Rural round-up

Another industry signs up for biosecurity partnership:

Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy has welcomed Pipfruit New Zealand onboard as the third industry to join the Government’s biosecurity partnership.

The Deed of the Government Industry Agreement (GIA) for Biosecurity Readiness and Response was signed by Pipfruit New Zealand today.

“This means that apple and pear growers and the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) can work closely together and make joint decisions on readiness and response to manage mutual high priority biosecurity pests,” says Mr Guy. . .

More support for Otago farmers to improve water quality:

Dairy farmers in Otago are receiving more support to meet upcoming water quality rules through a series of DairyNZ ‘EnviroReady’ field days being held with the support of Federated Farmers and Beef + Lamb.

More than 200 farmers and rural professionals attended four recent field days in both north and south Otago, with the last one being held this week at Elderslie, near Oamaru.

DairyNZ’s sustainability team manager Theresa Wilson says the farmers were given an understanding of new regional environmental rules and regulations presented by Federated Farmers’ policy staff. . .

ANZ to pay $19 million in interest rate swaps case:

The Commerce Commission has reached a $19 million settlement with ANZ Bank New Zealand Limited (ANZ) in relation to the marketing, promotion and sale of interest rate swaps to rural customers between 2005 and 2009.

The settlement will see ANZ establish a payment fund of $18.5 million, to be used to make payments to eligible customers (those who registered their complaints with the Commission). The Commission will also receive $500,000 towards its investigation costs, and some monies from the payment fund are able to be distributed to charitable organisations for the assistance of the rural community. . .

Federated Farmers call Commerce Commission ANZ settlement ‘fair and equitable’:

Federated Farmers have described the Commerce Commission settlement with the ANZ Bank over interest rate swaps as ‘a fair and equitable outcome’ for rural customers.

Federated Farmers President Dr William Rolleston says the agreement that the ANZ will pay compensatory payments to customers, who believe they were misled by their interest rate swap contacts, is the best outcome which could be expected.

“While some farmers found interest rate swaps a useful instrument, others felt they were not adequately informed of the risks should the market run against them. The Global Financial Crisis created those unexpected and unfavourable conditions. Federated Farmers wrote to the Commerce Commission asking it to investigate and the outcome today vindicates our stance,” Dr Rolleston says. . .

Rural areas need law reform – Hugh Stringleman:

Regional economies are declining when a means of revitalisation is within reach according to a new study of the potential for mining.

The New Zealand Initiative think tank has published the Poverty of Wealth, subtitled why minerals need to be part of the rural economy.

It sought to answer the conundrum of why resource-rich regions were not tapping into the wealth beneath their feet. . .

Weevil-killing wasp in demand:

Farmers in Southland have been queuing up for supplies of a small parasitic wasp used to fight a serious pest.

Scientists have warned that farms in region could be hit hard by the clover root weevil again this summer – one of the worst pasture pests that attacks and destroys clover.

AgResearch scientist Colin Ferguson said more than 200 farmers had attended workshops in Southland to find out more about the pest and where and how to release the wasps. . .

 20K signs without delay  call:

Rural Women New Zealand says this week’s accident in Canterbury, when a teen was hit crossing the road after getting off a school bus, may have been avoided if the bus had been fitted with flashing 20K signs.

Rural Women New Zealand took part in a trial of new LED signs in Ashburton last year, which included a public education and police enforcement campaign. The trial proved very successful in slowing drivers and Rural Women New Zealand hopes that the signs will be approved for general use on school buses in 2015. . .

Blue Sky Meats acquires Clover Export, adding beef, venison processing – Jonathan Underhill:

 (BusinessDesk) – Blue Sky Meats, whose shares trade on the Unlisted platform, has agreed to acquire Gore-based Clover Export, adding processing capacity in beef and venison to the range of services it can offer to sheep and bobby calf customers, while attracting new suppliers.

No price was disclosed for the transaction. Chairman Graham Cooney said Clover is about 10-15 percent of the size of Blue Sky in terms of turnover. Blue Sky’s revenue was $95.3 million in its 2014 year. More details may be given in the company’s annual report after its March 31, 2015, balance date.

Clover’s owners include European shareholders and, as part of the deal, Blue Sky has agreed to continue with Clover’s horse meat processing on a toll basis for sale into the European market. Horse meat will be a small ongoing business, amounting to about “a day a month,” Cooney said. . .

