The wool industry hopes for some lifting of COVID-19 restrictions limiting shearing and crutching to animal welfare reasons only.
“The shearing and crutching that is happening is taking place in the sheds where the contractors are helping to introduce social distancinghttps://www.stuff.co.nz/national/121104102/coronavirus-will-the-duckshooting-season-go-ahead? protocols,” says Federated Farmers meat and fibre chairman Miles Anderson.
“The staff are all 2m away from each other and that sort of thing. So, the shearing and crutching that is happening on farm is taking a bit longer.
“Any wool that has been shorn in the last several weeks is being stored on farm.” . .
Coronavirus: Overseas farmers forced to dump milk during Covid-19 lockdown – Esther Taunton:
Overseas dairy farmers are pouring millions of litres of milk down the drain every day but it is business as usual for their Kiwi counterparts.
With pubs, cafes and restaurants closed due to the coronavirus outbreak, farmers in Britain are dumping up to 5 million litres a week, the Financial Times reported.
In the United States, up to 14 million litres of milk is going down the drain each day, according to the Dairy Farmers of America co-operative. . .
Coronavirus: Will the duck-shooting season go ahead? – Kirsty Lawrence:
The duck-shooting season is due to start in two weeks, but there are still big questions about whether it will even be possible
The Covid-19 website initially said no to hunting under level three, but then changed to say they are re-looking at this and would provide an update soon.
The New Zealand Fish & Game Council held an online meeting on Friday to discuss an options paper about the ways forward, a spokesperson said.
“We appreciate that everyone wants some certainty around what we know is a national tradition. . .
Dairy’s corona headache – Rabobank:
The outbreak of COVID-19 is weighing on global market sentiment and the 2020 outlook.
The underlying assumption is that many of the disruptions in China will normalize by the end of Q2 2020.
Rabobank believes there has been a shift in the global market fundamentals. A material reduction in China’s 1H 2020 import requirements looms over the global market balance. Chinese dairy import volume is forecast to fall 19% in 2020. . .
Farmer’s Voice: success is in the bloodline – Craig Wiggins:
Since the 1960’s the Blackwell’s have farmed on Mangaotea Station, taking pride in the high-quality cattle they produce. These days Rob, Jaqueline and Zarrah farm three separate cattle studs on the property, with an obvious family rivalry pushing them to breed the best they possibly can.
Adapt quickly – Colin Williscroft:
Traceable, trusted and safe food will be more important than ever before in post-lockdown society but consumer behaviour has changed and New Zealand food producers must adapt quickly, KPMG agribusiness global head Ian Proudfoot says.
An understanding of food’s importance in peoples’ lives is greater today than it has been in decades, probably since the 1940s, he told an AgriTech webinar.
“We’ve always assumed food will be there but now there is an awareness we could face food insecurity.
“Now we recognise food supply is not certain. Food availability will no longer be taken for granted.” . .
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