Harley was a tough wisened old bugger –a South Canterbury sheep farmer with a cricketer’s tan, a deep bronze ‘V’ down his chest, and the leathery hide of a rhino.
He always wore his belt on the last notch – why didn’t he just buy a smaller one?
And there was always a soggy cigarette end tucked in the corner of his mouth. I could never gure if it was the last bit of the last one or an old bit of a new one. I never saw it lit. It might have just lived there.
His vocabulary was mainly expletives – plus a few others that a man needs to get by. He cussed at his dogs, the full gamut of profanities and obscenities, which as a youngster I found hugely amusing. We as southern Presbyterians never swore – the old man always said there are heaps of nice words so why swear?
Anyhow, I reckon Harley’s dogs were hardened to being sworn at, they in turn barked expletives at the sheep. ey always looked o ended. Anyhow, my rst Sunday morning on the farm, Harley strode into the bunkhouse and hauled o my bedclothes.
“You think the world stops because it’s Sunday?” he said. Well, it did in Dunedin. “We’ve got s**t to do,” he would say. So God’s day became another work day, a day of rest became another day of labour, as it does on about 50,000 other farms around the country.
Nothing new to any farmer here, but a life changing lesson for a city kid. I have sort of carried Harley’s work ethic through life.
If there’s s**t to be done, get it done.
And on King’s Birthday Monday, a soul-sapping, miserable, wet, blustery holiday, when only a few sad and pathetics like me were at the pitface, I remembered Harley. He would have been up and about getting s**t done, as I was.
He would have been proud.
Harley also enjoyed a beer – he would buy a dozen agons at a time. And he would pour this boy a shandy after a day of doing s**t. He made me feel grown up. I cherished those moments. en if the last couple of agons went at, he would pour orange cordial into them. I never quite gured how that helped. And I am annoyed with myself; I never got to ask him.
for meat eaters and that’s why we are doing research to help producers maximise that.”
e value or impacts of meat in a diet has recently been the subject of several reports internationally, including the Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations stating that “meat, eggs and milk o er crucial sources of much-needed nutrients which cannot easily be obtained from plant-based foods”.
Dr Craigie says a discussion based on the scienti c evidence is
More than nine out of 10 New Zealanders are meateaters, a survey has found; though almost half of Kiwis have reduced their meat consumption in response to issues such as cost and health.
e results of the online survey carried out in December 2021 – along with an associated review led by crown research institute AgResearch – also shows high awareness of meat alternatives, but a “very low” level of consumption of those alternative products.
“Overall, the outlook for meat consumption and (the) meat industry in New Zealand is positive and is likely to remain so for the foreseeable future,” says the recently published study from AgResearch scientists and Lincoln University researchers.
e online survey of 1061 New Zealand consumers found that for meat-eaters “the taste of meat is the king decider for purchase and consumption”; with 71 per cent rating taste a “very important” attribute when purchasing, followed by price (55 per cent) and use-by date (51 per cent).
Results showed that chicken was the main type of meat
consumed regularly, accounting for about 33 per cent of the meals within an average week, followed by beef (22 per cent), sh (13 per cent), pork (10 per cent), lamb (eight per cent), and processed meat (seven per cent).
Plant-based meat products, venison, game/hunted meat, and other meat types only make up a minor portion in participants’ weekly diets (less than two per cent). During the past year, nearly half of survey respondents (47 per cent) lowered their meat consumption; most of them (69 per cent) had consumed less meat overall while the rest of meat reducers (31 per cent) only lowered the consumption of particular meat products.
When it came to motivations for reducing meat consumption, “lack of a ordability and health concerns are their key drivers”.
Survey participants were also asked to indicate the top three factors or words that they considered important to de ne sustainability for meat production.
e most frequent terms include ‘animal welfare’, ‘environmental impact’ and ‘grass-fed’, closely followed by ‘carbon/GHG emissions’, ‘free range’ and ‘farming methods’.
Consumers acknowledged the importance of sustainability linked to care for animals and the environment and were
willing to pay a premium (17-24 per cent) for a range of meat attributes associated with these social aspects. Although the respondents’ awareness of alternative proteins or meat alternatives was high, their consumption of these products was rated as very low compared to what is reported in other countries.
AgResearch senior scientist
Cameron Craigie says the headline survey result on omnivorous diets is not necessarily surprising given the value and tradition of meat eating in New Zealand.
A ordability issues are likely to have remained to the fore with the higher in ation since the survey was completed, with April 2023 meat, poultry and sh prices up 9.5 per cent on the NZ food price index compared to April 2022.
“ e survey is a snapshot in time, but for us as researchers, it does help us focus on the research that addresses the issues that people care most about.
“Clearly taste is a key factor
important when it comes to health or sustainability. “On the sustainability front, we know this is something consumers are concerned about, and we are working with farmers to help provide them tools and practices to reduce their environmental impact and meet targets around things like water quality and climate change.” e full published research, including the survey ndings and information, can be viewed at: www.sciencedirect.com/science/ article/pii/S0309174023001389
A South Waikato farmer jumped on a new trend in 2020, unintentionally acquiring a following of 174,000 fans on TikTok.
It has opened up a whole new world for the guy who would like to be a comedian “when he grows up”.
Twenty-three-year-old Wesley Nicholas is a sixth-generation dairy farmer.
“We moved around a lot with dad’s work, and I got to experience the very di erent approaches to dairy farming from the Far North right down to Balclutha and a few places in between,” says Wesley.
At 16, he attended the Taratahi Agricultural Training Centre, where his dad was lecturing, but left halfway through as it was “boring” and got a job in the South Waikato.
e self-professed bogan loves a bit of car racing and burnouts, and only recently shaved o his trademark mullet and long beard when his wife Angela asked him to.
Wesley is currently 2IC for a sharemilker on a 420-cow Jersey dairy farm and lives there with Angela, his nine-year-old stepson, and the couple’s two-year-old and one-year-old.
“My daughter was in hospital in August 2020, and we had a lot of waiting around so I downloaded TikTok and made a few silly videos to pass the time.”
is proved to be the perfect platform to expand upon the silly skit videos he and his brother used to make as kids. At rst he just had a few followers, then he started making original skits about his farming life.
One post, about asking your manager for a sick day during calving, went viral with more than 250,000 views, when he only had about 1000 followers at that time.
“It was a time of lockdowns and social distancing from friends. We were still working as normal but during our time o , I really went deep into TikTok.”
A natural comedian himself, Wesley was initially inspired by comedy legends Fred Dagg and Billy T. James, and currently likes Luke Kidgell, Bill
Burr, and Mark Normand. Wesley shares general opinions which resonate with farming communities. He shows very relatable on-farm situations vocalising what would have been uttered or at least privately thought by the majority of farmers in their time.
“I like to push boundaries and touch on areas that are a bit close to the bone. I get the occasional troll but mainly people respond well to what I post.
“I try and stick to what I know, and most things are relevant to farming or family life.”
He covers everything from dayto-day farming situations, topical politics and New Zealand culture, with a healthy sprinkling of social commentary. e words “many a true thing said in jest” would be applicable here.
Wesley posts skits where he and his wife roast each other, frequently making her look long-su ering.
In reality Angela is the moderator of the posts and has on a few occasions drawn the line on him putting something live, and he totally respects that.
“While it looks like she’s roasted all the time, she is actually really brilliant with one-liners and comes up with great ideas when we go through a post deciding what bits to use.”
Wesley rarely promotes anything on his TikTok account, apart from lollies “because you can’t say no to that, can you?”
“We did make our own ‘Nah All Good’ T-shirts and hoodies and sold a few hundred. We’re looking at some new merch options at the moment.” e couple are being own down to Christchurch in June to participate in BrightSIDE 2023 and Wesley will be doing some promotional social media videos in the lead up to the event.
Farmers are facing increased costs and are focused on managing these at the start of the new dairy season. To support farmers, DairyNZ launched a new resource at Fieldays last month.
“Every farm is di erent but, given the scale of cost increases in the past few seasons, many farms will be feeling the current pro t squeeze,” says DairyNZ chief executive Dr Tim Mackle.
DairyNZ’s data shows, on average, farm costs increased by about 13 per cent between the past two seasons
(2021/2022 and 2022/2023) and 33 per cent in the past three years. However, costs are forecast to reduce from about $9.17 kg/ms last season to about $8.96 kg/ms for 2023/2024.
Tim says it’s good to see a slight reduction in farm expenses but costs are still high.
“ at’s why we are focused on supporting our farmers through current market conditions.”
e new DairyNZ Econ Tracker is online at: dairynz.co.nz/econtracker
e South Island Dairy Event is about inspiring, encouraging and uplifting those starting out in dairying to show them the positive side and the opportunities that a dairying career can provide.
Wesley has been o ered a 10-minute spot at a comedy show in Hamilton in July, which he readily admits is “terrifying”. He will be practising out loud while driving the tractor, which is where he rehearses many of his skit ideas.
“If you’re not terri ed of a new thing, then you shouldn’t be doing it. Taking new opportunities should be uncomfortable, that’s how you grow and change as a person.”
Wesley clearly loves farming, the cows and family life. His videos also re ect his love of New Zealand and what it has to o er. is was evident when he stood at the highest point on the farm in the sunshine, surrounded by cows and proudly pointed out the mountains he had conquered –Maungatautari, Pirongia and Kakepuke – and he could see them all from that spot.
@itsthatmadguy on TikTok
them, with varying results. “ e internal a airs department was the rst government department tasked with their control. ey shot 10,000 in a few years and never made a dent in that population.
“But the real agency that really made a dent in them was...called the South Canterbury Wallaby Board. It was very successful, they did such a good job of getting on top of the wallaby that the problem became almost invisible.”
By 1989, the wallaby problem seemed under control. But once landowners took responsibility for dealing with them, the population crept up again. A containment area of about 900,000 hectares was set up to try and stop them spreading, but the wallabies are leaking through the boundary.
Ripping up farms and edging closer to one of our pristine national parks – wallabies have been here for well over 100 years, but there’s concern they’ve become a pest we’ve lost control of.
“Wallabies are a cute animal and it’s not their fault that they’re here in New Zealand,” says Environment Canterbury wallaby programme lead Brent Glentworth.
e marsupials, native to Australia and Papua New Guinea, were introduced to New Zealand in the late-1800s. One of the country’s earliest governors, Sir George Grey, introduced them to Kawau Island, north of Auckland, as a novelty animal for sport.
Six species then made it around
New Zealand – and one of the most notable areas is around the South Canterbury town of Waimate.
“Just a few individuals were originally brought in and they ended up escaping or being released... they were doing very well in the high tussock country of South Canterbury.”
But it wasn’t until about 1950 –80 years after their arrival – that wallabies were classed as a pest.
“ e damage they were doing to pastures and to fences...they have a high dietary overlap with stock.
“Anything sheep will eat, wallaby will love, they foul their pasture so where they drop their faeces, stock won’t eat around it and that displaces stock.”
