

It’s no wonder we push back when change is presented as a cost with no benefit in sight.

OFF GRID: Kevin and Gill Adshead on their Kaipara farm. Photo: Kaipara Moana Remediation/Steve McMillan

How a bareback rider boots the blues away

Te Anau scrubcutter and rodeo rider Slade MacDonald has had his fair share of challenges in life. Now he’s using that experience to help others doing it tough in rural communities.

What’s your current job?

I’m working as gorse cutter and sprayer. When I’m not doing that, I’m helping out another local contractor here.

You’ve had some challenging times by the sound of it ...

Yes, I really struggled there for a while. I lost my dad to an ice-climbing accident when I was eight. He was only 36. It was a real shock and that was definitely hard on Mum, so things were a bit rough for a while because she was left to look after three wild little boys, me and my two older brothers.

Dad was Kiwi and my mum’s a Canadian and so we went and lived over in Canada. Mum got all better and everything was cruising along, but then when I was 17, in my last year of high school, she passed away.

That must have been incredibly tough.

Yeah, it’s not until you’re an adult that you kind of understand the full impact of something like that. But for a while there, I was a wild child that’s for sure. I got up to some bloody mischief and acted like a real dip shit. One of the reasons I came back to New Zealand was to straighten myself out.

How did that work out?

I was doing all right for a while, but when you don’t talk to anyone about what’s going on for you, it all just kind of boils up eventually and overwhelms you. I just felt

frustrated all the time and done with everything. I was working as a farm hand and I remember one time something happened with a fence and I was so frustrated I started bawling. I was so angry at life.

I wasn’t eating or sleeping properly either and that definitely affects how you operate during the day. I’d end up drinking too much and making silly decisions. It felt as if life wasn’t worth living. But thank God, I’m still here.

What helped you get through?

Reaching out for help and talking to people. But also, finding the right person to talk to, and that can take a bit of time. But thankfully here in this town, I’ve got a lovely lady who’s very heavily involved in the rural mental health sector.

If I need to talk to someone, she’s been amazing.

Bareback riding requires your total focus. As soon as I hop on and put my hand in the rigging, I forget about everything else. All the worries of the world go away. And it’s a real rush.

What else helped?

I realised I didn’t have anything to look forward to, so I got into the rodeo scene and started hopping on bareback horses. Dad was a bareback rider and one of the first Kiwis to make it to the Canadian rodeo finals.

farmstrong.co.nz

How did bareback riding help your recovery?

I suddenly felt a lot more motivated. It gave me something to look forward to and it was a decent challenge too. I’ve had to learn new skills and step outside my comfort zone. I’ve been doing it two years now. I’ve still got a lot to learn, a long way to go, but I really enjoy it. It’s bloody awesome.

What’s the buzz of it?

Bareback riding requires your total focus. As soon as I hop on and put my hand in the rigging, which is what you hold on to, it’s kind of like a suitcase handle that’s on the back of a horse, I forget about everything else. As soon as I drive my hand into that, all the worries of the world go away. And it’s a real rush.

What else do you do to maintain your wellbeing, so you don’t slip back into that negative headspace?

Keeping well is about doing a lot of small things that add up to big wins. Finding someone you get on with to talk to. Going for a drive down the road and spending time at a beautiful spot.

It’s doing the small things like that and then having something that really turns your crank to build up your confidence and selfesteem again.

For me it was rodeo. But if you like rugby or hockey or golf or whatever, get into that.

Any other tips for keeping well?

It’s good to keep the body moving and stay in shape. That’s one of the reasons I started gorse spraying – to stay fit for rodeo. I thought, if I go gorse spraying, then I get paid to work out, pretty much. So, I run around and do that and that helps keep me well, too.

Do you have any strategies for dealing with stressful moments during the day?

I find breathing techniques pretty handy. It’s kind of like the deep breathing they do in yoga.

When you focus on your breathing like that, it regenerates the mind. The other thing I do is just go for a horse ride. I live on my grandparents’ farm and we’ve got horses here.

So I ride out onto the neighbour’s place and around the cow block here. It’s a great way for me to just kind of take in the natural environment and have time to myself. Even though I’m a social guy, I quite enjoy the solitude of moments like that. They calm you down and relax you.

Farmstrong’s working hard to improve the wellbeing of rural communities. What do you think needs to happen?

It probably sounds a bit “hippie” but I think we’ve all got to try and be more positive and treat life more lightly. Sometimes it seems like we’re just surrounded by all this negative news and negative people.

If all you’re reading is this negative stuff or you’re just thinking negatively about life and yourself, then there’s only going to be a negative outcome.

Do you think we’re making progress?

Yes I do. The rural community where I work in the Te Anau basin is amazing. I’ve found there’s no stigma if you want to go talk to your mates about mental health. My experience has been that nine times out of 10, your mates are going to pat you on the back for speaking up and they’re going to talk to you about it.

What’s your message to someone out there who may be struggling?

If you need help, speak up. Give your mate a text, hop in the ute and go round and have a beer with them on the veranda. Just say “Things are a bit tough right now, mate, and I don’t know what to do.” My mates definitely guided me in the right direction. That’s where it all started.

Looking back at your journey, what’s your main take-out?

If you’re struggling with burnout and anxiety, you’ve got to fight it. You can’t just give up and let it drag you down. My story shows that there are always things that you can control that will make you feel a hell of a lot better.

At the end of the day, everyone has challenges in life. You’ve just got to tell yourself, “Life’s a bitch, I’ve got to make it a beach.”

MORE:

Farmstrong is a nationwide, rural wellbeing programme for farmers and growers.

To find out what works for you and lock it in, visit www.farmstrong.co.nz

ON TRACK: Slade MacDonald says he was a wild child but came back to New Zealand to straighten himself out.

RELAX: Rodeo rider Slade MacDonald says as soon as he hops on a horse he forgets about everything else.

Proper weed control costly and worth it

An Australian weed management expert outlined winning strategies in the battle against weeds at the FAR conference. Annette Scott reports.

LESSONS from Australian cropping farmers show that herbicide resistance does not mean an end to arable farm profitability.

Addressing the Foundation for Arable Research (FAR) conference at Lincoln, Professor of Weed Management at the University of Adelaide Christopher Preston said resistance covers almost all the herbicides available for grain production.

“If you talk to Australian growers, they will tell you that weed resistance has made them better farmers.