Another Success for NZ Farming:

CarboPhos®, a phosphate based fertiliser developed after conducting pot, plot and field trials and construction of a pilot plant in Nelson NZ, has been granted a patent in both New Zealand and Australia.Independently monitored trials have shown it can be applied at half the rate of the NZ mainstream phosphate product, saving time and costs for farmers. Sales continue to grow in New Zealand as farmers begin to understand the need for slower release, soil and biology friendly nutrients, compared with the mainstream fertiliser.

Chris Copplestone, Managing Director of The Growing Group commented “We are extremely proud of being able to offer a solution to farmers who understand the need for traditional nutrients, delivered in a granular form free of the traditional sulphuric acid base”. . .

 

 

Rural round-up

High-Performing Sheep Operation Wins Greater Wellington Ballance Farm Environment Awards:

Kaituna sheep and beef farmers Matt and Lynley Wyeth are Supreme winners of the 2014 Greater Wellington Ballance Farm Environment Awards.

Judges said the couple’s 800ha (effective) farming operation, Spring Valley Enterprises, was exceptionally well run.

“This is an extremely high performing business with a defined aim to stay in the top 10 percent of equivalent farming operations.”

At a special Ballance Farm Environment Awards (BFEA) ceremony on April 16, Matt and Lynley also collected the Beef+Lamb New Zealand Livestock Award, the Hill Laboratories Harvest Award, the Massey University Innovation Award and the PGG Wrightson Land and Life Award. . .

Getting ready to kill the evil weevil  – Tim Cronshaw

Scientists are nearing the halfway mark of their target of sucking up one million wasps from Canterbury paddocks and sending them to Southland to combat the clover root weevil.

AgResearch teams armed with modified leaf blowers are sucking up weevils infected with an Irish wasp.

After counting their numbers in a laboratory, they are sent down in groups of about 100 to go to as many as 1000 Southland farmers. The wasp is a natural enemy of the weevil, which has attacked Southland clover in pastures and limited sheep, beef and milk production since arriving in 2010.

A mild winter allowed the weevil to take its small foothold on Southland farms to a widespread infestation. . .

Moths, beetles free farm of stock-threatening weed  – Iain Scott:

Once covered in ragwort, a Manawatu farm is now almost free of the stock-threatening weed thanks to the introduction of moths and beetles.

Kiwitea dairy farmer Wayne Bennett credits the cinnabar moth, flea beetle and plume moth for ridding the farm of the yellow-flowered weed that had spread through the farm two years after he bought it.

Ragwort has the ability to compete with pasture species and contains alkaloids that are toxic to stock. A single plant can produce more than 50,000 seeds. . .

Marijuana growers causing ‘level of fear’:

Many people in rural areas are ”living in fear” of drug growers and dealers taking advantage of isolated conditions, Rural Women New Zealand (RWNZ) executive officer Noeline Holt says.

RWNZ and Federated Farmers New Zealand asked their members for feedback on the Ministry of Health’s New National Drug Policy, which sets out the Government’s approach for tobacco, alcohol, and illegal and other drugs.

Mrs Holt said the main concerns of the almost 400 people who responded were about legal highs, marijuana plantations and methamphetamine manufacturing.

”Some of the most isolated homes and houses can be easily accessed and [drug manufacturers] can discreetly manufacture to their heart’s content. . .

Grape Harvest beats rain –

Nelson wineries are relieved the region’s grape harvest has largely finished ahead of prolonged rain.

Nelson Winegrowers Association chairman Richard Flatman said most people he had talked to had managed to get their grapes in.

He described this year’s harvest as perfect, as it had been early and was big on flavour. “It will be fantastic for Nelson,” he said.

Waimea Estates general manager Ben Bolitho said they had been delighted to have all but finished harvest ahead of 10 days forecast rain. . .

I like this family tree of apples #natural #NZ @plantandfood pic.twitter.com/EWY3MJicy1

— Pacific Rose Apple (@PacificRoseAppl) April 18, 2014

 

Rural round-up

New staff to boost border security:

26 New Ministry for Primary Industries border staff begin training in Auckland today as part of a programme to beef up frontline resources, Primary Industries Minister Nathan Guy has announced today.