Authorities tried to get rid of
Some have even been taken out of the area as pets or been released elsewhere.
In an e ort to deal with the problem, in 2020 the government gave $27.5 million in funding during four years for Tipu Mātoro, the national wallaby eradication programme. Dogs, thermal scopes and ri es are commonly used, but they’re also testing out new technologies.
Bruce Warburton, science team leader for wildlife ecology and management at Manaaki Whenua Landcare Research, is looking at di erent ways wallabies can be detected – and the probability that you’ll actually nd them.
“If you work through an area with a dog, or you y over an area in a helicopter with a thermal camera and you don’t determine anything, how con dent can you be that there’s nothing there or that you just haven’t looked hard enough?”
ey’re also comparing di erent toxins and bait,
ESR and Manatū Hauora have established routine poliovirus testing in wastewater following a successful three-month pilot.
Public Health director Dr Nicholas Jones con rms NZ continues to be polio-free.
“ e decision to introduce poliovirus wastewater testing is in response to the increased risk of poliovirus globally. In November 2022, WHO advised of an increase in polio activity in areas which have previously seen polio eradication.
“During the Covid-19 pandemic childhood immunisation coverage fell globally, including in Aotearoa. is means that if poliovirus enters Aotearoa, the risk of it spreading and causing disease, especially in younger children, is greater than it was in pre-Covid-19 years,” Dr Jones says.
ere is no cure for polio disease and for some
people, it can be debilitating and even fatal. People who survive can be left with lifelong disability and other complications.
“Vaccination dramatically reduces the risk from polio so it’s important that people are up to date with their vaccinations in the event that polio does re-enter Aotearoa.”
In New Zealand, children are immunised against 13 preventable diseases, including polio, whooping cough, chickenpox and measles. ese immunisations are free for babies, children, adolescents, and pregnant people.
and there’s ongoing social research into why people might catch and release wallabies.
“ ere’s no point in spending a lot of money trying to eliminate wallabies outside the containment area if some people then release animals into those areas again,” Bruce says.
But can wallabies be eliminated? “I think we can eliminate local populations outside the containment area,” Bruce says.
“To eliminate them or eradicate them from New Zealand, I don’t think we have the a ordable technology at this stage – we don’t have the money to do that.
“Given the advances in any technologies around control and detection, [we can] shrink that containment and that’ll be over time, it’ll depend strongly on what funding is available.”
A New Zealand app is revolutionising the heavy vehicle industry by centralising administration tasks in one easy-to-use app.
e app allows users to upload a eet of heavy vehicles from freight trucks to farming equipment by simply entering each license plate number. e app takes care of everything else, pulling in each vehicle’s data from Waka Kotahi NZ Transport agency and notifying the user of everything from inspection dates to mileage, registration and WOF in one place.
For eet owners and trucking companies, it replaces manual systems that run the risk of hefty nes if records are not kept correctly.
Bonnet was developed by tech entrepreneur Steph Kennard who after years in the vehicle industry spotted a gap in the market for simpli ed vehicle admin.
Steph says currently keeping track of large eets, farm vehicles and trucking is a time consuming manual process with room for error and Bonnet makes heavy vehicle admin more streamlined and accurate.
“ e app completely changes how eets, heavy vehicles, farming equipment and family vehicles are managed. You get alerted on your phone and via email and you can update and book services on your phone or computer in the o ce. It’s seamless and we hope its simplicity means we can ease the burden on businesses managing multiple heavy vehicles,” says Steph.
e app launched four weeks ago, debuting at #1 in the New Zealand app store and has already amassed 15,000 users with more than 35,000 vehicles loaded.
e apps latest release means trucking companies and farms can now use the app to manage their
heavy vehicle eets with a game-changing centralised management system.
“ e new update means no inspection or Warrant of Fitness is missed and heavy vehicles on New Zealand roads are safe. Each vehicle can be nicknamed for easy identi cation and users are guided by a tra c light system. e red, most urgent deadlines come up rst in your dashboard so users will never be worried if they’ve missed an inspection or registration again,” says Steph.
“We’ve had amazing feedback about Bonnet so far. One user found his odometer was out by 40,000 kilometres and an alarming number of users have found their Warrant of Fitness is months overdue,” says Steph. New Zealanders are heavy road users driving billions of kilometres a year and a 2021 study estimated 400,000 cars were driving without a WOF.
“Over one-quarter of Bonnet users have discovered their rego or Warrant of Fitness is overdue, and that’s in the space of a few short weeks,” says Steph. Soon the app will also help monitor tyre tread and educate users on the di erences between tyres on the market. e app will also have videos explaining how to change your tyres, oil and water plus other car education tips aimed at domestic vehicle users.
“We need more education on what makes a car unsafe on the road,” says Steph.
“ e number of unregistered and unwarranted cars on the road, not to mention the road toll is horrifying. rough Bonnet we are making it much easier for vehicle owners have access to knowledge and education to keep their cars and families safe,” Steph says. Bonnet is free to download via the Apple or Google Play store, for more information see their advert on this page.
e environment for growers around the Bay of Plenty has been tough. It’s easy to focus on the negatives but there are some positives, says Fruition’s managing director Sandy Scarrow. “ e sun is shining and the days will be getting longer. And, as a consultancy business, we are committed to working with growers and their teams, working through these tough times and supporting their ongoing professional development.”
Sandy says education is a key to
e largest co-educational boarding school in New Zealand is “a place where people matter, where relationships and respect are valued and fostered”.
St Peters School, situated north of Cambridge in the Waikato, is a home away from home for around 312 boarders from Years 9 to 13. Director of boarding Greg Haines says the school “places an emphasis on ensuring young people feel safe and con dent to be themselves –this lays a foundation for them to realise their full potential and be their best selves”.
“We have seven boarding houses, four for boys and three for girls. We understand what it takes to grow great men and women, and our boarding
houses are structured to provide that framework and that support.
“Coming into a large boarding school can be a daunting experience for a young person,” admits Greg. “And it’s one we anticipate and respond to very positively.
“Ahead of that rst day, we take time to meet and get to know the family so we understand the environment each pupil comes from so we are able to provide them with a home environment from day one. at is vitally important.”
Greg says outside school hours, boarders have access to the school’s 100 hectare campus, which includes an athletic performance gym, swimming pool, hockey turf, courts, sports pitches and – if they have horses – equine facilities.
Students from the Hauraki Plains and surrounding rural areas can look forward to stage one of the Paeroa College Multi-Sports Complex being completed after the project received a $40,000 boost.
In June the New Zealand Communities Trust granted $40,000 to the project after the Paeroa College Trust approached the organisation for co-funding. “We sought co-funding from NZCT to assist in covering the Paeroa College court area in an arti cial turf. e area has remained unused
for nearly 20 years as the college and community did not have su cient funds to develop this area to its full potential,” says Larn Wilkinson of Paeroa College Trust.
“ e area will eventually become a fully covered, multi-purpose facility, from which both the college and wider community will bene t enormously.”
Currently there’s no multi-purpose facility in Paeroa and the wider Hauraki region large enough to cater for the growing number of events and sporting codes and tournaments, says Larn.
this – whether for those entering the horticultural industry or those wanting to “sharpen the saw” to build on existing skills and knowledge through enrolling in one of two diplomas o ered by Fruition Horticulture.
“Jack Tortoiseshell, pictured, is someone who joined us as a school-leaver – and this year will be competing in the Bay of Plenty Young Grower competition,” says Sandy. “We wish him well.” For more information on the training o ered by Fruition see their advert below.
It’s a story we all love to read – a couple moves away from their stressful, corporate, city life and nds peace and purpose in their new rural life.
Coromandel’s Opito Bay residents Perry Cornish and Erin Mone have done exactly that and are now immersed in their own “farming” venture, collecting seawater to make the rst 100 per cent natural Coromandel sea salt and avoured artisan salts.
Perry Cornish was brought up in Hawke’s Bay on a property adjoining orchards and is the son of well-known butcher, charcutier and chef, the late John Cornish. He describes his childhood as “full of hunting, game and good food”.
“I actually went to Massey and studied Ag Science, but I ended up working in marketing and advertising,” says Perry.
After many years travelling and working all over Europe, Perry returned to New Zealand and into the fast-paced world of nance.
Erin Mone came to New Zealand and entered the world of nance where she met Perry in 2017.
Perry has owned a bach in Opito Bay for many years and has always used the remote property to escape to and relax, and Erin also fell in love with the bay.
“Noted as one of the top three beaches in New Zealand, it’s pristine, stunningly beautiful and a sherman’s dream.”
Like all good business ideas, Perry and Erin’s was hatched over a bottle of wine one cold, wet, winter night in Grey Lynn.
“Erin was enthusing over some artisan salt she had bought, and it led to more wine, a pen and a piece of paper, and dreaming of throwing in our corporate jobs, moving to the bach and making salt!”
Inspired by their idea, for a year the couple experimented in a minor way, putting seawater in pans and under cloches at the Opito property with varied success. Undeterred they went ahead with their plan.
In early-2020, as the world was dramatically changing around them, Perry had moved all his belongings to Opito and Erin’s arrival coincided with
the impending March 2020 Covid-19 lockdown. “ e days leading up to the lockdown were crazy.
“We did up to four trips a day from Auckland to Opito to get all Erin’s gear to the bach before it started.”
e lockdown gave the couple time to set up and take stock. ey ordered and built their rst greenhouse and concentrated on their venture.
“By New Year 2021, we advertised what we were doing on Facebook locally and received a good response. We came to an agreement with a friendly local landowner and ordered more greenhouses.”
Going into production required gaining the relevant permits. Waikato Regional Council and ames Coromandel District Council both had regulations that had to be met. ese include regular testing of the water quality, using food grade components throughout the process and relevant licences obtained to produce salt commercially.
e beach water is ltered, then micro- ltrated into the salt pans in the greenhouses.
“ e perfect temperature for salt formation is 65 degrees Celsius, which is very hot. We rely completely on solar power to evaporate our sea water and don’t boil it to achieve evaporation.”
Events such as Cyclone Gabrielle a ect water quality and samples are taken multiple times a year to monitor this.
Sustainability, both within the environment and the impact of their business is taken seriously
with regard to recycling, well thought out packaging, minimising use of carbon-based fuels, not compromising productive farmland and returning their main by-product, pure water, back to the environment.
“Living remotely, you really focus on waste and 100 per cent of our organic waste is composted, 50 per cent of paper waste is composted,
and 50 per cent recycled.”
Perry and Erin are proud volunteers with a group on the bay called e Sustainable Coastlines Charitable Trust. ey participate in local dune weeding and planting at Opito to mitigate erosion and climate change impact. is protects the environment of beautiful Opito Bay for everyone.
is means a highly mineralised salt forms in the pans which Perry says has a very unique avour. He’s nally using his Ag Science degree.
“We are in contact with around 50 sea salt producers across the world and regularly buy and taste other sea salts. Chemical analysis proves that it’s the minerals that create the avour.
“Ours is six per cent mineral content compared to a normal one per cent mineral content.”