“But it does mean that weed management becomes more complex and has to be more strategic,” he said.

In Australia there are 24 grass species and 28 broadleaf weed species with resistance to at least one herbicide mode of action. The most important weed species with resistance is annual ryegrass, which has evolved resistance to nine different herbicide modes of action.

Annual ryegrass with resistance to Group 1 and 2 herbicides is widespread across the southern states of Australia and resistance to glyphosate (Group 9) is becoming common.

“Across Australia, one in six farmers now have glyphosateresistant ryegrass. The only postemergent treatment that reliably works is Paraquat (Group 22), so farmers are using a lot more of this,” Preston said.

“Weed control is a long-haul job. Farmers are thinking about control of weeds over the next five to 10 years.”

Australian grain farmers have adapted to post-emergent herbicide resistance by increasing

their use of pre-emergent herbicides and using sequences of chemistry rather than relying on singular treatments.

Crop competition is another strategy.

“This doesn’t kill any weeds but reduces the seed set by up to 50%.”

Early-sown crops reach canopy closure quicker, shading out ryegrass seedlings.

Preston was involved in a nineyear integrated management trial for weeds on a farm site that was overrun with herbicide-resistant ryegrass.

This showed the effectiveness of changing crop rotation and double breaks, where two years of effective annual ryegrass control can be implemented to drive down the weed population.

The project also highlighted that the high-cost strategy for weed control was the most profitable.

“So, if you think you are spending too much on weed control you are probably not. There may be space to spend more. Do it right and get more profit.”

End-of-season weed control tactics such as hay crops are used to further reduce the amount of weed seed going back into the soil. This includes the use of machinery such as an impact mill, which crushes weed seeds that enter the header during harvesting.

Future alternatives are electrical, laser and microwave weed control. “However, as travel speeds are slow, these will require robots to drive.”

The WeedSmart Big 6 tactics developed in Australia to manage seed banks are: rotate crops and pastures, increase crop competition, mix and rotate herbicides, optimise spray efficacy,

resistance has made them better farmers.

stop weed seed set and implement harvest weed seed control.

“The use of WeedSmart Big 6 tactics when used well keeps herbicide resistant weeds under control.

“Stacking of weed control tactics in each crop is essential to keeping weed populations low and allowing long-term profitable crop production,” Preston said.

As part of an AgResearch-led MBIE programme, Managing Herbicide Resistance, FAR has

carried out weed surveys across New Zealand for the past five years and found widespread resistance in ryegrass, particularly to Group 1 and 2 herbicides.

No resistance to glyphosate has been found on arable farms.

FAR senior field research officer Matilda Gunnarsson said that the programme has helped remove the stigma from having herbicide resistance as farmers and the industry realise how widespread it is.

Resistance is a bigger problem in areas where grass seed crops are grown and rotation options are limited, with 71% of arable farm samples in South Canterbury showing resistance, compared with 35% in Mid Canterbury and 11% in the lower North Island.

Just five ryegrass plants per square metre can reduce wheat yield by 5%.

Yield loss is not the only reason

to control weeds; seed certification and export requirements also demand good weed management. Gunnarsson said advances in precision agriculture technologies such as remote sensing, GPS, and Artificial Intelligence can change weed management.

Using these technologies in conjunction with other weed management practices is important for the longevity of herbicides and slowing down the selection of resistant weeds.

“However these technologies can be very costly and difficult to access in NZ.”

The most sustainable weed management strategy involves integrating multiple control methods, which also minimises reliance on any single method.

Gunnarsson said to effectively manage weeds, it is essential to understand the biology and the cycles of the specific weed.

New application mooted for lameness tech

electronic identification (EID) reader are mounted.

The camera collects images, picking up any changes to her gait.

to identify cows by body markings or facial recognition.

THE developers of a visual tracking system that identifies lameness in dairy cows is developing the technology for body scoring as well.

OmniEye uses a camera on the exit race of a dairy shed to monitor cow movement by filming and analysing her stride every time she leaves a cowshed.

Artificial intelligence (AI) then detects and scores any lameness – and the technology could soon be used provide condition scoring of cows.

David Newstead, OmniEye operations manager, was at the recent South Island Dairy Event in Invercargill and said lameness scores are based on DairyNZ’s measurement.

To operate efficiently, a 6m-long, flat exit race is required, leading to a post on which a camera and

If there is an issue, a video, lameness score and tag number are sent to managers or staff.

The cause could be as insignificant as a stone in her hoof or a more serious onset of lameness.

Vets have been involved in training AI to identify and interpret the data and images.

Operating on 40 farms, the OmniEye technology is becoming more accurate, Newstead said, able

We’re the early detection piece. There is no point having us if you’re not going to treat her.

David Newstead OmniEye

Newstead said it is up to farmers to use the information on potential lameness.

“We’re the early detection piece. There is no point having us if you’re not going to treat her.”

The returns are worthwhile.

A lame cow is estimated to cost over $500 in direct and indirect costs.

Over half of that is through lost milk production with the balance vet and treatment costs, culling, discarded milk and the impact on reproduction.

It is a bigger problem in South Island herds, where an estimated 26% of cows become lame each year, compared to the North Island, where the figure is 16%.

Newstead said the next step is to incorporate into the technology hoof pathology using AI, such as information on which hoof is lame, if it is a repeat issue and any previous treatment she has

undergone. This could provide a warning of trends of recurring problems.

For example, if a farmer has a tolerance lameness threshold score of 1.5, a cow moving from 1 to 1.5 would not be considered an issue.

OmniEye technology could be trained to identify cows with progressively worsening lameness on successive days, providing an alert before she reaches the threshold.

Similarly, that information can be cross-correlated to other events such as wet weather or paddocks grazed, potentially providing a link with lameness.

Now OmniEye wants to use that technology to assist with condition scoring.

Newstead said body scoring cows is easier because it requires only static 3D images using technology that already exists.

“We’ve got the technology and the computer infrastructure.”

PROFIT: Professor of Weed Management at the University of Adelaide Christopher Preston advises growers that, when it comes to weed control, they should do it right and realise more profit.

If you talk to Australian growers they will tell you that weed

Christopher Preston University of Adelaide

Neal Wallace TECHNOLOGY Animal welfare

TRACKING: David Newstead, OmniEye operations manager, with some of the tools used to automatically track lameness in dairy cows.

