Few still hurting dairying – Gerald Piddock:
The bottom 10 per cent of dairy farmers is giving traction to the ‘dirty dairying’ slogan, according to DairyNZ chief executive Tim Mackle.
The industry has to aspire to 100 per cent compliance, but the reality is that there will be farmers who do not comply, he says.
Dr Mackle made his comments during a panel discussion about improving perceptions within the industry held at the South Island Dairy Event in Dunedin.
The industry had to remain profitable because that gave farmers options and drove sustainability, Dr Mackle said.
“The two go hand in hand. The minute we lose profitability, sustainability goes down the gurgler.” . . .
Farm goals acheived with monitoring:
Waikato farm consultant Brendan Brier believes lessons learned from the Waikato/Franklin Beef + Lamb New Zealand Monitor Farm are easily transferred to most sheep and beef operations.
“Monitor farms provide a valuable template for family farms wanting to instil greater structure and direction around the business and can be accessed by all farmers,” said Brier.
Mr Brier has led the Waikato/Franklin Beef + Lamb New Zealand Monitor Farm on behalf of the Waikato Innovation Park for the past three years. . .
Milk price recovery expected next year – Gerald Piddock:
Rabobank senior analyst Michael Harvey says he does not expect to see a recovery in milk prices until early next year because of high stockpiles.
That recovery might be reflected in the milk price later this year, he told the Dairy Event in Dunedin.
“The global economy’s going to be weak but certainly hopefully we’ll start to see a better picture by the end of this year,” he said. . . .
NAIT arrival hiccups kept in check – Tim Fulton:
NAIT’s entry to saleyards probably went off with less fuss than the debut for primary and secondary tags a decade ago, says one of PGG Wrightson’s leaders.
PGW livestock general manager Nigel Thorpe dropped in on yards in Waikato and Bay of Plenty last week, one of many keeping an anxious watch over a historic moment for the country’s cattle trading and processing.
With evident relief Thorpe said the compulsory process of scanning, checking registrations, transferring data to software and on to the NAIT database “went without a motion really”. . .
Farm papers a hit in the city – Jamie Ball:
Much like the Slow Food Movement creeping its way across 150 countries since the 1980s, the Great Cafe Challenge could nail the zeitgeist of this decade.
The popular initiative has just kicked off in Australia and Godzone is now following. The aim couldn’t be clearer: reconnect townies with the land by getting farming magazines and newspapers into cafes about the country. The understanding and appreciation of what goes in to produce the nation’s food is a subtle but vital cog in the agricultural wheel.
As the Great Café Challenge’s Facebook page highlights, “No cafe in Australia would be possible without the farmers who grow the food and supply the milk. This is a challenge to every cafe owner across Australia to carry at least one weekly rural newspaper in their shop to help bridge the city-country divide.” . . .
Homepaddock 