Where possible, Perry and Erin work with local growers who produce spray-free, sustainable ingredients to make their avoured salts. Selling their products at local farmer’s markets is an important part of connecting with all their customers.
e whole venture is very dependent on the elements. Opito Bay has one of the highest recorded hours of sun in New Zealand. Tides, rain and cloudy weather also a ect the speed of production.
For the president of the New Zealand Feijoa Growers Association and smallscale grower Roger Matthews, the move from a long career in local government management to growing feijoas wasn’t as huge as it may seem.
He is a trained scientist and is both interested in and understands the complexities of growing orchards, from genetics to the study and control of pests endangering the industry.
“ e association acts as an advocate for feijoa growers, working with Horticulture NZ to get market access, establish industry standards, sharing information with growers, and applying for research grants,” says Roger.
Feijoas are grown throughout the North Island, and in Canterbury, Nelson, and Marlborough.
e guava moth is a monitored pest threat to feijoas.
It has been in the country for around 20 years and is slowly moving south.
It can also decimate other crops such as macadamia, pears and citrus and is common in Northland and Auckland.
“ e NZFGA were granted $300,000 from the Sustainable Farming Fund for research into the guava moth.
“ e moth originated in Australia and was possibly brought over by wind.
“It isn’t an issue over there so we assume they must have a predator that keeps numbers down.”
Roger believes the research should be carried out in Australia, but unfortunately this type of grant can only be used in New Zealand.
“We’ve tried pheromone traps, but they only attract males, and it only needs one male to mate with hundreds of females, so it is ine ective scienti cally.”
Trapping programmes around the triangle of Ohinewai, Whatawhata and Morrinsville have not caught any moths, and there is no evidence
of it in crops, so it is believed that they have not moved into the Waikato region as yet.
A PhD research project is being carried out to identify attractants to the fruit food sources, with a potential outcome of chemically re-creating them to encourage females to lay where there is no food source, and their larvae die.
“ e aggressive fungi pathogen anthracnose attacks several soft fruit varieties and thrives in the humid, warmer temperatures in the Far North around Kerikeri.
“Research has been carried out and has found fungicides that may be e ective, but work needs to be carried out with them to determine appropriate withholding periods before one can be licensed.”
Roger has been a full-time grower since 2018 on his eight-hectare block near Morrinsville.
He grows feijoas, gs, macadamia, and chestnuts and is a one-man band, carrying out all the maintenance and harvesting himself.
NZ Adventures o ers a wide range of tours across the South Island of New Zealand. “ e tracks we use are easily enough covered by competent drivers in suitable four wheel drive vehicles (low range transmission) and all terrain tyres in good condition,” says a spokesperson for the tour company.
No other special preparation of the vehicle is required.
Accommodation provided is hotel and for the most part evening meals and breakfasts are in restaurants on site. Lunches are either station catered or picnic.
One of the most popular and longest established tour is the High Country Heritage in a six-day format.
“ e High Country Heritage is essentially the journey down the eastern alpine foothills from Blenheim to Cardrona that NZ Adventures pioneered in the late 1990s and remains so popular still today.
“ e tour includes a wide range of high country stations and conservation estate tracks along a 1250km route through overnights in Hanmer Springs, Methven, Fairlie, Omarama and Cromwell before reaching the nish at the iconic Cardrona Hotel.
“Highlights of the tour would include Molesworth Station on the afternoon of Day One and the vast hill country of North Canterbury through most of Day Two. Day ree sees the tour head west towards the high Alps and the massive vistas of the inland valleys while Day Four takes the tour across the high plains and gravel river valleys of the Mackenzie Country along with some hill country tracks with views back to Mt. Cook.
“Days Five and Six see the tour drive over into Central Otago and the opportunity to drive very high onto two of the mountain ranges that are so much a part of this region known for its history of gold and pastoralism and for being as far from the sea as its possible to get in New Zealand.”
e High Country Heritage is a great introduction to the South Island and to the NZ Adventures range of tours.
For more information, see their advert on this page.
ey say death and taxes are the only certainties – but osteoarthritis must be close to this list.
e sales of worldwide joint and bone supplements are worth a staggering US$11.7 billion and expected to grow by another 50 per cent during the next ve years.
e majority use joint supplements to treat joint problems, most for osteoarthritis, with about 40 per cent of developing knee osteoarthritis alone. Pain is a great motivator and people turn to joint supplements for relief. But do they help?
ere has been signi cant research into compounds found in joint supplements, especially glucosamine, chondroitin, and turmeric. It comes as no surprise that studies come to di ering conclusions ranging from poor to excellent results.
While studies and research can be helpful, my criteria for assessing osteoarthritis supplements is simple. I assess the e ectiveness of my supplements solely by whether they help. An important part of my discipline of nutritional medicine is regularly reviewing progress. When someone
commences my joint supplements, I contact them after six weeks, then again at three months to see how they are doing.
e measure of assessment is again simple; is it working?
When someone purchases my joint products, I o er a joint health assessment which the majority adopt. I ask questions about the problem including its diagnosis and treatment
including symptoms and a description of limitations in mobility. At the six-weekly review we then compare progress to the initial assessment and modify the programme as needed. One thing I can say for certain, if people do not get a tangible bene t, they will stop taking them. Results are my sole measure whether a supplement is helping.
Iron Tree Products is a family business, operating out of Northland for more than six years and serving customers nationwide, o ering quality products designed and manufactured right here in New Zealand.
“Our core product is the serious incinerator, and we have been steadily expanding the range of accessories to suit our client’s needs,” says Milton Brown.
“In response to repeated requests for the ability to make charcoal, we have developed the charcoal retort unit.
“ is ts into the standard Serious Incinerator and can even be used on older models, meaning customers who already have one of our incinerators can make charcoal with the addition of the charcoal retort unit.”
Charcoal made in the charcoal retort unit.
Enjoy
www.coastandcountrynews.co.nz
Milton says charcoal has many uses and is very popular in barbecue cooking circles “so the ability make your own charcoal is a very attractive option”. Biochar is well recognised for soil health in gardening and agriculture as well.
To get in touch with Iron Tree Products or make orders, see the advert on this page.
•Premium knitted windbreak used throughout NZ in commercial and DIY applications
•140gsm, knitted HDPE with fabric eyelets
•Wind porosity approximately 55%
•Green or Black colours available
•Wide range of widths available
•UV stabilised for NZ conditions
•Custom sizes sewn in our Auckland warehouse
Ōpōtiki District Council has revealed that it requires a 14.2 per cent average rates rise for the coming nancial year.
Although it will not undertake a formal consultative process, it has released an information document, Our Plan in Action, outlining its plan for the year, where rates are being spent, and is seeking feedback from the community.
Deputy Mayor Shona Browne, who chaired the meeting in May which discussed the rates rise, says during the past few months a great deal of work and time from both council sta and councillors had gone into preparation of the 2023-2024 Annual Plan.
e document states that increases in fees and charges for waste disposal, water supply and reserve hire are also being considered. How rates charges will be distributed is dependent on each property’s capital value, which has shifted during last year’s Quotable Value revaluation. Our Plan in Action also sets out examples of how much various categories of properties can expect to see their rates rise.
e average rise in capital value across the district has been 61 per cent, so any properties that have increased in value by more than this will see rates rises above 14 per cent, while properties that have increased in value by less than 61 per cent will see rates rises lower than 14 per cent.
e kiwifruit sector, for example, has seen an average rise in capital value of more than 100 per cent and will therefore see greater average rates rises than the dairy sector, which saw a 21.7 per cent average rise in value, or residential properties, which was 66.1 per cent.
An example of a kiwifruit orchard worth $3.003 million that had increased in value by 100.2 per cent would see a 41 per cent rise in rates,
equivalent to $2073, while a $30.13 million kiwifruit orchard that had increased in value by the same amount would see a 44 per cent increase in rates, equivalent to $20,065.
Tables were also given to indicate average rates rises for residential properties in Ōpōtiki township, Hukutaia-Woodlands, Te Kaha and rural areas, and commercial and industrial properties, based on average capital value rises for those categories. Residential properties would see a rise of between 13 and 18 per cent, based on average increases in capital values, except for Ohiwa properties, which saw much lower increases of between six per cent and nine per cent.
e document also reminds ratepayers that Ōpōtiki has maintained some of the lowest rates in New Zealand for some time, and many of the factors impacting this year’s rates increase are to ensure it meets its legislative compliance obligations.
Councillor Barry Howe says councillors are going to “take it on the chin a bit” when referring to talking to the public about the proposed rise. “I think it’s very important that we all front up, because we’ve got to face up to what we are putting on our ratepayers. Some of them aren’t going to like it,” he said.
Local Democracy Reporting is Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air.
•Heavy duty knitted white windbreak widely used in horticultural applications
•160gsm, knitted HDPE with fabric eyelets
•Wind porosity approximately 50%
•Wide range of widths available
•Custom sizes fabricated in our Auckland warehouse
•UV stabilised for NZ conditions
Zespri’s 2022/2023 nancial results re ect a challenging period for the kiwifruit industry, with grower returns down on the back of fruit quality issues that have primarily been driven by the industry’s severe labour shortage, along with cost increases and supply chain challenges. e scale of quality costs, which increased from $307 million in 2021/2022 to $534 million in 2022/2023, along with increasing demand and stronger pricing in market, illustrate the opportunity the industry has to secure greater value and the importance of the current focus on addressing quality concerns and supply chain challenges.
Zespri recorded total global fruit sales revenue of NZ$3.92 billion in 2022/2023, down three per cent on the record result of 2021/2022, with global sales volumes down from 201.5 million trays to 183.5 million trays.
Direct returns to the New Zealand industry decreased to $2.24 billion in 2022/2023, the third highest Total Fruit and Service Payments recorded, and are spread across New Zealand growing regions including the Bay of Plenty, Northland, the East Coast, Nelson and the Waikato. Increased quality and other costs resulted in grower returns being down on the record highs of recent seasons, with Green and SunGold kiwifruit per hectare returns outside the lower end of the season’s initial forecast ranges.
Zespri’s Non-New Zealand Supply sales decreased to $519 million, down from $537 million last year. is re ects similar challenges experienced in their o shore growing regions, with Italian growers in particular facing extreme heat and some of the worst quality costs they have experienced in recent years.
Total operating revenue of $4.22 billion was down on last year’s record $4.47 billion. Zespri’s net pro t after tax was $237.8 million, back from the record pro t of $361.5 million in 2021/2022, with Zespri releasing a reduced number of SunGold kiwifruit hectares as part of its 2022/2023 licence release programme.
Zespri chief executive o cer Dan Mathieson says the results are indicative of what’s been a very
di cult period for many primary industries, with growers facing challenges relating to the labour shortage, the ongoing impacts of Covid-19, the climate and rising costs.
“ is was one of our toughest-ever seasons and the industry worked incredibly hard to deliver our fruit to market, despite facing an extraordinary number of challenges including a signi cant labour shortage.