New urgency to tackle petty trade hurdles

The true cost to meat exporters of behind-the-border red tape was recently revealed in a new report. Meat Industry Association chief executive Sirma Karapeeva spoke to Nigel Stirling about the industry’s $1.5 billion non-tari barrier problem and what can be done about it.

FOR Sirma Karapeeva, one incident during the pandemic underlined the true uselessness of many of the bureaucratic box-ticking exercises meat exporters routinely face.

It related to the requirement for containers of meat bound for the Middle East to have their export documents rubber-stamped by the receiving country’s embassy staff in Wellington.

“Of course during covid everyone was holed up in their houses and we could not get the country’s staff to make themselves available to stamp these documents,” Karapeeva recalls.

“We had to call on MPI and the New Zealand ambassador to the region to go and strike a deal for that requirement to be removed so that we could carry on with the transaction.

“That did not make any difference to the safety of the product, or any of the certification or labelling requirements – they were still done -- it just meant the fee was foregone.”

The processing fee charged by the embassy was $1000 per consignment.

“In this instance, the company concerned sent 10 or more consignments per month so very quickly the money being spent was going up and up and for no reason.

“Small things like this add up.”

Just how much these “small

things” add up to for the meat industry overall was recently revealed in research for the Meat Industry Association (MIA) and Beef + Lamb NZ.

The research found that, at $1.5 billion annually, the cost of so-called non-tariff barriers multiplied by many times the $193m cost of tariffs to meat exporters last year.

Tariff costs are down from $366m in 2010 as more free trade agreements have been negotiated to lower tariff rates faced by exporters in overseas markets.

But with 75% of the country’s existing trade soon to be covered by tariff-busting free trade agreements, Karapeeva believes it is time to look again at NZ’s trade policy objectives – with non-tariff barriers needing the most urgent attention.

And she says existing trade agreements are the best place to start.

“People forget there is more to trade agreements than just removing or reducing tariffs.

“Obviously that is the big and immediate win but what people probably don’t appreciate is that in those agreements is a whole bunch of provisions that deal to nontariff barriers.”

Karapeeva has been reported as saying that the government should not shy away from suing trading partners where they have not upheld commitments made to

IN TRIPLICATE: Sirma Karapeeva, CEO of the Meat Industry Association, commissioned research that quanti ed the cost of non-tari trade barriers to NZ exporters at $1.5 billion a year.

open their markets as promised. NZ became the first of the 11 countries in the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) to sue another member when it took Canada to court for misusing import quota administration rules to block access for dairy products from NZ. However, Karapeeva said there are plenty of alternative mechanisms in NZ’s trade agreements that could be better utilised to overcome non-tariff barriers before they turn into trade disputes and the lawyers have to be called in.

“Those provisions set up administrative or bureaucratic systems that bring those issues to light and compel agencies and governments to work together to resolve them.

“We have got strong chapters on sanitary and phytosanitary and technical barriers to trade which we do not believe have been fully utilised by our government to resolve some of those behind-theborder issues.”

Karapeeva said the 2008 ChinaNZ free trade deal established forums where officials from both countries meet regularly to discuss trade blockages, and this is working well.

However the same could not be said for other large-scale trade agreements involving NZ, including the CPTPP; the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership – the world’s largest trade agreement including the 10 South-East Asian countries of ASEAN as well as Australia, South Korea, Japan and China; and the ASEAN-Australia-NZ deal negotiated in 2010 and recently upgraded.

“These are big agreements that were negotiated to bring a lot of our bilateral [trade deals] into comprehensive frameworks and they all have those sorts of provisions.

“Perhaps we should focus on extracting as much value as we can from those agreements given the resources that were spent negotiating them.”

So where should the resources come from to take the fight to trading partners unfairly wielding costly non-tariff barriers against NZ exporters?

Could they come from a

FTAs open huge Asia market beyond China

THE recent ratification of some major free trade agreements should provide New Zealand exporters with the confidence to explore more options in the Asian region and beyond, given the populous markets they cover.

Veteran trade negotiator

Stephen Jacobi said Indonesia joining the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) this year opens up a populous and growing market many Kiwi exporters may not have considered, despite its relative proximity.

The RCEP covers seven of NZ’s top trading partners including China – but even without China, the deal still encompasses over half a billion people in the other signatory countries, including Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand and Vietnam.

“And the RCEP has built into it some useful things – market access to Indonesia particularly in relation to wood and services, while also delivering some gains for agricultural produce.

“Clearance of perishable goods

within a reasonable timeframe is also provided. And there is the opportunity to work inside the agreement, making changes around trade facilitation, regulatory barriers, and supply chain logistics.”

NZ’s trade with Indonesia is starting to enjoy a solid lift, with exports to the year ended June 2022 up 21% and totalling $1.63 billion, putting the populous island state at ninth in export value.

the spotlight in a market the PM has said he wants to grow beyond its current $20 billion-a-year export value.

“But it is not about less to China. These options are about China-plus.

“China is the centre of the market and region, but anything that gives exporters options helps de-risk any geopolitical stuff going on. But I do not hear exporters saying we have to export less to China or reduce our exposure to China.

“They are saying they want to look at options, but China holds the volume. The issue then for us is capacity and availability of product.”

As the recent slew of FTAs are signed off, Jacobi said it is likely future agreements will take longer to achieve, prompting NZ to think harder about taking advantage of the ones that have been signed off.

The elephant in the room for FTAs is the lack of any agreement with India, something that still appears a long way off.

The Australians managed to sign the Australia-India Economic Cooperation and Trade Agreement (ECTA) late last year, securing access to the market of 1.4 billion people.

“The Australian experience there is very indicative.

redeployment of the battalions of highly paid trade negotiators currently employed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade?

After all, they must have more time on their hands now that so much of NZ’s existing trade is covered by free trade agreements, and the negotiating function of the World Trade Organisation is at a standstill.

agreements given the resources that were spent negotiating them.

“There is a skill set negotiating the framework of these agreements and there is quite a different set of skills diving into regulatory settings and sanitary requirements and phytosanitary requirements, which are very technical,” Karapeeva says.

“They are probably not transferable skills but at a high level I think you are probably right.

“Given what we hear from our government, that we have pretty much done our deals and there are no mega deals in the pipeline for the timebeing, I think it is not unreasonable to suggest that we have to refocus our resources on resolving these technical areas.