“Close to 125 new quarantine inspectors have joined MPI in the last 18 months and this is another big boost in resources.

“The 26 new staff will graduate around the middle of this year and will be posted around New Zealand.

“While there is increasing use of technology and intelligence to protect our border, we still need people on the frontline.

“Biosecurity is my number one priority as Minister because it is so important in protecting our economy. We know that unwanted pests and diseases can have devastating effects on our farmers and growers. . .

Clover root weevil under attack in Southland – Sally Rae:

An industry-wide effort is under way in Southland to combat the damaging clover root weevil, whose economic damage has been measured in hundreds of millions of dollars nationwide.

Clover root weevil (CRW), identified by distinctive U-shaped notches on clover leaves, was discovered in the Waikato and Auckland in 1996 and has now spread as far as Southland.

A project, involving AgResearch, Beef and Lamb New Zealand, DairyNZ and Environment Southland, which has been releasing parasitised clover root weevils on Southland farms, is being accelerated. . .

Fonterra Chairman Visits New $126m UHT Milk Processing Site:

Fonterra Chairman John Wilson visited Fonterra’s new $126 million UHT milk processing site at Waitoa on the weekend.The site is in its final stages of testing before commissioning Anchor UHT milk and cream products at the end of this month.

Mr Wilson said he was impressed with how quickly it had taken the site to get to this stage with construction completed in 12 months.

“It was great to get the chance to visit and meet the team who have brought our Waitoa site to life. There is a real sense of pride from the team on the ground.  . . .

Fonterra's model farm in Beijing. pic.twitter.com/8qKiHtiUPA

— Claire Trevett (@CTrevettNZH) March 17, 2014

History repeats itself in Northland:

David Kidd is the fourth Grand Finalist to be named in the 2014 ANZ Young Farmer Contest.

The thirty year old sheep and beef farm manager of Shelley Beach took first place at the Northern Regional Final at the Kaikohe Showgrounds over the weekend, Saturday 15 March.

Thirty years after Mr Kidd’s father, Richard Kidd, became a Grand Finalist David is following in his footsteps. Richard placed third (on count back) in the 1984 Timaru Grand Final representing the Northern Region. “I don’t remember it, but I was at that Grand Final and it was my first Young Farmers experience,” said Mr Kidd. . .

Meet Dr Sunday – Alice Roberts:

A doctor living in rural Queensland says it’s the patients who have kept him in town for the past decade.

Dr Sunday Adebiyi has been a general practitioner in Dysart for 10 years.

He says it’s the friendships you strike up in regional areas that make the job worthwhile.

“I have some very, very good patients and I think about them and they think about me, they are concerned about my welfare and how I’m going,” he says.

“So with such people it would be very difficult to let them down. . .

Rabobank business alumni tour successful South Island farms:

More than 80 New Zealand and Australian farmers toured South Island farms last week as part of Rabobank’s Business Management Programme alumni tour.

They visited a deer operation, an intensive indoor robotic dairy operation and a mixed cropping and birdseed business, which was currently undertaking a dairy conversion.

They also visited North Otago dairy farmer Rogan Borrie’s four properties near Oamaru.

Borrie, a fifth-generation farmer, completed Rabobank’s Farm Managers Programme in 2007.

He said it was a rewarding experience to share the developments and technology introduced on-farm.

“We showed the tour our new computerised irrigation scheme with pivot and fixed grid sprinklers that we have recently installed in order to reduce labour time and energy and improve water efficiency,” he said . .

Rural round-up

Beef + Lamb New Zealand Board elects a new Chairman:

Northland farmer and Northern North Island Farmer Director for Beef + Lamb New Zealand James Parsons has been elected Chairman of the farmer-owned organisation.

Parsons was elected Chairman at a meeting of the board that followed the Beef + Lamb New Zealand Annual Meeting in Feilding yesterday.

Parsons said he was honoured to have the opportunity to contribute to the sheep and beef sector through the work of Beef + Lamb New Zealand.

“Beef + Lamb New Zealand is a vehicle for farmers to invest as a group, in work that they couldn’t do alone. Much of the core research and information we need in order to achieve greater profitability on our farms simply wouldn’t exist without farmer investment through Beef + Lamb New Zealand.” . . .