“We continued to see strong demand and pricing in market and secured more than $100 million in savings via our foreign exchange hedging policy.
“However, quality costs have signi cantly impacted grower returns, which have dropped from the highs recorded in recent seasons.”
Dan says the results illustrate the importance of the industry’s e orts to improve quality which remains a key driver in delivering stronger returns in future years.
“We know this is a challenging period for growers, particularly Green growers, given the fact we also have lower volumes of fruit in the 2023/2024 season.
“ e investment we’ve made in building consumer demand and a world-leading fruit brand, alongside our long-term customer and supply chain relationships, means we’re well placed to get back on track and increase the value we can deliver back to growers, the industry and New Zealand communities.
“Reducing our quality costs will be central to this, and the industry is working hard across the supply chain to make sure we’re once again delivering consistently great quality fruit to consumers in 2023/2024 and beyond.
“While conditions remain challenging, the rst shipments of the 2023/2024 season have been well received by our customers, indicating initiatives from the industry’s Quality Action Plan are helping reduce quality costs and keeping poorer quality fruit onshore.
“Our industry has a proven track record of being able to address challenges by working together and with a strong demand outlook, we remain encouraged by the opportunity for the industry to deliver greater value for growers and our stakeholders in the years ahead.”
In an industrial area surrounded by concrete, one man is kicking o two orchards for kids to harvest a variety of fruit from year-round.
Murray Lilley is the site manager at a townhouse complex located at Owens Place, backed onto State Highway 2 in Mount Maunganui. He believes the area could use a “whole lot more green space” and
TRACEMOL LIFT is formulated to ensure healthy growth and optimum production. It is a unique formulation of 21 essential minerals, trace elements, electrolytes, proteins, carbohydrates and vitamins blended with Ascophyllum nodosum seaweed extract, which has a very high concentration of minerals, vitamins antioxidants and amino acids.
wants tenants and their kids to bene t from having access to fruit “straight o the tree”.
With avocado and kiwifruit orchards being a big part of the Bay of Plenty economy, Murray also believes his fruit orchard is a great way for kids to learn about fruit growing and harvesting.
“Kids often don’t know about horticulture. We’ve got mandarins, apples, grapes, feijoas, along with kiwifruit and passionfruit on the way. It’ll keep us ticking over the di erent seasons.”
Murray says the rst proper harvest is still at least a year away, but kids living nearby are already all hands on deck to help out with the project.
“Kids from these townhouses are very eager to get their hands on it. e other day I had some stencils out and they came down to help me spray the signage on.”
Murray has been in property management for 16 years, and says he sees people struggling now more than ever with rising rents and interest rates.
“Rents are put up to cover the cost for landlords, but the poor tenants don’t get anything out of it.
“In property management, we can’t give many discounts or anything, but what we can do is provide something like this for their kids; bring their shopping bill down and make sure kids
don’t go without.” e reception from the tenants has been “really supportive” so far, according to Murray, along with businesses like Mitre 10, ITM and Goodwood which have provided the materials to make his orchard dream a reality.
“People love living here and think this is absolutely great for the kids – it will be great for everyone to show them where fruit comes from.” Before the orchards kicked o , Murray went to the body corporate behind the complex to request the space be used for something which could bene t everyone.
“ ey jumped on and said: ‘We’ve got to spend the money landscaping the area, so let’s spend it on something useful’ and were very supportive.”
Murray says sometime in the next few months there will be an o cial opening celebration with a barbecue to get everyone in the complex involved in the progress of the orchards.
ere will also be additional signage put up to thank the companies involved who have helped supply materials.
“Eventually this area will be all under the trees. “I’ll be here long-term so I want to see this project through. It’s been rewarding seeing the excitement and reactions.”
Plant & Food Research’s honorary fellow, Dr Howard Wearing, has been awarded an ONZM in the King’s Birthday Honours for his services to entomology and the fruit and orchard industries.
Dr Wearing worked for the Department of Scienti c and Industrial Research from 1967 to 1990, undertaking extensive research into innovative pest management techniques in apple orchards nationally.
He played a key role in implementation of best-practice modern apple production in New Zealand to minimise damage to fruit while maintaining high yields.
His programme ‘Biological Orchard Production Systems’ and the associated Integrated Fruit Production programme, which operated 1992-2001, reduced use of insecticides by 90 per cent and led to a signi cant increase in NZ’s fruit exports, including organic apples.
He was team leader of the Ecology and Horticulture Groups from 1972 to 1984 and then assistant director of Entomology Division DSIR until 1990. He oversaw teams of scientists whose research made signi cant contributions to government-funded science nationally, including gaining access of pip fruit and summer fruit to the Japanese market.
Since retiring in 2001, he’s continued to publish signi cant research, providing new insights guiding the use of biological control in NZ’s low pesticide input and organic fruit production systems. Dr Wearing has published more than 150 scienti c papers and the 2019 book ‘Farewell Silent Spring: e New Zealand Apple Story’. (Source: www.dpmc.govt.nz/publications/kingsbirthday-and-coronation-honours-list-2023)
e World Avocado Congress eld days saw 760 delegates on 16 buses visit 10 locations to be immersed in the New Zealand horticulture industry on good old-fashioned road trips through our beautiful country. Trip options not only explored avocados in the Bay of Plenty, Tapora, and Whangarei but also covered capsicum, kiwifruit, and a park with bananas, pineapples and lotus plants.
Great conversations were had on the buses as people got to know each other, with the Kiwis on-board able to answer questions and play hosts to our delegates from 32 countries.
Our site hosts did a fantastic job showcasing our country, our Kiwi attitude and our vibrant horticulture sector. A huge thank you to Darling Group, Maria and Andrew Watchorn, David French, Harbour Edge, Southern Paprika, Lynwood nursery, Riverview kiwifruit orchard, Plant&Food Research, and Land of the Lotus.
As you can see from the long list of hosts, it really was a team e ort. We could not have made the eld days so successful without the support from each of the hosts. We would like to thank each of them for sharing their stories with us.
Maria and Andrew Watchorn, eld day hosts in the Bay of Plenty, share their experience.
e day nally arrived to show case our orchard to delegates attending the 10th World Avocado Congress. We had been preparing for several weeks and the team was incredibly proud to have the rst bus load arrive.
After all, we all felt we were representing not only ourselves but our whole New Zealand grower group on this day. We were honoured and pleased to host overseas and local NZ delegates and we believe from feedback received everyone thoroughly enjoyed their visit and the two-way sharing of information.
We presented information on what we do on orchard, NZ growing conditions, the challenges we face with weather, provided a pruning demonstration and shared information on our sustainability/ environmental plans, along with a short video presentation highlighting before and after photos and drone footage.
e highlight for us was the ability to mix with the delegates from all over the world and share our knowledge and gain a better understanding of what they encounter with their growing and marketing (export) conditions. We met some lovely people whom I am sure we will continue communication with, as it really did open the door to many opportunities to visit other countries and overseas orchards to see rst-hand what they
described to us. e academic component of the congress was a great avenue for gaining access to some of the latest information and research from the ’Brains Trust’ of the global avocado community. To have the ability to learn so much in our own country which will bene t our personal business was an immeasurable opportunity and certainly not one to be missed we believe. All in all, the World Avocado Congress was a wonderful event to be part o , immensely informative, social and loads of fun. Maria and Andrew acknowledge their team, Gavin, Caleb, and Xelia who helped at the eld day, as well as their consultant Colin Partridge and Adam Gent of Advanced Avocados.
DMS kiwifruit growers have now collectively donated more than $1 million to Bay of Plenty charities in the past ve years following the announcement of the latest grants from their charitable trust.
DMS Progrowers Charitable Trust was formed in 2018 to support local community organisations who are carrying out valuable work. Growers voluntarily contribute one or two cents per tray of fruit to the trust each season, and the money raised is then matched by DMS Progrowers Ltd, doubling the size of the overall contribution to local charities each year.
“ e trustees are delighted to announce the cumulative donations since 2018 have now exceeded $1 million,” says DMS Progrowers Charitable Trust chair Andre Hickson.
“ is has been an outstanding achievement despite pandemics, adverse weather events and the current nancial climate. e generosity of the DMS kiwifruit growers has been consistent and humbling and many community organisations have bene tted as a result.”
Five trustees (comprising of growers and DMS Progrowers Ltd representatives) decide which organisations to donate money to each year.
“Our focus is on charities providing community care for all ages and demographics, as well as those who cater speci cally for children and families in need. Our desire is to strengthen the communities our growers live and work in, and help break cycles that contribute to poverty and negative
social outcomes,” says Andre.
Waipuna Hospice is the cornerstone charity and has received another substantial donation this year. CEO Richard urlow says he is blown away by the generosity of DMS growers, which will make a signi cant impact on the organisation’s ability to ful l its mission.
“We are grateful for their support and commitment to making a positive di erence in our community,” says Richard. “It will help us provide the resources and support necessary to make a real di erence in the lives of our patients and their families, whether that’s funding patient care, family support, volunteer programmes, or other operational costs such as fuel for our nurses or sta salaries. It is only with the support of organisations like DMS Progrowers that Waipuna Hospice can continue to provide compassionate end-of-life care to those in need in the Tauranga and Western Bay of Plenty regions.”
A total of 10 community care charities will receive grants this year including Live for More, which empowers rangatahi/young people to nd freedom from their troubled pasts and be inspired to live positive and ful lling lives.
Founder Krista Dixon says the donation towards operating costs for their surf therapy programmes is incredibly humbling.
“It’s easy for myself or anyone working at Live for More to believe in the work that’s being done but when people donate, it shows they believe in the work we are doing. So it is really encouraging.
“Of course it is so exciting too, because more funding allows for ongoing sustainability which means we can reach more young people, transform more lives and bring hope to more young men who are stuck in destructive lifestyles.”
Te Aranui Youth Trust also received a donation which will allow them to employ a second youth development o cer to mentor young boys who are struggling to stay engaged at school.
“ is mentoring and ongoing wraparound support can make an amazing di erence for our rangatahi, putting them back on a positive path to a brighter future,” says Te Aranui Youth Trust’s funding and administration manager Tanya Grimstone.
“A number of our rangatahi are making positive changes and improving their decision-making skills. ese funds will really make a di erence to the rangatahi that we work with. ank you to the DMS Progrowers Charitable Trust for their ongoing support of their local community.”
As the demand for a ordable and exible housing continues to rise, Compac Homes o ers a solution that is both practical and versatile. Perfect for rural living, workers accommodation, independent living for family members, a holiday home, extra income, and more.
Compac Homes specialises in transportable homes on wheels, varying in size up to 56m2, each one is individually designed to suit your needs and budget. With an overwhelming sense of spaciousness, while maintaining a minimalistic footprint on your site, you will nd they feature all the comforts of a traditional home. e homes are built with NZ Colorsteel to withstand the harsh Kiwi climates and nished to a high standard that exceeds
expectations. Compac Homes is family-owned and homes are built in Ohinewai, North Waikato, with delivery available nationwide. Customers are welcome to visit the Ohinewai factory and view the two thoughtfully-designed showhomes that showcase the high end workmanship and multiple options available.