“Hopefully our report has given people food for thought.

“It shows the big issues have not been resolved.”

That gain was supported by continued growth in agricultural goods exports, with the top five being dairy, wood pulp-paper, albuminoids, meats and offal.

Jacobi said there is no likelihood China will be toppled as the giant export destination for the region.

The recent coverage of Prime Minister Chris Hipkins’ visit missed most of the high-power trade deals going ahead beyond

Jacobi also encouraged more exporters to make an investment in their destination country’s logistics and supply chain.

An example is Comvita’s announcement this month that it is buying Singapore’s largest mānuka honey retailer, HoneyWorld, for $10 million.

“And we have seen Zespri become the importer of record in China. But as a sector, agri-food producers are underrepresented further up the supply chain in these countries.”

“NZ simply has not put in the effort to build a relationship with India. It has tended to take a traditional FTA-led strategy that is not going to work. We had eight rounds with India in the RCEP before they pulled out,” Jacobi said.

He said there is much to learn from how Australia worked hard on building a sound, trusting relationship with India ahead of any trade deals.

“They do have more than us, in terms of minerals and militarily. But Australia had a programme of

high-level visits that ran for many years.

“The PM has said he would like to visit India, but it needs to not just be a visit, we need to work out where we fit in, and any FTA comes later.”

Perhaps we should focus on extracting as much value as we can from those [free trade]

Sirma Karapeeva Meat Industry Association

An NZ trade delegation is due to visit India in late August.

Richard Rennie MARKETS Export

CHINA-PLUS: Stephen Jacobi encourages New Zealand exporters to take more advantage of trade agreements like the RCEP to broaden their export portfolio.

But it is not about less to China. These options are about China-plus.

Stephen Jacobi Trade negotiator

Tahora 200 Tahora Road

265 ha Investment block at Tahora

For those investors looking for strong eastern Taranaki land lending itself to multiple uses, you need to check this property out!

3 1

1

Large scale finishing farm in Central Otago

For Sale By Negotiation + GST (if any) View By appointment Web pb.co.nz/DNR164853 Willy Rathbone M 021 701 968 John Faulks M 027 452 5800 Ray Kean M 027 435 7478

Our combined strengths complement each other, creating more opportunity for our customers and Farmlands shareholders across provincial New Zealand.

• A nationwide network from Northland to Southland

• Sound, trustworthy advice from market-leading experts

• Shareholder benefits and preferential commission rates means more money in your pocket

Bigger networks, more buyers, better results

Property Brokers Ltd Licensed REAA 2008 PB062743

Property Brokers Ltd Licensed REAA 2008 pb.co.nz Proud to be here 23 Real Estate

Hawkes Bay 333 Glengarry Road

Well located bare 542 hectares

Located only 33 kilometres north of Napier Port is approximately 542 hectares (subject to survey) of easy, and medium to steep class 6 hill country just off the Napier Taupo Road. With very good road frontage and central access track to the top of the property, this would make a great grazing run or forestry carbon investment.

The house and facilities are being subdivided off, so the bare land is up for sale. With good access, leading ridges and a lot of easy contour this property is a must view. bayleys.co.nz/2853310

Wairoa 1182 Tiniroto Road, Marumaru

542ha

Tender Closing 4pm, Wed 23 Aug 2023

17 Napier Road, Havelock North View by appointment

Tony Rasmussen 027 429 2253 tony.rasmussen@bayleys.co.nz

EASTERN REALTY LTD, BAYLEYS, LICENSED UNDER THE REA ACT 2008

189 hectares in seven titles

Located only 10.9 kilometres north of Wairoa township is this 189-hectare (more or less) parcel of flat and easy-finishing land, conveniently subdivided into seven titles. With a four-stand woolshed, sheep and cattle yard complex and approximately 40 hectares of cultivatable flat and easy land, this finishing property is likely to appeal to a wide range of local and out-of-town purchasers. Along with this, the airstrip and any number of elevated house sites mean it is the perfect starting block or may suit those retiring farmers. There is also very good hunting in the area. The vendor's instructions are clear, call now to view this handy finishing property. bayleys.co.nz/2853306

NEW LISTING

189.18ha

Tender Closing 4pm, Wed 9 Aug 2023

17 Napier Road, Havelock North View by appointment

Tony Rasmussen 027 429 2253 tony.rasmussen@bayleys.co.nz

Stephen Thomson 027 450 6531 stephen.thomson@bayleys.co.nz

EASTERN REALTY LTD, BAYLEYS, LICENSED UNDER THE REA ACT 2008 BOUSFIELD MACPHERSON LTD, BAYLEYS, LICENSED UNDER THE REA ACT 2008

Ongaonga 1557 State Highway 50

Build on 24-hectare cropping/lifestyle block

Located on the doorstep of the fantastic Ongaonga township is this very tidy bare land cropping/lifestyle/finishing property. With fully reticulated water, approximately 16 hectares of productive Class 1 cropping soils and a 24-metre bore this is the perfect additional property for a larger operation or you could build and create your own lifestyle property, and with the Ongaonga School, golf course and general store close by live the good life in the country.

Surplus to vendor's requirements, call now to view. bayleys.co.nz/2853298

24.037ha

Auction 12pm, Fri 4 Aug 2023

17 Napier Road, Havelock North

View by appointment

Tony Rasmussen 027 429 2253 tony.rasmussen@bayleys.co.nz

Andy Lee 027 354 8608 andy.lee@bayleys.co.nz

EASTERN REALTY LTD, BAYLEYS, LICENSED UNDER THE REA ACT 2008

Darfield 2687 Coaltrack Road

Investment opportunity

Waikirikiri Farm is an exceptional investment opportunity that allows you to acquire a 50% stake in a high-quality dairy farming enterprise located less than 50km from Christchurch. The farm supplies milk to Fonterra, New Zealand's largest co-operative. By joining forces with established dairy farmers Steve and Angela Reed, who have a proven track record of consistent performance and are recognized for their ability to elevate land, animals, and people to exemplify industry best practices, you will co-invest in Waikirikiri Farm Partners LLP. Your investment will encompass the purchase of a share in the partnership, including the land 219.7009 hectares (more or less), buildings, infrastructure, livestock, plant, equipment, and associated borrowings. bayleys.co.nz/5521423

219.7009ha

Set Sale Date (unless sold prior)

12pm, Mon 7 Aug 2023

3 Deans Avenue, Chch

View by appointment

Ben Turner 027 530 1400 ben.turner@bayleys.co.nz

Craig Blackburn 027 489 7225 craig.blackburn@bayleys.co.nz

WHALAN AND PARTNERS LTD, BAYLEYS, LICENSED UNDER THE REA ACT 2008

It’s time we pull together to farm, with less harm.

