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NEWS
Roller-coaster ride for lavender farmer. PAGE 26
Claas Jaguars on the prowl in 2017. PAGE 37
New Zealand’s red meat sector looks forward to greater opportunities in South Korea. PAGE 9
TO ALL FARMERS, FOR ALL FARMERS FEBRUARY 7, 2017: ISSUE 623
www.ruralnews.co.nz
High hopes for trade PETER BURKE peterb@ruralnews.co.nz
PRIMARY INDUSTRY Minister Nathan Guy hopes formal negotiations for a free trade agreement (FTA) between New Zealand and the European Union (EU) will begin later this year. Guy told Rural News that Prime Minister Bill English had two ‘fantastic’ weeks in Europe recently, where he met his counterparts. NZ has strong historic relationships with Britain and the EU, both important markets for NZ, Guy says. “Relationships are going to be important, and English met British PM Theresa May at 10 Downing Street, where they hit it off. I also had a good discussion with my counterpart there and I will be in Europe and UK midyear. “More ministers and officials will
visit Europe to work on relationships and trade.” Guy says a recipe for success in sorting out trade issues with the UK and EU is having industry and government officials and politicians giving out the same messages. A technical working group set up soon after the UK Brexit vote is proving useful. “This involves key officials from
MPI, MFAT and NZTE to ensure we are aligned because it is pointless to have industry running off and talking to someone without the left hand knowing what the right hand is doing,” he says. “We need a united front where industry and government work constructively together to protect our long term access and enhance further discussions.” Guy says NZ’s longstanding sheep-
meat quota in the EU is valuable and needs to be protected. He sees opportunity for growth in the EU and UK, but says NZ must work constructively on the details. Guy says things in Asia are better, with that region open for business. Work is underway on upgrading the FTA with China and Guy expects a sorting of protocols on chilled meat exports. – Revised TPP? Page 3
TOP CROP! Stuart Wright seen with a good crop of blue peas being harvested on his dryland cropping farm at Sheffield, Canterbury, last week. He says the plants were standing up well and the combine was not leaving a thing. “It’s really, really good.” Wright expects a yield of up to 50 tonnes of the highprotein blue peas, destined for stock food. The pea straw will be baled for the home gardener market. – More page 5. PHOTO NIGEL MALTHUS
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Gutless grass PETER BURKE peterb@ruralnews.co.nz
WITH THE wet in the west of the country, a key component for fattening lambs is missing. This is both red and white clover, which enhances stock performance, says professor Steve Morris, of Massey University. But the lack of sunshine has reduced the amount of the plant in pastures in wetter areas such as Manawatu. Professor Peter Kemp, also from Massey, says the conditions in many western regions have not been conducive to clover growth. He says cloudy wet days impede photosynthesis, which in turn reduces the quality of the pasture. Some farmers have described their pastures as ‘gutless’ – meaning there is little nutritive value in these. In many cases, dairy farmers have been forced to feed out supplements to keep their cows milking, while lambs have taken longer than normal to reach killing weights. There is a theory that lambs perform better with a ‘bit of sun on their back’, but there is no evidence to support this. • More on weather pp6-7 @rural_news facebook.com/ruralnews
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