Take a look at standard layouts, previous customer plans, or start from scratch to create a oor plan that perfectly suits your needs.
Can’t make it to the Waikato? Book a video call with a member of the team who can help you bring your ideas to life. Let the experienced design team guide you in creating a personalised layout and home that will suit your unique style and living arrangement.
Landmark Homes captivating new Showhome in Taupō’s popular Ngā Roto Estate has been designed and styled to provide easy, family living. With two spacious outdoor areas, an expertly crafted New Zealand-made external replace, and showstopping LED strip lighting, this innovative fourbedroom showhome o ers contemporary family living that is sure to impress. Inspired to provide a laidback living environment for families who want the freedom to relax and unwind in a spacious and meticulously designed home while having the
exibility to enjoy the best of alfresco living all year round.
team utilised their unrivalled knowledge and expertise to create their stunning new Taupō showhome. Located in the highly desirable
Advantage Designer Homes boasts they can build your new home in as little as 17 weeks. It’s a claim that sounds too good to be true to anyone who’s recently built their own home.
However the Team at ADH shares how they can deliver on this promise.
All homes are built at the Advantage Designer Homes construction yard in Horotiu, Waikato, says sales manager Matt Taylor.
“ is allows us to build much faster than traditional building companies with less travel time for tradesmen and faster delivery of building materials.”
e ADH yard has capacity to build 35 houses at
once, with plenty of room for further expansion. Due to the large volume of houses they build, there are discounts from bulk ordering materials and time savings from the streamlined processes.
“ is is a huge advantage – especially in rural areas where building on-site usually means lots of wasted travel time,” says Matt.
Moreover, they say transportable homes don’t need to be small, basic or boring!
“We o er a range of designs and sizes – up to six bedrooms at 155m2.
“Choosing a pre-consented design allows for completion within 17 weeks.” ey sometimes even have stock houses available for immediate delivery. And for those looking for something truly unique, they o er a designer home option that allows you to customise your own oor plan.
“Once your house has been delivered, it just takes a few nishing touches such as decks, barge boards and landscaping, then you’d never know it was a transportable building.”
Matt says there’s nothing quite as exciting as seeing your massive six-bedroom home delivered on the back of a truck.
“If you are looking to build, consider a transportable home and be surprised by the speed and simplicity of working with Advantage Designer Homes.”
Ngā Roto Estate, the two-storied, four-bedroom showhome boasts the best of New Zealand craftsmanship and some truly unique features, including open plan living, an entertainer’s kitchen and open scullery, dining with fantastic indoor/ outdoor ow to both the covered and uncovered patios o ering entertaining options whatever the weather. e atmospheric design has been thoughtfully created with warmth in mind. e neutral and earthy tones of the interior complement the black tapware, cedar accents
and black-painted alcoves and walls in the kitchen, lounge, and dining, create a cohesive feeling of homely ambience. Outside, the innovative LED strip lighting provides a sense of showstopping drama as it creates shadow lines against the white brick veneer of the double garage and lights up the rustic shale cedar cladding and ZinaCore ebonycoloured roof.
Steven says of this avant-garde look.
“We’ve never done this before, but it really highlights a key feature of the street appeal of the home.”
splendour? Look no further!
“We are delighted to present our range of tiny homes and cabins, thoughtfully designed to harmonise with New Zealand’s awe-inspiring landscapes,” says Ryan Blow of Lighthouse Cabins.
“Placed on sturdy steel site trailers with timber framing, our homes are crafted with the utmost care, ensuring durability and comfort for years to come.”
Asked them sets them apart, Ryan says: “We o er watertight shells, providing you with the perfect blank canvas to transform your dream retreat”.
“By completing the interior yourself, you unlock a world of possibilities, allowing your creativity to take ight.
“Customisation is key, as you have the freedom to shape your tiny home or cabin to your own
unique style and preferences,” says Ryan.
Imagine the joy of handpicking each nishing touch, from the cozy furnishings to the personalised colour scheme.
“Not only do you have control over the design, but you also have the exibility to set your own pace. Whether you choose to complete the project independently or hire skilled contractors, the decision is entirely yours.
Take your time
“Take your time, relish in the process, and make each step a re ection of your vision. No longer bound by restrictive timelines, you can create a living space that aligns perfectly with your lifestyle.”
Beyond the sheer pleasure of creating a home that resonates
with your soul, there are practical advantages too, says Ryan.
“By nishing the interior yourself, you can save signi cantly on costs, ensuring your budget is allocated exactly where you desire. Additionally, this hands-on approach allows you to become intimately familiar with the inner workings of your new abode, empowering you to maintain and upgrade it with ease.”
Embrace the opportunity to embark on a remarkable journey of self-expression and ful lment with a Lighthouse cabin or tiny home.
“Explore our range of tiny homes and cabins today and embark on an adventure unlike any other. Let nature be your backdrop and our watertight shells be your starting point for a home that is truly your own.”
“ ere is nothing worse than turning up to site and the rst piece of timber you need is not there, or it’s bent like a boomerang, and you can’t use it,” says North Island builder Andre Nicolai.
Andre has built Alpine sheds for more than seven years and has
completed multiple projects. “I don’t think I’ve ever had anything that’s not been there,” says Andre.
If you are in the market for a new shed, or are keen to build these quality Alpine buildings, reach out to the friendly team today.
After 30-plus years in the shed-building game, and more than 4000 completed projects later, Alpine Buildings know a thing or two about shed design and construction.
With a deeply ingrained culture of continuous improvement, the team at
Alpine Buildings has always believed there is a better and faster way to build. is is evident in the evolution of the Alpine system over the years, and this has made it a favourite to install by builders and ‘DIYers’ alike.
e Alpine design has many stand-out features from their signature structural steel clearspan rafters – which not only speed up the construction
time but also result in a truly bird-proof system – to the way they pre-dry their timber to eliminate warping after the build is complete. is process not only creates straight timber, which results in a tidier nish, but it’s also lighter and easier to work with.
e extreme attention to detail that is taken at every step is what makes building an Alpine shed a breeze.
When farmers are considering how they can cut costs this year, there should also be careful consideration of the potential returns on expenditure.
By using the probiotic additive Calf Xtreme some farmers are reporting staggering returns. e biggest payback can come in extra heifer milk production.
Probiotic Revolution founder Chris Collier quotes one farmer who recently reported their rst herd of heifers reared on Calf Xtreme produced 40kg milk solids more than any previous batch of heifers.
“ at a staggering return of at least $300 for around $9-10 a calf of Calf Xtreme”.
In analysing how these gains are made, Chris says Calf Xtreme is allowing farmers to get their calves o to a faster start by increasing milk volumes.
“At higher rates of milk, when the milk spills into the rumen we are not seeing the usual nutritional scours you might expect, and it’s helping digestion and consumption of meal hay and grass – so once-a-day feeding at high rates of milk also works extremely well.”
It even increases voluntary milk intake on ad-lib feeding. One
farmer trialed a group of calves on Calf Xtreme and a year later they were 30kg heavier. Both groups were on ad-lib feeding. Calf Xtreme sets up the rumen for better meal and grass consumption after they are weaned o milk, so that they go on to calve down at higher liveweights.
Last year, Probiotic Revolution had 90,000 calves reared on Calf Xtreme and in a survey of users, calves on average were weaned 11 days earlier – “so although we advocate a high rate of milk initially, the extra milk used is often o set by getting to target weaning weights earlier”.
Dairy farmer and farming advocate Tangaroa Walker is 2023’s Ravensdown Agricultural Communicator of the Year award – bestowed the honour at Fieldays last month by Agriculture Minister Damien O’Connor.
e award recognises and honours those that make important contributions to the agricultural community by using their skills to e ectively communicate issues, events and information relevant to the sector.
Tangaroa became an instant household name through his Farm4Life Facebook group, where his light-hearted and educational videos give a 360degree view of life as a dairy farmer in New Zealand. e group has grown to a community of more than 144,000 people across the globe. In 2020 Tangaroa launched the Farm 4 Life Hub, a learning platform
with a digital catalogue of videos covering everything related to dairy farming. e hub has more than 500 paid subscribers and 4500 freemium subscribers with 200 NZQA students starting this year.
Ravensdown chief executive Garry Diack praises Tangaroa as a strong agricultural leader, a true inspiration to rangatahi and an exceptional communicator. “[He is] Well deserving of recognition in breaking down barriers between urban and rural communities and helping to build the future of farming excellence in Aotearoa.”
NZ Guild of Agricultural Journalists and Communicators president Neal Wallace says it’s hard not to be impressed by Tangaroa and his life story.
“He’s a tireless advocate for the rural sector and a perfect example of what this award was set up to celebrate – using modern media to communicate a great message to a wide audience.”
Prices of dairy products remain volatile and di cult to predict, interest rates have risen and may yet go higher, compliance costs keep climbing, and sta ng issues remain challenging.
At rst glance the New Zealand dairy scene doesn’t look bright –however, it is little di erent to the situation in the late-1970s when I rst got involved, and all I and other young entrants could see was opportunities.
Britain was no longer the guaranteed purchaser of our product, interest rates were climbing annually, subsidies had been removed from fertiliser and committed sta were di cult to nd.
Farmers that had been settled by the Government after the World War II were looking to sell their properties – and the advice we were given was that there was no way to progress from farm labouring to farm ownership without substantial nancial support from family.
e dairy industry is currently this country’s biggest export earner and will continue to be a major player well into the future and solutions to the problems currently faced will be met and overcome, but there are new challenges that have not been faced previously.
Dairy farming in the 1970s and 1980s was recognised as an essential
industry and communities and businesses were keen to support.
Marginal land was developed, extra fertiliser applied, cow numbers increased, and production steadily rose with the family farm of 120 cows morphing into operations of 300-plus cows.
e notion that people in the wider community with little if any direct link to the land might somehow view farming practices as environmentally harmful, and support a movement to limit intensity and productiveness, was inconceivable.
Time will tell, however there is a sound argument that the dairy industry has laid the base of its own contraction through the overuse of nitrogen fertiliser in the quest for short-term sustainability. e productive capacity of pastoral land is determined by the amount of carbon in the form of soil organic matter in the top 20cm of the soil. As it is under-grazed permanent pasture that carbon can be most quickly sequestered, it seems incongruous that intensive pastoral farming is now viewed by many as a problem.
is paradox may be explained by appreciating that applied synthetic nitrogen burns and destroys soil carbon with irrefutable evidence available from its similar misuse over many years in Europe.
With less carbon in the soil, the holding capacity for both nutrient and moisture declines. e initial response to declining growth has often been to apply more nitrogen, further accelerating carbon loss.