WHEN IT COMES TO LOOKING AFTER OURSELVES, AND EACH OTHER - ARE WE SETTING THE RIGHT STANDARD?

SIGN THE PLEDGE, AND JOIN THE CHANGE AT farmwithoutharm.org.nz

Shepherd General/ Block Manager

(in addition there is also available a Casual Shepherd position – may suit spouse)

Ngapeke Farm is a 750ha (eff) 8,000su Sheep and Beef breeding and finishing farm. This position includes day to day management of half the farm.

Applicants should have the following:

• 3 good dogs (minimum)

• Experience in stock handling including drenching, docking, dagging and weighing

• Proficient in repairs and maintenance on conventional and electric fences, and water systems

• Basic plant and vehicle, repairs and maintenance

• Weed control

• Strong work ethic

• Be a team player

• A ‘can do’ attitude

The position comes with a modern, well situated, insulated 3-bedroom house which is located 18km from Otorohanga and 15km from Te Kuiti. An applicant with less experience but a great attitude will be considered.

For more details phone Phillip Coley (Ngapeke Manager) on 07 873 0873

Email applications to: Ngapekefarm@gmail.com

Or post to: Phillip Coley, 262 Ngapeke Road, RD5, Otorohanga 3975

Applications close 31st July 2023.

Find

primary sector vacancies at: farmersweeklyjobs.co.nz

To advertise phone Debbie 06 323 0765

ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP MANAGER

DINZ is looking for an Environmental Stewardship Manager (ESM) who will undertake work activities associated with environmental policy, regulation and societal perceptions primarily impacting producer interests. A critical aspect of the role involves stakeholder engagement activities across individual deer farmers, NZDFA Branches and the Executive Committee to help ensure that deer farming remains a profitable, sustainable land use within accepted environmental constraints. This is a great opportunity to contribute to this growing industry in an exciting and varied role.

INDUSTRY CAPABILITY MANAGER

DINZ is looking for an Industry Capability Manager who will be responsible for the key farmer engagement activities undertaken by Deer Industry New Zealand. These include leading the work programmes in practise change, quality assurance and continuous improvement. The role involves stakeholder engagement activities across producers, officials, and industry participants as well as leadership and management of 3 direct reports and contributing as a member of the DINZ Senior Leadership team.

This is a leadership opportunity where you can contribute to this growing industry.

Please apply for either position through Seek, or alternatively for more information you can email info@rothley.co.nz for a copy of the candidate pack or alternatively you can contact Kirsty Brown on 021 660 757 or Marc Schmid on 021 102 6192

ben@waterhousecc.co.nz

027 559 7168

BRIDGE & STRUCTURE MAINTENANCE

Providing affordable repair & maintenance solutions for your expensive assets Waterhouse Complex Civil are specialists in repairing & maintaining bridges, stock underpasses, culverts, & waterway remediation.

Farm bridges and structures showing signs of age? Don't let these valuable assets deteriorate any further !

GLEN MURRAY – FARM MANAGER

Mahuta Stud (mahutastud.co.nz) is looking for a Farm Manager to lead the day-to-day operations of their 400ha property. The farm is run as two blocks, with stock including 230 Hereford stud cows, and 800 breeding ewes. A key highlight to every year is the annual bull sale held in September each year. Running both intensive and extensive grazing systems, variety is plenty here. Surplus cattle and sheep are also finished on the property.

The ideal applicant is someone with a minimum five years farming experience, preferably having a good work ethic, committed to the role, flexible and agile thinking, and enjoys working with cattle. A keen eye for detail is advantageous. If you want to gain experience in intensive farming, performancebased breeding and using EBV’s as part of a breeding operation then this may be the role for you. Management experience is not essential, as the farm owner is available for mentoring and guidance. A four-bedroom Golden home is available and school buses pick up children from the end of the road. The property is 23km from Te Kauwhata and 35 minutes from Pukekohe. Please apply with cover letter and CV to recruitment@agfirst.co.nz

Applicants must have NZ residency or valid NZ work visa

Application close date: Friday 28th July 2023

STOCK MANAGER/STATION 2IC –SMEDLEY STATION

A BIT ABOUT SMEDLEY STATION – Smedley Station is a commercial agricultural training operation located in Central Hawke’s Bay, 40 km’s west of Waipukurau near the Ruahine Ranges. A diverse enterprise mix of sheep, cattle, and deer ensures the young Kiwis they train can become the very best future farmers of New Zealand. Over the last 90 years of training cadets, Smedley has grown to its current size of 5,600ha (3,400ha effective), wintering 30,000su.

THE OPPORTUNITY – Reporting directly to the Business Manager, the Stock Manager/Station 2IC will be based on the 960ha Smedley Block. The Stock Manager/Station 2IC will work closely with the cadets under their guidance each day, helping them with stock shifts, horse work and dog training, whilst also maintaining and improving the already high performing breeding stock.

In addition to the Stock Manager aspect of this role, it incorporates the responsibilities of 2IC at the Station and is therefore a senior level position within the Smedley team. The Stock Manager/ Station 2IC must be a person the Business Manager can rely on, who can assume overall (multiblock) stock management oversight, in the absence of the Business Manager at various times throughout the year.

A BIT ABOUT YOU – you will be a person able to mentor young cadets in a positive and proactive way, whilst also having the ability to support and guide the Block Managers when needed. To succeed in this role, you will bring:

• Proven experience on stations of scale.

• Ability to provide input into overall station stocking policies to achieve stock production targets.

• Proficiency around the training and working of dogs, with the ability to transfer this skillset to cadets.

• High personal standards, a strong work ethic and good communication skills, setting a highquality example.

ON OFFER – Smedley Station take great pride in the growth of their whole team (cadets and staff), offering career development opportunities including a range of off-farm courses currently funded through AGMARDT. The successful applicant will be driven and have the desire to continually develop themselves. The Business Manager will include them in the policy, planning and budget discussions where new ideas will be encouraged and welcomed.