Fonterra needs more capital – Keith Woodford:

This is an outstanding year for dairy farmers with record farm-gate milk prices. Barring another major drought, national milk production records will also be set. But for Fonterra it is not a good year.

The problem is that Fonterra itself lacks fundamental profitability. Indeed if Fonterra were this year to pay its farmers the price which Fonterra’s Milk Price Manual calculations say it should be paying, then Fonterra would make a big loss.

Fonterra’s solution for 2014 is to build capital by retaining some 70c per kg milksolids (i.e. per kg of fat plus protein) from the theoretical milk price. This will see about $1 billion retained in Fonterra’s bank account, which in turn will avoid major new borrowings. . . .

Giant DHL moves on from fracas – Tim Fulton:

South Island farming giant Dairy Holdings Ltd believes it has emerged stronger on the other side of an ownership dispute involving titans of New Zealand farming. Chief executive Colin Glass talks to Tim Fulton about DHL’s approach to its 300 staff, its governance and industry outlook.

Dairy Holdings Ltd (DHL) could strictly be classed as a corporate, although its chief executive Colin Glass squirms at the word.

The business owns more than 50 farms and milks about 40,000 cows on more than 14,000ha but prides itself on another statistic – the number of staff it has helped into farm ownership.

Making the step from contract milker or sharemilker to outright farm ownership was difficult but not impossible, Glass said. . .

Where next for the badger cull? – Philip Case:

The future of the badger cull in England has been cast in doubt after a leaked report concluded the pilots in the South West were not effective.

Details of the long-awaited independent scientific assessment of last year’s trial culls in Gloucestershire and Somerset, seen by the BBC, claimed they fell short of their targets .

The Independent Expert Panel (IEP), which was appointed by DEFRA to evaluate the pilots, has apparently also concluded they failed the test for humaneness, after 5% of culled badgers took longer than five minutes to die.

On public safety, however, it is understood the panel will report there were no issues. . .

Dairy Industry Winners Focused On Debt Reduction:

The winners of the 2014 West Coast Top of the South Sharemilker/Equity Farmer of the Year competition, Chris and Carla Staples, are focused on reducing debt and increasing equity.

The couple, who won $11,300 in prizes, are positioning themselves to take the next step to farm ownership.

The other major winners at the 2014 West Coast Top of the South Dairy Industry Awards were Jason Macbeth, the region’s Farm Manager of the Year, and Amy White, winner of the Dairy Trainee of the Year title. . . .

Weather or weevils? It pays to check:

Is it the weather or is it weevils? That’s the question farmers should be asking if poor pasture growth is threatening on-farm productivity.

Clover root weevil is being reported across the country and especially in the Lower South Island where its prevalence is particularly high this summer. Nodules on clover roots fix nitrogen from the atmosphere and provide a ‘free’ form of nitrogen fertiliser. Weevils feeding on them disturb the nitrogen fixing with subsequent damage to foliage and pasture quality.

“Many farmers may be putting slower pasture or animal growth rates down to lack of sunshine and overcast weather given the mixed summer we have had. However clover root weevil may also be an issue on their properties and is often a hidden cause of poor pasture productivity,” says Ballance Agri-Nutrients Research and Development Manager Warwick Catto. . .

https://twitter.com/modernmilkmaid/status/444611760582975488

NZ Whisky proclaimed one of the world’s best:

He’s believed to have visited more whisky distilleries than anyone on earth and Jim Murray’s Whisky Bible boasts over 4,500 whiskies. But few score 94 points or higher, so Murray has created a special symbol for the handful of whiskies that earn the status ‘Liquid Gold.’

In a great start to 2014 for the New Zealand Whisky Company, Jim Murray’s latest edition hot off the press in London, sees the South Island Single Malt 21 y.o. scored at 95 points, placing it in the highly coveted category. This is the first time ever that a New Zealand whisky has scored so high and been anointed ‘Liquid Gold’.  

“This is a salute to the craftsmanship of the Dunedin distillers,” says company CEO Greg Ramsay. “Being recognised as one of the world’s great whiskies by Jim Murray, that’s the ultimate endorsement of your dram and all the Dunedin distillers like Cyril Yates can be proud that what they were doing in the 80s and 90s in New Zealand, was every bit as good as what the Scots were doing over in Speyside and on Islay.”  . . .