Cows are grazing ruminants and quality pasture remains the lowest cost feed. To maintain total production, grain and imported Palm Kernel Extract have been used with the latest data from DairyNZ showing the gap between income and the cost of production closing rapidly. However not for all. ere are those planning to milk fewer cows sometimes on less hectares, reducing infrastructure pressures with income comfortably exceeding costs.
e industry response to steadily decreasing farm pro tability, a trend since 1950, has been to lift the number of cows milked by an ever-decreasing number of people.
ose that have opted not to follow that path have employed alternative technology that does not rely on synthetic nitrogen use and aided by science have turned pasture and animal management into an artform, focussing on the enjoyment that comes from a harmonious low stress lifestyle of their own making.
Functional Fertiliser has, over the past 25 years, provided products and supported farmers that now steadily grow more pasture with a more even spread throughout the year and enjoy outstanding animal health and performance with lower overall costs. For more information, call Peter on: 0800 843 809.
to a winter event when farmers can generally a ord to take a day, or days, o to attend.
It is not possible to put a value on eld days. Granted, they are a chance to see the latest innovations, not only in machinery, but also technology, and to see and compare pricing and o erings for that new piece of equipment but one of the most important aspects is the unique opportunity it provides for farmers to mix with fellow farmers and gain
a wider perspective of how di erent farmers and regions have fared during the season, and predictions for the season ahead. In that regard the Mystery Creek Fieldays is one of the biggest morale boosters for everyone involved in the agricultural industries, and here’s hoping it will be a successful event for everyone involved. We have milking quality silage bales, hay and straw available at the moment and we are taking orders for bulk grass silage which will be delivered to your farm in spring. Feel free to contact us for a quote.
If you think the last year has been wet, you’re not wrong.
In the year June 1, 2022, to May 31, 2023, we recorded 4951mm of rain at the farm in Ohauiti. Put into context that is just under ve metres of rain – two-and-a-half times the normal average rainfall of 2000mm!
At the yard in Paengaroa we had 2315.5mm for the same period. at’s more than 1000mm more than the previous year.
And here’s another startling statistic – in the year to May 31, 2023, the longest period without rain was just seven days! is brings into focus why the whole country is enjoying more than 10 days of sunshine in early-June.
e MetService is predicting an El Nino signal has started in the tropical Paci c Ocean and almost all climate commentators are predicting a signi cant full blown El Nino will be in place by the end of winter. El Nino is literally a reversal of the unrelenting wet weather we’ve experienced during the last year - i.e: it can be extremely dry conditions.
Grass growth is lower than usual due to saturated soil conditions and not much sun and low-lying farms are still struggling for grass growth. Despite a good start to the growing season, pasture yields are down more than they have been in recent years were in previous years due again to that unending rain and low sunshine hours.
Another interesting perspective on the low yields is that we are feeding our cows an additional 20 per cent of daily intake giving them 30m2 each per day supplemented of course with silage and bought-in feed.
We are now well into the dairy grazer season
with dairy grazers on the farm. Traditionally, sending the cows away for winter spearheads a time when farmers can step back and get a few days or, hopefully, weeks away from the farm –ideally somewhere warm and sunny. One of the advantages of getting away from the farm is the wider perspective it provides on the season you’ve had and what you can do to prepare for the season ahead.
I was interested to recently read that insurance companies have quanti ed that the claims, which arose from the Auckland Anniversary and Gabrielle cyclones, dwarf those which resulted from both the Christchurch and Kaikoura earthquakes. Yet more evidence the weather has knocked the country around.
Moving forward hopefully we can look forward to a drier winter with better feed utilisation for dairy grazers and dry conditions for calving.
e rst few months of the dairy season are some of the most demanding of the year in terms of the need for the varied grass growth needed for springers, dry cows and milkers so we need to be planning for that demand now.
As I write this the National Fieldays are just a few days away. e event is a drawcard for farmers, lifestyle blockers and urbanites interested and supportive of New Zealand’s agricultural industries.
e Mystery Creek Fieldays is the biggest agricultural event in Australasia attended by people from across the country. e event languished in the Covid years with the traditional June date thrown out by lockdowns so it is great to be back
With the annual migration of herds over for 2023, you might sense that you have crossed the border into a di erent country, rather than just another council area, if you were to check out the local subdivision rules.
And any hopes of leaving the red tape behind will probably have faded already.
Shifting on to your rst farm, or taking a plunge on a larger block might have looked attractive a while back when you decided to move.
But now that interest rates have climbed and commodity prices look to have less upside, some might be looking to ick a lifestyle block to keep the bank manager happy.
Some might have even planned it that way at the outset. Either way, forget what you know and talk to the local council or, better still, an experienced subdivision company if you have less time to spare.
So, regardless of where you moved from, if you have crossed the border into a new council area di erent rural subdivision rules will apply. But, I hear you say: “We are still in New Zealand and governed by the same Resource Management Act aren’t we?” Well yes, but di erent councils have a di erent take on the legislation and approach growth in a di erent way. Also land use characteristics, including contour and soil fertility, vary from place to place. Some councils place more emphasis than others on environmental enhancement through subdivision and then, of course, there are local politics at play.
Many of the opportunities for subdivision of rural land today revolve around environmental
protection and the enhancement of natural features that once may have degraded due to a push for higher productivity.
Today, many custodians of the land are focused on restoring wetlands, native stands of bush and regenerating scrublands. is hard work is rewarded with opportunities in many district plans for the subdivision of lifestyle blocks. Typically these will take out only minor amounts of arable land or be located on the least productive land. is bene t gives the landowner some return for their contribution to the sustainability of the wider ecosystem.
Another opportunity landowners have is to rearrange the existing titles that they own, or work with a neighbour to realign their common boundary to a practical position. Titles can often be changed in shape or size and even relocated to a di erent position on the farm. is provides a vehicle for creating appropriate titles for family members who are retiring or starting out on their own. It also creates an opportunity to move some capital out of the farm to provide for personal security. Many farms have multiple titles because previous owners have taken advantage of past subdivision rules. Perhaps it might be time to consider this yourself.
If you would like to explore your options, we are happy to give you the time to discuss the full potential of your land so feel free to give us a call and discuss your situation.
Fieldays celebrated 55 years of highlighting and supporting innovation in the primary sector last month by recognising the three most remarkable innovations on show at a gala evening on June 15.
The Fieldays Innovation Award competition has three award categories: Prototype, EarlyStage, and Growth & Scale. Plus, a Fieldays Young Innovator of the Year Award for the younger generation.
The 2023 Prototype Award winner is Waikato Milking Systems for their ErgoPOD.
Aimed at both the local and international market, the ErgoPOD provides a step change in milking and revolutionises the way cups are presented and managed in the milking shed.
The judges say it exemplifies what can be achieved when solid design is combined with innovative idea generation, deliberate simplification and effective root cause analysis.
“With just the right amount of automation, the ErgoPOD reduces injury risks, halves the time to apply milking cups, removes multiple hazards for a cow entering and leaving the milking platform, creates opportunities for precise measurement and control of milk quality, and even speeds up the process of cows exiting a rotary milking platform.”
The 2023 Early-Stage Award winner is eClean
Envirotech. Judges say this team blended strong contemporary science and Mātauranga Māori in an authentic way, with Kawa and Tikanga of traditional Māori science – and their application of scientific theory with a practical application impressed. “They have partnered well with an engineering firm and have the ability to manufacture from the beginning and have already achieved early commercial success.”
The 2023 Growth & Scale Award went to first-time entrants Wilderlab, which can protect and map our environment via their environmental DNA monitoring solution.
The judges liked the novel technology, multiple avenues for growth and strong commitment to values that epitomise the best of NZ.
And the 2023 Young Innovator of the Year Award winner is St Paul’s Collegiate School with their Capra Skin Goats Milk lip balm. The judges commented on how the group had identified a need, formulating steps and iteration to come up with a final product to make a real difference to its target market of youth, combining primary products and the benefits that come with these.
Fieldays programme manager Steve Chappell says the calibre of this year’s entrants was incredibly high and even more outstanding considering despite the quick turnaround. “This demonstrates how the innovation eco-system is thriving, it’s fantastic.”
Entries for 2024 are open at: www.fieldays.co.nz/ attend-fieldays/explore/innovation-awards
ere is no doubt that the calving period is a very tiring and often stressful time for dairy farmers.
Di culties come in a myriad of ways, from calving troubles to downer cows and milk fever to mastitis and machinery breakdowns. To top it all o , the weather doesn’t always make it any easier. So the last thing you want is sickness going
through your calf pens and compromising your future milkers.
StockMate is a 100 per cent natural product, certi ed organic, which is high in carbon and humic acid, helping to boost the immune system of growing calves and assist them ghting disease.
It is a loose lick, which is left as a free choice supplement in calf pens.
At the StockMate stand at Fieldays in June, they received lots of positive feedback from calf-rearers. ey reckon
StockMate has been making life easier for them for some time now, helping to keep sickness out of calf sheds. But don’t just take their word for it, try StockMate for yourself. Below is what farmers say about StockMate.
“I leave StockMate in each
pen to enable ad lib feeding, which they do happily. I add it on top of their water supply and they get into drinking water the same day. I haven’t bought electrolytes or Scourban for three seasons now and I do not use antibiotics either.”
“I am a solo calf-rearer for two farms – with 350-400 heifers – and have no trouble with rotavirus or any other gut-related diseases, on a property with a history of seasonal outbreaks. I have seen StockMate detox, hydrate, break fever, perk up,
encourage water intake and keep calves’ tummies rm. I strongly suspect it helps with their rumen development as well due to my heifers increasingly reaching earlier weaning weights.”
Having StockMate available to your calves from day one helps to prevent sickness getting a foothold in your calves. Why not make life easier for you and your calf-rearers this spring and put StockMate in your calf pens. It’s totally natural and organically certi ed for organic dairy farmers.
Farmers must be mindful of their own welfare as well of that of their livestock, says FarmWise consultant James omas, who exhibited at Fieldays this year.
With calving just around the corner, James says some relatively simple actions now can pay o later during dairying’s traditional busy spell.
“Get some meals in the freezer and snack packs at the shed,” says the long-time dairy farmer at Kereone, near Morrinsville.
At the cowshed, he also recommends that farmers make sure the rst aid kit is up-to-date.
For those new to an area after the June 1 changeover, James says it is a good time to “meet the neighbours” and get involved in organisations such as Federated Farmers and Young Farmers Clubs.
“Have the ability to take time o from the farm.”
For bigger on-farm teams, James says communication is particularly important.
For those of you who have moved farms also ensure that the property is set up as promised in the agreements, with adequate pasture cover and supplement reserves.
Cow condition is also obviously important, says James.
Speaking to Coast & Country News on June 1, he says the following six-week window is all about getting the farm in order for the new season to come. is includes any required repairs and maintenance to fencing and the milking shed, while also addressing winter feed budgets.
Closer to calving, James says farmers need to have a “ rst-round planner” prepared for stock rotation around the property.
e rst round of calving is another six-week period which he calls “the most critical of the farming year”.Items handy at the ready when on the farm include taggers and ropes (for calving in the paddock), plus calcium for “down” cows.