As well as the above development offered, accommodation is by way of a warm, well-appointed three-bedroom home, with two bathrooms and a lockable garage. Tikokino has a strong rural community with a local rural Primary School and Kindergarten. Hawke’s Bay also has a range of excellent High Schooling and boarding options. There are plenty of recreational activities nearby as well as Waipukurau, Hastings and Napier all being within a 25 - 40 minute drive away.

FURTHER INFORMATION – For further information on the role or to apply please visit https://bit. ly/3Dp3t4x or give the Rural Directions team a call on 06 871 0450 for a confidential chat (Ref# 1065363). Applications close Sunday 30th July 2023

SALE TALK

A father and his son are sitting on the couch having a heart-felt talk.

“My boy”, the father started. “You are now about to become the old man that I had been, so thus I entrust you with this book that has been passed down the generations from my father’s father to my father. I hope it will be as useful to you as it was to me.” He then passes his son a large, well worn, leather bound book.

The son, curious on the present his father gave him, looked at the title of the book: 1001 best dad jokes, ever.

Overwhelmed with emotions, the son hugged his father. “You have no idea what this means to me dad, thank you… I’m honoured!”

His father, ghting back his tears, hugged his son tightly and whispered…

“Hi honored, I’m Dad.”

LEASE LAND WANTED

DAIRY OR GRAZING FARM wanted. Open to leasing and/or share farming and developing land in partnership. Rangitīkei, Manawatū or HB areas.

Phone Michael 027 223 6156.

RED DEVON BULLS. Well grown, purebred. Feilding. Phone 027 224 3838.

HIGH PRESSURE WATER

PUMPS, suitable on high headlifts. Low energy usage for single/3-phase

Phone 021 455 787.

BIRDS/POULTRY

PULLETS HY-LINE brown, great layers. 07 824 1762. Website: eurekapoultryfarm. weebly.com – Have fresh eggs each day!!!

30 DOGS UNDER 30 hundred. Deliver NZ wide twice monthly. www.youtube.com/user/ mikehughesworkingdog/ videos 07

ORDERS BEING ACCEPTED for strong eyed heading pups. Both dog and bitch big robust dogs. Very strong eyed, hardy constitution and very rm. Bitch will be mated when orders lled. Phone 03 248 5149 or 027 430 1659.

HORTICULTURE

NZ KELP. FRESH, wild ocean harvested giant kelp. The world’s richest source of natural iodine. Dried and milled for use in agriculture and horticulture. Growth promotant / stock health food. As seen on Country Calendar. Orders to: 03 322 6115 or info@nzkelp.co.nz

HYPNOTHERAPY

FARMING FAMILIES, online hypnotherapy support for everyday challenges. Contact Shirley Henderson at shirl@ shirl.nz for a chat. For more info: http://www.facebook. com/handsforhealthnz

Farmers Weekly 2023 Autumn Bull Sale Results

Good average outcomes for 2023 bull sales

TWO months of twoyear-old beef bull sales have ended with average prices around $500 lower than last year for nearly all breeds in both North and South Islands.

Clearance rates were good as commercial beef farmers obtained the bulls they need, stud stock auctioneers say.

“The clearance rate was right up with past years, around 85% overall, despite the reduction in national beef cow numbers due to farm conversions to forestry,” PGG Wrightson national genetics manager Callum Stewart said.

For the delayed East Coast Angus week of sales, fewer than 10 bulls were passed and commercial farmers had plenty of choice, Carrfields auctioneer Neville Clark said.

The sale delay delivered five fine days in a row, to help with bull presentation and vehicle parking, before Gisborne went back to unwelcome rain.

“The money paid versus the bull quality on offer was right up there with recent years.”

The $500 reduction in

averages across the board was a good outcome for all vendors considering the uncertainties surrounding beef farming, Clark said.

“Regardless of what is happening in farming, people realise that investment in good genetics brings good returns,” Stewart said.

“Support for the eastern North Island sales after Cyclone Gabrielle was particularly pleasing.

“Those studs showed great resilience and the money earned goes around in the regional economy.”

Now that attention switches to yearling bull sales, mainly for serving dairy cows in the spring, price prospects will include the new Fonterra bobby calf policy and the ability of farmers to rear calves.

AgriHQ analysis shows that Charolais bulls in the South Island achieved $9729 average compared with $8319 last year, due to the top price of $65,000 made by Silverstream and its own sale average of $11,768.

For all other breeds, in both islands, the overall averages were $500 to $1000 down.

Angus bulls in the south averaged $9437 (compared with $9895 last year) and Stern Angus at Pleasant Point topped the

whole sale season nationally with $98,000 paid by Oregon Angus, Wairarapa, for Stern 21521.

Stern Angus also registered the second-highest price of the season, with $85,000 paid by Black Ridge, Taumarunui for Stern 21602.

Further north, Turihaua Angus, the oldest Angus stud in Australasia, achieved the highest price on the East Coast, which was $72,000 paid by Tangihau Angus.

The breed average for the North Island was $9128, compared with $9684 last year.

For Herefords, the North Island sales averaged $7901 compared with $7722 and the top was $42,000 achieved by Koanui Hereford, Havelock North.

In the South Island the highest price was $28,000 made by Glacier Herefords in South Westland for their last stud sale. The breed average in the south was $7347 compared with $8267.

Simmentals in the north averaged $7327 ($8369) and in the south averaged $6590 ($7385). The highest prices, respectively, were $18,000 for Kerrah and $21,000 for Opawa.

Hugh Stringleman MARKETS Livestock

PACE-SETTER: Stern 21521 set a season price record for two-year-old beef bulls at $98,000, holding onto it while East Coast Angus sales were postponed.

SOUTHERNER: Simmental bull Beresford 1205210013 sold for $19,000 at Owaka in Southland to Jon Knauf of Wairoa.

IN DEMAND: Silverstream Charolais Spectra S184 was bought for $65,000 by an Australian Charolais breeder in a syndicate with two New Zealand studs.

MOUNTAINEER: Glacier Unique 786 from South Westland made $28,000 for the Williams family of Hereford breeders and will find his new home in Southland.

Regardless of what is happening in farming, people realise that investment in good genetics brings good returns.

