Educational resources for schools & students
Read, listen to and watch what is happening in New Zealand agriculture by scanning the QR codes or following the links. Answer the questions to complete the exercises.
Watch this
Should we have better access to NZ-grown food?
It is estimated that New Zealand produces enough high-quality food to feed 40 million people per year. This Frank video with Eat NZ looks at New Zealanders’ access to the food we produce. bit.ly/food-access-nz
Have a go:
1. What is a temperate climate? Why is it good for growing food?
2. What is Angela Clifford’s purpose for the Food Farm and also for Eat NZ?
3. What percentage of NZ-sourced or NZ-grown fish, dairy products, red meat and kiwifruit is exported?
4. Why is NZ-grown food such high quality?
5. How much of the pork sold to NZ consumers is imported? Are the rules for farming the imported pork the same as for farming pork in NZ?
Stretch yourself:
6. How would better access to fresh NZ-grown food benefit Kiwis?
7. We have to compete with global consumers for our own food. What are the issues with this for New Zealanders accessing NZ-grown food?
For more see eatnewzealand.nz
Analyse this
Have wool markets improved?
This graph shows the average coarse crossbred wool prices in $/kg for different style classes. Coarse wool is sometimes called strong wool. The style is looked at by buyers evaluating samples and includes the levels of dust, staining, weathering, vegetation, softness, crimp and consistency.
Have a go:
1. Earlier this year good-style coarse wool was worth twice as much as poor-style coarse wool. True or false? Explain your answer.
2. What wool type sold for the highest value and in which month?
3. What wool type sold for the lowest value and in which month?
Stretch yourself:
4. What is the difference between ‘coarse wool’ and ‘fine wool’? Can you give an example of an end product for each of these wool types?
5. For wool classing what does ‘micron’ refer to? Do some research and find out what micron range is typically referred to as ‘coarse wool’ and ‘fine wool’.
In the news
How can an app help grow an apple?
New Zealand has an opportunity to be a world leader in horticulture technology, with help from a Central Otagobased company, FruitMinder, capturing information. bit.ly/fruit-minder
Have a go:
1. Does the FruitMinder app focus on gathering information about a whole orchard or individual trees?
2. What information will FruitMinder’s GPS tag hold? How will this help growers?
3. What technology is UC-Vision developing and what benefits will this provide?
Stretch yourself:
4. If you were an orchard manager, list the different ways you might use the information in the FruitMinder app to improve your orchard.
For more see fruitminder.com
Did you know?
What are the benefits of plantain?
Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research was part of a team involved in a plantain study that has shown multiple benefits for grazing systems. bit.ly/plantain-study
Have a go:
1. What effect does plantain have in the animal?
2. What effect does plantain have on the soil?
3. What is meant by a ‘mixed pasture’?
4. What were the results of the study?
Stretch yourself:
5. What will the information from the trial be useful for?
For more see landcareresearch.co.nz