At the next stage – calf rearing –“don’t skimp” on feed quality, while also ensuring the hygiene of pens. For cows, there is a six-week “transition period” after calving before their full appetite returns.
James says there should be a steady increase in feed during this period.
“Don’t overdo it.”
Mid-September is typically the “balance date” – which dovetails into mating – when pasture becomes the bulk of the cows’ diet.
James says the past dairy season in the Waikato was wonderful.
“ ere were some challenges with the wet weather, but there was plenty of grass around.”
While payouts for milk solids were high, so were on-farm costs including fuel and fertiliser.
“Silage was also a lot more expensive this year,” says James.
It remains an employees’ market in the farming sector, with shortages New Zealand-wide
“ ere is a good career path in farming,” says James. “But at the moment it is hard to get people into the industry.”
Talking to Coast & Country News before Fieldays, he says it will be interesting to see how Fieldays go this year as this is a “good barometer” of farmer con dence.
always
at is Albert Einstein’s de nition of insanity. Henry Ford
In this article we are referring to out-of-date soil testing and fertiliser practices. With farming economics at the present time
higher interest rates, and lower commodity prices, some producers are looking for di erent production approaches and ways to balance the farm budget.
e high costs of fertiliser during
rethink their fertiliser strategy, which has been re ected in a reduction of 25-30 per cent of fertiliser sales by the major players in the industry.
Innovative producers are moving away from the views strongly held by decades of chemically-focused fertiliser production models, methods, and practises. ey have turned their backs on the current fertiliser production model.
eir experience with new fertiliser focal points and practices have seen increases in production and gross margins to levels well above average. With the new environment they now nd themselves in, innovative farmers are forcing the reductionist scienti c community to rethink traditional fertilising systems.
Multi-pasture species, focusing on soil biology, balancing soil nutrients, and fertiliser to stimulate photosynthesis (which may vary from ve per cent to 95 per cent of potential) are at the forefront of this new complete systems approach. ere are locations particularly within dairy farming, where current practices are not sustainable from an environment point of view, owing to leaching of fertiliser nutrients through the soil pro le or via runo .
To continue farming in those areas, sustainable and resilient practices must be adopted, there are some farmers doing this right now, but they could do better.
Changes in the way we test and evaluate the soil and its fertility should be investigated. Current testing procedures are not correctly identifying
problems and issues these soils have.
At a time when New Zealand needs its farmers to be producing at maximum production levels to pull this country out of its economic gloom, any reduction in land to be farmed would be unnecessary and disastrous. Balancing soil nutrients, fertilising the soil correctly, accurately identifying excesses and de ciencies are at the forefront of the Albrecht System of Soil Fertility.
is is not a base saturation ratio theory, as some have incorrectly labelled it.
e Albrecht System of Soil Fertility uses the Total Exchange Capacity of the soil to identify the sum of the cations in the soil. e Base Saturation is calculated from the complete soil audit. ere is a relationship between the physical structure of a soil and its TEC/ BS percentage.
We question why NZ continues with the Su ciency Level of Available Nutrients theory that only supplies enough soluble nutrients to grow a crop on a yearly basis. In other words, a plant-feeding regime that does nothing to improve the condition or health of the soil. In fact, the nutritive values of the food produced under that system has declined about 50 per cent since WW2.
is is a result of both excesses of some nutrients causing de ciencies of other nutrients, and failure to supply some major and trace nutrients. Concentrating on chemistry will not solve the problem of nitrogen driving carbon out of the soil.
at can only be recti ed by restoring the soil’s biology so organic matter can be increased, reducing the transfer of carbon to the atmosphere.
“Insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting di erent results.”
did, you will always get what you always got”.Farmers are being encouraged to use di erent techniques when it comes to their soil.
Fertiliser affordability around the world is starting to improve, and a rapid recovery in consumption is possible in some regions in 2023.
But in most cases, demand will take a while to return to pre-pandemic levels, according to a new report by agribusiness banking specialist Rabobank.
In its semi-annual Fertiliser Outlook report, Rabobank says global fertiliser prices started to trend higher in the first half of 2021 due to supply constraints resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic.
“Affordability deteriorated further when fertiliser prices set new record-high levels after Russia invaded Ukraine. By that time, reasonable commodities prices were the only reason
unaffordability didn’t surpass the record set in 2009 during the global economic crisis,” the report says.
“Most fertiliser prices are gradually returning to their historical averages, and in some cases, like urea, current values
factors is helping affordability.
“However, global consumption may take two or three years to recover, and the speed of recovery will depend on how long the current positive cycle lasts.”
For the New Zealand market, report co-author Vitor Cacula Pistoia said further price cuts for fertilisers are expected over the remainder of 2023 – especially for phosphate fertilisers.
if no other ‘Black Swan’ events take place.
“This shift in price trend will be crucial to offset the lower New Zealand agri commodity prices we’ve seen across recent months and to sustain margins on the positive side.”
are below historical levels already.
“On the commodities side, values remain above average in some cases, due to tighter stocks.
“The combination of these two
“Due to intrinsic characteristics, fertiliser price movements in New Zealand tend to lag behind those in international markets, and we anticipate the price falls we’ve seen in other regions will flow through to New Zealand prices over coming months.
“The past three years have seen growing price curves for fertilisers and now it is likely that prices in the remainder of 2023 and early-2024 will reduce
The New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research has recently published a paper titled ‘Nitrogen fertiliser use in grazed pasture-based systems in New Zealand’.
The research paper was commissioned by the Fertiliser Association of New Zealand and written by AgReserch senior scientist Colin Gray. The paper’s aim is to amalgamate and summarise some of the published New Zealand-based research on
N fertiliser use in grazed pasture-based agricultural systems in the last 50 years.
“This is timely given the increasing attention and scrutiny N fertiliser use in grazed systems is receiving in NZ by the general public as well as local and central government.”
A link to read the paper can be found at: www.fertiliser.org.nz/Site/news/articles/colin-gray2023-research.aspx
(Source: Fertiliser Association of New Zealand).
We specialise in high quality, mesh and PVC covers to suit trucks, trailers and farm bunkers. All of our covers can be easily operated from the ground using a silky smooth cable system, eliminating health and safety risks.
• Must meet all standard food production & safety law.
>Organics< with Chemicals
• Must meet all standard food production & safety law.
• Open methods adopted.
• Can use chemical ripening/topping.
• Treated seeds, wide range of inputs.
• General knowledge of systems by market.
• Great for bulk cheap food production.
• Marketing: increasingly rebranding, grass fed, NZFAP, animal welfare codes.
• Urea, super-phosphate, high inputs.
• All Ag inputs can be used.
• All biocides can be used.
Farmersthe most farmed animal in NZ
Certifi ed Org anic A g
Pertaining to Carbon Through the Living >>Biotic<<
• A range of marketing codes of with varying production practise.
• Guidelines based on biological systems with chemical management.
• Guidelines/production standards not always available.
• Diverse plants (treated seeds) support eco-system, in part.
• Practise based on lowering carbon footprint.
• Validation of residue levelsif we cannot detect it >>>>great!
• Broadacre herbicide is used.
• All biocides can be used.
• All Ag inputs can be used.
• Developing markets with big partners… Syngenta, Bayer, & more.
Disclosure of Practise Non-Consistent
• Must meet all standard food production & safety law.
• International third-party validation and principles.
• 80+ years since need identifi ed.
• Regulations based on biological/natural systems.
• Regulations/ production standards always available.
• Practise based on carbon cycle via the living.
• Diverse plants support broad eco-system.
• Validation of inputs..if it didn’t go in>>>>>>
• No broadacre herbicide.
• Natural, target specifi c biocides.
• Established under-supplied markets.
Integrity Through Transparency
e Waikato-based company uses Pinus Radiata Sawdust from local mills.
“In 2021, we started making high-grade biochar, a stock feed supplement; it promotes weight gain, digestion, blood levels, boosts immunity, nutrient intake e ciency, adsorption of toxins due to its permeability and extended surface area, reduces enteric methane emissions by enhancing gut microbial fermentation and growth of bene cial microbes in the gastrointestinal tract, which ultimately improves animal health and productivity,” says a company spokesperson.
“Although it’s widely used overseas, biochar is a relatively new concept to New Zealand farmers, we were fortunate enough to have it trialed in calf pens last year to replace previously used Bentonite.
“Results were overall improved health and appearance, increased vitality, no scours, and a decline in mortality rate.
“We have also had reports of very happy, healthy laying hens after the addition of biochar
to their feed, results included eggs with thicker, harder shells, an increase in egg yield, and a noticeable di erence to the hygiene of the coop.
“Come and see us to learn what we can do for you and your animals, suitable for dogs, horses, poultry, sheep, goats, cows and pigs of all ages.
Ken Sanders has nostalgic memories of growing up on a dairy farm in Te Poi. He remembers going for rides on his father’s tractor and being allowed to harrow his rst paddock alone at eight years old. He can even picture the exact paddock to this day. He became a dairy farmer himself.
“I was a bit of a Nu eld man and my rst tractor was a Leyland Nu eld, but I’ve had other brands too,” says Ken.
Ken sold his farm and bought a Katikati orchard in 1992 to grow kiwifruit.
e tractor collecting was kickstarted when he retired and wanted a tractor for trekking with the Tauranga Vintage Machinery Club.
e tractor he bought from an orchard in Te Puke in 2019 through TradeMe was an unusual
nd. e Massey Ferguson 30 was manufactured in France, somewhere between 1962 and 1964.
“While it’s Massey Ferguson design and has their hydraulics system, it’s quite di erent and Renault have had a say in it. It would have come over new as a lighter weight tractor for tasks such as mowing school grounds.”
e diesel four-cylinder Perkins A4.107 engine is 30HP and has eight
forward and two reverse gears.
“ e top two gears were synchromesh which was a pretty modern development as far as a tractor was concerned.”
e 30 is very rare as they were only made for two to three years.”
Ken says that once they brought out the Massey Ferguson 35 in the United Kingdom, it was superior to the 30 and sales dropped o .
“I’m surprised that any of the 30s
ended up in New Zealand in the rst place.”
While the tractor is rare, its Perkins engine isn’t rare as it was used in other areas such as the marine industry.
It does have di erent aspects though which enthusiasts, especially Massey Ferguson ones, spot straight away.
“It has a distinctive edged chassis which the engine sits on and a di erent braking system.”
Ken uses the tractor for trekking and admits it’s just for show. A mechanic did the paintwork and engine restoration. He is drawn to rare tractors as his next project is a late 1960s Muir-Hill 101. ere is little information about them and while in the United Kingdom, Ken went to York, the last place that Muir-Hill had a factory, but he didn’t nd out much.
“It’s not working now, but I will certainly try to get it running.”
New Zealand-designed chambers to measure the amount of methane produced by sheep are now being rolled out in other countries.
Scientists here have been breeding low emission sheep since 2008 when they discovered that the amount of methane a sheep emits was a heritable trait.
In order to gure out the low emitters from the rest, sheep were placed in chambers which measure their burps.