Callum Stewart PGG Wrightson

Farmers Weekly 2023 Autumn Bull Sale Results

THE MUD: More than 400 in-calf cows managed to make it through the mud to the Matawhero cattle sale.

Blanket of mud spreads around N Island

Suz Bremner MARKETS Livestock

ONCE again, relentless rain has thwarted plans for any sort of normality and the blanket of mud is spreading around the North Island, almost like a contagious disease. About two rain episodes ago the ground couldn’t cope with any more moisture, yet it kept on falling, making one wonder if rice farming is worth considering instead of sheep and beef.

The East Coast of the North Island and Northland have been hammered again, but the rest of the island is now at saturation levels as well, while some areas of

the South Island have had their fair share too.

The extreme conditions are making farming decisions really challenging and any farmer just wants to do the best by their stock. Lambing and calving are imminent or already part of the daily routine, and trying to get out to do lambing and calving beats is quite simply a nightmare.

Many farmers have had to make the call to offload heavy stock and there has been a notable increase in R2 and prime cattle available in Hawke’s Bay, Waikato and Northland. But physically getting the stock off farm is a challenge in itself as farm tracks and the nation’s roads deteriorate further.

Once at their sale destination there is limited demand as nearly

every other farmer in the North Island is in the same boat, no pun intended. Quality cattle can still attract a good premium but the frequency of lesser, longer term types coming forward is having an impact.

Sellers are having to meet the market wherever buyers are prepared to put it. That is not an unusual situation for the time of year but is compounded by the extra volume available due to offloading from sodden paddocks. The downwards schedule movements and caution from outlooks are also having an impact.

Wellsford hosted a much larger than usual sale for the time of year as more rain meant farmers had to offload. The mainly dairybeef line-up of nearly 650 cattle was top-heavy with R2 cattle, and steers averaged 470kg and $2.67/ kg and heifers, 430kg and $2.50/ kg. Frankton sales the previous week also showed that the market

was starting to be as saturated as the paddocks. Prices were easier to stomach than Wellsford, though, and R2 dairy-beef steers averaged 420-470kg and $2.84-$2.94/kg.

Heifers showed a much bigger variance, which was the result of selective bidding for true-to-type lines.

They averaged 365-395kg and $2.56/kg to $2.89/kg. Extra tallies of heavy cattle are popping up in the prime pens as well and at Frankton these have been trending down in price. Last week, heavy dairy-beef steers mostly traded at $2.80-$2.90/kg but dropped to $2.70/kg at the recent sale.

Sale disruptions have been a regular occurrence in northern Hawke’s Bay and Tairāwhiti, and even the annual bull sales weren’t immune.

But, on a positive note, Matawhero managed to buck that trend and get a full yarding of over 1100 cattle to the monthly sale;

for many it wasn’t a moment too soon to move stock off.

The big yarding of in-calf cows, both due to annual offloads and farm changes, was better late than never. While it can be a tricky business getting to the Matawhero yards these days, there was still good support for the yarding of mainly traditional and exotic cattle.

At all yards there is good appetite for traditional cattle and while the prices are softer than a month ago, returns are still very respectable.

At the last Feilding sale R3 traditional steers averaged 560kg and $3.34/kg while R2’s softened to $3.21/kg. Traditional heifers averaged $3.08/kg.

Looking ahead, there is a lot less rain on most region’s forecasts, which will hopefully mean paddocks can dry out and farmers can find some sense of normality. Hands up who is looking forward to the long hot days of summer.

The never-ending rain is floating heavy stock off the farms and into the saleyards, where returns are softer but still respectable.

Weekly saleyards

A short week in the middle of winter typically means that there is not a lot of stock to trade, yet the yards have been busier than usual over the past week as farmers offload from sodden paddocks. Wellsford penned 640 cattle last Monday, and store cattle numbers at Tūākau on Thursday, July 6 were also up at 850-head. Feilding cattle tallies closed in on 1300 and there were also nearly 16,000 sheep to find new homes for on Friday, July 7. In comparison, South Island yards have been much quieter.

CAPITAL STOCK: This line of 4-year Romney ewes was offered at Feilding on Friday, July 7. They were scanned-in-lamb to a Suffolk ram at 184% and sold for $173.

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GOOD DEMAND FOR QUALITY CATTLE: Buyers are still prepared to bid up on quality cattle and these R2 Angus heifers sold for $1240-$1280, $3.21-$3.22/kg at Feilding on Friday, July 7.

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market trends

Cattle Sheep Deer

NOTE: Slaughter values are weighted average gross operating prices including premiums but excluding breed premiums for cattle.

Fertiliser Forestry

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Grain

Close of market

Listed Agri shares

Finding silver linings in the rain clouds

Philip Duncan NEWS Weather

COMPLAINTS about the weather have reached an all time high lately, especially as downpours continue to fall over the North Island, which is now saturated in many regions. There seems to be a lot of frustration that drier weather created by El Niño hasn’t yet arrived.

But climate drivers such as El Niño and La Niña aren’t like a tropical cyclone that forms within a few days of first being talked about. It can take several months to a year to form and many months to fade out.

Keep in mind for El Niño to affect our weather pattern it first needs to produce much warmer sea surface conditions in the eastern tropical Pacific. Think about that – the largest ocean on the planet needs to abnormally warm up across one side. Then, once our largest ocean has done that (near South America), it has to start to alter the weather in the atmosphere across half of the globe. No small feat.

More than half of this equation has already happened and nations closer to the equator will already be feeling some weather changes – like Australia, which is now leaning drier than average. New Zealand is halfway from the equator to the Antarctic.

More than half of NZ lies in the hugely chaotic roaring forties belt of windy westerly weather (from Whanganui southwards). Our location on Earth means even when La Niña and El Niño form, we’re on the edges of it and can be impacted by weather systems from the Southern Ocean. This is all a long way of saying El Niño is still developing. The “infancy” of its lifespan is expected late winter or early spring and it’s going to be growing into “adulthood” as we head into summer.

Those who have been hit by El Niño droughts or big drys in the past know all to well that we can switch from wet to dry in a fairly short time span and are probably not wishing for it as strongly as others.

Our latest exclusive long range rainfall data from IBM still suggests we’re seeing a drier trend develop over the North Island and some parts of the upper and eastern South Island in the next few weeks ahead.

We still see plenty of days with showers – but the overall accumulation isn’t like it was. The El Niño high pressure zones from Australia are growing now and limiting rainmakers in the Tasman Sea.

But for now we’re still in a neutral, anything-can-happen weather pattern. Such is life, living and working on these two mountainous islands alone at the bottom of the world out in the Pacific Ocean.

C’EST LA VIE: A developing El Niño weather pattern with high pressure dominating Australia and stretching out over the Tasman Sea. This placement encourages windier westerlies over NZ – showery in the west, driest in the east.

Highlights this week

• West to South West airflow dominates NZ again this week

• Another burst of colder air this week in the south (nothing too major)

• Another surge of windy westerlies this weekend

• El Niño weather pattern appears to be finally forming

Those who have been hit by El Niño droughts in the past know all to well that we can switch from wet to dry in a fairly short time span.

ABOUT TE PARI

100% FAMILY OWNED

Te Pari is 100% family owned and has been operated by the Blampied family for three generations. All Te Pari products are made in our purpose built manufacturing facility in Oamaru, New Zealand and then shipped all over the world.

What began on a Manawatu farm in 1979 has grown to be an award-winning, global, New Zealand agri-tech success story.

TECHNICAL SUPPORT

We stand by our products and service! If there ever is an issue with any of our equipment, we are here to help. Our qualified Technical Support team will provide the best service possible with quick responses, advice and on site repairs & servicing to suit your needs.

It’s the Te Pari difference… Trustworthy customer support. OUR PROMISE

Our promise is simple... It works for you or we will take it back. This no nonsense, straight forward approach is what we do.

BUY DIRECT

When you buy from Te Pari, you are buying from the manufacturer, which means we have parts available for all machines new and old and we have a friendly, experienced team with excellent product knowledge.

TRADE-IN YOUR OLD EQUIPMENT

Ready for an upgrade? Talk to the team at Te Pari about trading in your old Cattle Crush or Sheep Handler and upgrading to a new one. Te Pari products are made to last and are easy to on-sell so they are a good investment.

Robot welders in the Te Pari factory help ensure production efficiency & quality control.

Our Tech Support Team can help with commissioning, training & servicing your new equipment.

For all Te Pari Sheep Handlers & Cattle Crushes to farms in New Zealand.

LENTA MX2 MANUAL CRUSH

Parallel Squeeze for total control

LENTA MR2 MANUAL CRUSH

Our most popular all rounder!

FEATURES

• Double Sided Parallel Squeeze provides restraint to animal

• Proportional squeeze control with spring assisted push/pull handle

• Kick-operated vet access gates

• Anti-slip rubber floor for quiet operation

• Slam latches on all side gates

STOCKCARE GATES

FEATURES

• Proven C1000 Headbail with quiet locking system

FEATURES

• Hot dip galvanised with anti-bruise oval rails

• Easy to mount with heavy-duty 25mm shank gudgeons

• Range of stock sizes available

• Free delivery to your nearest Mainfreight depot

Ask us about a deal for bulk orders!

+gst

• 2 piece side gates for animal access and out-of-crush drafting

• Anti-slip rubber floor for quiet operation

• Slam latches on all side gates

C1000 HEADBAIL

• Easy to use push-pull handle

• Lifetime warranty on the headbail locking mechanism

AUTO HEADBAIL

• Automatic closing gates for easy catching

• Quality hot-dip galvanised steel

$11,750 Normally $13,250 NOW ONLY +gst +gst

$17,250 Save $1500 Save $1500 Save $300

Normally $18,750 NOW ONLY Call us on 0800 837 274 or visit www.tepari.com 5

$2,400 Normally $2,700 NOW ONLY $3,100 Normally $3,500 NOW ONLY FREE DELIVERY Save $400 +gst

RACEWELL SHEEP HANDLERS

Racewell JR Manual Handler

The new Racewell JR Handler is our entry level unit designed to make sheep handling easy.

FEATURES

• Air operated clamp ideal for drenching, vaccinating etc

• Ready for load bars, no extra brackets required

• Lead up race included for improved flow

• Auto close entry gate helps control flow

• Rubber floor for quiet operation

• Unobstructed overhead access ideal for ear tagging etc

• Loadbars and scale indicator are additional, not included.

• Optional side tilt and front & rear access flaps

Racewell HD3 Auto Handler

3-WAY AUTO DRAFTING SHEEP HANDLER

The Racewell HD3 Sheep Handler will automatically weigh and sort three ways.

FEATURES

• 3-way auto drafting based on weight or animal criteria

• Multi-function remote to control the clamp/release and drafting gates

• Rugged design made in NZ with hot dipped galvanised steel

• Four adjustable optical sensors to allow the operator to set different catch positions

• Powered by external 12V battery or 230 power connection and compressed air.

$14,000

• Optional side tilt and front and rear access flaps

• Loadbars and scale indicator are additional, not included.

$21,500

Free Delivery and training for all Racewell Sheep Handlers & Auto Sorters!

NEW Front & Rear Access Flaps!

Scan the QR Code to watch the Racewell access flaps in action on our website!

Normally $14,500 NOW ONLY SAVE $500 +GST Call us on 0800 837 274 or visit www.tepari.com 6 FIELD

FEATURES

• 3 way auto drafting based on weight or animal criteria

• Weigh crate is separated from the entry gate, reducing weighing interference from sheep in the race.

• Plastic covers reduce noise of rams and gates

• Multi-function remote to control entry/exit and drafting gates

• Automatic closing of the entry gate activated by the sensors

• Twin adjustable optical sensors of ‘magic eyes’ for optimum speed and flow

• Self-contained frame for easy positioning on uneven ground

• Manual drafting by sight with remote control

• Rubber lined floor for quiet operation and improved grip

• Integrated overhead load cells eliminate load bar failures and damage

• Rugged, hot dip galvanised construction and a well proven design for long life and high resale value

• Low entry height for improved animal flow

• Mounting position for lead up panels to prevent young lambs turning around and improve flow

• Powered by external 12V battery or 240 power connection and compressed air.

• Centrally mounted controls allow switch access for either side.

encourages animals to flow through the yards more easily.

The Te Pari Value Promise

At Te Pari, we believe that we offer the best value Livestock Equipment on the market. If you believe you have been offered the same specification deal at a cheaper price, we ask that you bring us the deal before you sign and we promise to show you that we offer better value.