Other countries have now started adopting the tech with the chambers in use in Norway, Ireland, Scotland and Wales.
Rob Hodgkins, a sheep farmer in Hertfordshire, just north of London, was the rst to use them in England. He recently tested some of his 2500 New Zealand romneys.
“It was really neat, it was like putting a sheep in a washing machine, you load them in and it only takes 15 minutes,
they were really chill. We could tell they weren’t stressed because they weren’t respirating heavily.
“We measured their methane, carbon dioxide and oxygen levels and we should get the results in a couple of weeks.”
e chambers were brought to the area by Scottish Rural University College, with funding help from the UK government.
AgResearch senior scientist Suzanne Rowe was part of the team that made the methane heritable trait breakthrough, and says it’s great to see the chambers being used internationally.
“It’s really exciting but it’s also a little scary as we let our technology go and we wait with bated breath to hear the results.” Suzanne says the measuring chambers were now widely used in New Zealand, with about 10,000 sheep being tested annually. She says the number of sheep being tested was expected to continue to grow.
curriculum vitae
CV’s THAT STAND OUT. Don’t let your C.V. get lost amongst all the others. Get the WOW factor.
A C.V. For You can provide you with a personal and professional touch. From scratch or update existing ones. Check out samples on www.facebook.com/acvforyou or Ph/text on 021 27 27 912.
July 7
Uku Seed Bomb Workshop, 10am-noon, Creative Community Campus, Historic Village, 17th Ave West, Tauranga, $15. See tinyurl.com/2t3vmf6k
July 8-9
Guided Tour of Te Parapara Productive Garden, 11am, Hamilton Gardens, free but booking essential. Limited places. See tinyurl. com/8u6p83ba
July 9
Orchid Auction, noon, Masonic Hall, Oxford St, Te Puke. Cash only. Ph 07 573 9710.
E-waste Collection, 8.30am-1pm, Lions Market, Cambridge.
See urbanminers.nz
Steam Day, 10am-4pm, Te Amorangi Trust Museum, Holdens Bay, Rotorua, $15. See tinyurl.com/sj8ws3nh
What is Moehau
Environment Group Doing?, talk by Paul Johnson, 5pm, Peppers Restaurant, Coromandel Township, koha. See tinyurl.com/5n7frvs2
July 10
Kawakawa Pani/ Healing
Balm Workshop, 10am-noon or 6-8pm, Papamoa Library, free but bookings essential. See tinyurl.com/39s8amwz
Making Room for Rivers, talk by Tom Kay of Forest & Bird, 11am, e Arts Junction, Katikati; 7pm, Surf Lifesaving Club, Papamoa, free. See tinyurl.com/ykes2368
July 11
3 Ways with Super Silverbeet, 6-8pm, Patuki Manawa, next to Katikati Library, $25. To book ph 021 163 1699.
July 13
Kokedama (Moss Ball) Workshop, 11am-1pm, Creative Community Campus, Historic Village, 17th Ave West, Tauranga, $46. See tinyurl.com/4apyzs2v
Te Po Kitakita: A Matariki Celebration, 5.30-8.30pm, e Arts Village, Hinemaru St, Rotorua, free. See tinyurl. com/2a9awxsn
for sale
PULLETS HY-LINE BROWN, great layers. Phone 07 824 1762 www. eurekapoultryfarm.weebly.com
* your listing *
DO YOU HAVE something to sell or looking to buy or promote your business? List it here for only $23 for up to 20 words. Email office@ thesun.co.nz or call 07 578 0030.
July 14
Celebrating Matariki, 6am, end of Park Rd, Katikati, free with scone and hot drink. See tinyurl. com/4vvkpkj5
July 15
Matariki Multicultural Tree Planting, 10.30am-1.30pm, Waiwhakareke Reserve, Hamilton, free. See tinyurl. com/ynmawb7r
Matariki ki Waikato Market Day, 4-8pm, Hamilton Lake, Hamilton, free. See tinyurl. com/2p8cv2dc
July 16
Bird House & Feeder Workshop, 11am-1pm, Creative Community Campus, Historic Village, 17th Ave West, Tauranga, $41. Ages 10+. See tinyurl. com/2n55jnax
July 20-31
Guided Tours of Hamilton Gardens, 11.15am, $20. See tinyurl.com/2p8uhfdy
July 23
Orchid Show, Hamilton Gardens Pavilion, Hamilton. Ph 021 306 982.
July 27
A Life in Floristry, 7.30pm, Waikato Horticultural Society talk by Kate Jacobsen, Wintec classroom, Hamilton Gardens (Gate 2), visitors $5. Ph Carmel 07 855 3404.
Aug 1-20
Guided Tours of Hamilton Gardens, 11.15am, $20. See tinyurl.com/2p8uhfdy
Aug 5
Crop Swap Katikati, 9.30-10.30am, 45 Beach Rd, Katikati. Ph 07 549 2337. Te Aka Mauri Family History Day, 10am-3.30pm, Rotorua Library, free. See tinyurl.com/yfzj7b45
Aug 6
Secrets & Surprises on Coromandel Islands, talk by Prof Dave Towns, 5pm, Peppers Restaurant, Coromandel, koha. See tinyurl.com/5n7frvs2
Scion scientists have embarked on important new research to nd out how much methane is being consumed by microorganisms in New Zealand’s planted forest soils.
Forest soils are good habitats for bacteria that absorb and release methane (CH4) as a source of carbon and energy.
By quantifying how much methane is consumed by the bacteria, known as methanotrophs, at eld sites, the project will reveal just how important planted forest soils are to NZ as part of broader e orts that seek to better understand the country’s total net emissions and ways to mitigate climate change.
Once complete, the research will provide valuable insights for policy makers examining greenhouse gas emissions as it can be used to paint a more accurate picture of the country’s total net carbon budget.
Due to agricultural activity, methane production in NZ is disproportionately high on a per capita basis – about six times the global average, according to Scion senior scientist Dr Steve A. Wakelin.
Steve says as such, understanding the potential for other land uses, such as forestry, to mitigate these agricultural emissions is critical. “We know that forests are great for storing carbon from carbon dioxide, but this research is helping us learn about forestry’s capability to o set methane emissions as well.
“We believe it is a rst step in a future programme of work that will demonstrate how di erent land uses in NZ are all interconnected, and how to manage these holistically for win-win outcomes.”
Steve says NZ’s economy is reliant on the livestock sector for jobs, food and income. Scion’s research aims to show how forestry can support the agricultural
sector to tackle one of its biggest challenges. “Scientists are working on breeding lower methane-emitting livestock, using methane ‘vaccines’ and inhibitors, and investigating farming system change such as feed and additives. However, even combined these are unlikely to ‘nudge the needle’ enough to meet our emissions reduction targets. As Aotearoa works towards a low-carbon future, this issue is one for us to tackle together.”
e Ministry for Primary Industries is funding the research, with support from Lincoln University. It follows international studies proving that forest soils create optimal conditions for the methane-absorbing microbes.
As methane in the air passes over and di uses within forest soil, methanotrophs consume the methane.
“We nd methanotrophs are abundant in our DNA-based surveys of planted forest soils,” says Steve. “Indeed, based on overseas systems, it turns out that
planted forest soils are pretty good habitats for methanotrophs; we just haven’t looked at this in NZ before.”
Scion’s Microbial Ecology Soil Systems team is now collecting NZ’s rst eldbased measurements of methane ux – on how fast the soil microbes are consuming methane.
Researchers have installed methane ux chambers at two eld sites near Christchurch: Orton Bradley Park and McLeans Island. At both sites Scion already collects environmental DNA and measures environmental properties; this information will now be integrated with the methane ux data.
Chambers have also been installed in Kaingaroa Forest in the central North Island, which is New Zealand’s largest commercial pine plantation.
Sampling of these eld chambers will reveal how much methane the forest soil microbiome is consuming over an entire year, says Steve.
For more, visit: www.scionresearch.com
A wellbeing programme to give farmers and rural people access to counselling has been forced to pause due to insigni cant funding – right when it’s needed most.
e RuralChange Fund (born out of the Will to Live Charitable Trust) is the brainchild of Canterbury woman Elle Perriam who was compelled to lead change after her partner, a young farmer, took his own life in 2017. Mental health was a big feature at this year’s Fieldays, with an entire hub dedicated to the subject.
For ve years Elle has worked hard to create awareness and hold space for people to open up and learn about their own mental health.
However, with an eight-week waitlist to be assigned a counsellor in the public health system, Elle decided to push all money raised through the trust into a fund to connect people with help almost immediately.
For the past 18 months it has provided three free counselling sessions to more than 350 rural people. “It was around about March that we ran out essentially. Well, we had to pause the programme and it was coinciding with the Hawke’s Bay ooding.
“Applications skyrocketed through the roof, as expected, and we couldn’t keep up with the demand and it was heart-wrenching to have to turn people away...or not turn them away but put them on a waitlist till we receive more support and funding.”
At the end of 2023 something changed, says Elle. e RuralChange Fund went from receiving ve applications a week to between 25 to 30 applications a week.
en Cyclone Gabrielle caused devastation across the top and eastern North Island and even more farmers were reaching out for support. “Demand exceeded our fundraising e ort for ve years. We spent more than $130,000, so all our e orts that we raised in ve years [were] out the door within 18 months to these farmers, which was the goal. e whole time I wanted to see this money go directly to the people on the ground.”
Now Elle has brought more people on to help urgently apply for grants, and sponsorships and make relationships with government contacts. e programme’s website accepts donations and some generous donors choose to gift their tax rebates. Di erent rural organisations
have also reached out wanting to host fundraising events, says Elle. Elle knows it’s a tough time to ask for monetary donations. If people have ideas or want to help through time or labour, her emails are open.
Where to get help:
Need to talk? Free call or text 1737 any time to speak to a trained counsellor; Lifeline: 0800 543 354 or text HELP to 4357; Suicide Crisis Helpline: 0508 828 865/ 0508 TAUTOKO (24/7). is is a service for people who may be thinking about suicide, or those concerned about family or friends.
Depression Helpline: 0800 111 757 (24/7) or text 4202; Samaritans: 0800 726 666 (24/7); Youthline: 0800 376 633 (24/7) or free text 234 (8am-12am),
What’s Up: free counselling for those aged ve-19, online chat 11am-10.30pm 7 days or free phone 0800 WHATSUP / 0800 9428 787 11am-11pm; Asian Family Services: 0800 862 342 Monday-Friday 9am-8pm or text 832 Monday-Friday 9am-5pm.
Languages spoken: Mandarin, Cantonese, Korean, Vietnamese, ai, Japanese, Hindi, Gujarati, Marathi and English. Rural Support Trust Helpline: 0800 787 254 Healthline: 0800 611 116 Rainbow Youth: (09) 376 4155\ OUTLine: 0800 688 5463 (6pm-9pm). If it is an emergency and you feel like you or someone else is at risk, call 111.
Leah Tubbutt/RNZ
