More than 300 lambs worth $40k stolen from Ruawai farm – Sally Murphy:
The Kaipara mayor, who is also a sheep and beef farmer, has had $40,000 worth of stock stolen.
Jason Smith had 307 new season lambs disappear from his Ruawai farm between 17 November and 1 December.
Smith said the farm manager noticed they were missing last week when they were being mustered to the yards to be sold.
“This is not just a small number of like 10 sheep or three steer missing, this is 307 lambs it’s a sizeable mob for someone to walk or drive away. . .
Forestry on farms fires up speakers – Shawn McAvinue:
Is forestry a threat to rural communities or an opportunity too good to refuse?
About 70 people attended the panel debate “Plantation forestry — threat or opportunity?” in Dunedin last week.
Independent debate chairman Stephen Woodhead, of Milton, gave each of the four panel members 10 minutes to speak.
Ministry for Primary Industries Te Uru Rakau forest and land use senior adviser Duncan Harrison, of Christchurch, said a Ministry for the Environment report published in October estimates up to 1.37million ha of new forest — a mix of native and exotic — could be planted in New Zealand between 2020 and 2050. . .
Forestry operators hope for recovery after ‘perfect storm’ hits log prices :
Forestry contractors are bracing for a tough summer as they wait for log prices to recover and harvesting to regain momentum.
Prices were at near record levels earlier in 2021, but last month sunk to lows not seen since late 2015.
As a result the amount of logs heading to ports had slowed significantly, with many harvesting crews being told to work at a reduced capacity, or down tools.
China is New Zealand’s largest overseas market for logs, accounting for about 70-90 percent of exports. . .
Golden Shears cancelled for second year due to Covid-19 uncertainty :
New Zealand’s major shearing event has been cut for the second year in a row, with organisers sighting uncertainty due to Covid-19.
The Golden Shears had been held at Masterton’s War Memorial Stadium each March for 60 years.
The 2021 competition was called off at just four days’ notice after a Covid-19 alert level change.
Golden Shears International Shearing Championships Society president Sam Saunders said cancelling for the second time was an extremely tough call, as everyone on the committee knew how important the event was to the farming community and Masterton. . .
Exploring regen-ag with an evidence driven approach :
Ngāi Tahu Farming will transition an iwi-owned dairy block to regenerative agriculture principles and practices, while measuring multiple variables to build a data set that demonstrates the difference between its conventional and regenerative dairy systems. The trial was influenced by an earlier collaboration with the Next Generation Systems programme.
Ngāi Tahu Farming is designing a farm-scale trial that will transition an iwi-owned dairy block to regenerative agriculture principles and practices. This trial will see Ngāi Tahu Farming monitor and measure multiple variables, to build a data set of information that demonstrates the difference between its conventional and regenerative dairy systems. The farm-scale trial will build on a completed trial of regenerative practices on an iwi-owned 114-hectare dairy support block.
The design of the dairy system trial has also spurred discussion about te ao Māori and farming values within Ngāi Tahu. A new iwi consultancy group has been formed for the purpose of helping Ngāi Tahu shape the mātauranga Māori principles in the trial, and to help filter information coming out of the trial back to the iwi.
The decision to undertake these trials, applying a scientifically rigorous approach, was influenced by Ngāi Tahu Farming’s earlier collaboration on Farm Soil Health with the Next Generation Systems research programme, led by Dr Robyn Dynes, strategy lead and senior scientist at AgResearch, and funded by Our Land and Water. . .
Waitiri Creek not your usual winery – Cy Sinderson:
It’s said that a business is always a reflection of its leadership. So, a CEO who has been given no mandate to grow his or her business from the shareholders will always cultivate a culture of conservatism within the company. On the other hand, a CEO who has been given a free hand is far more likely to create an atmosphere where risk taking is actively encouraged.
With that in mind, it’s easy to see why Waitiri Creek is not your usual winery. Having an owner and general manager with the business reputation and overall clout of Alistair Ward means that his family’s boutique Otago winery is never going to follow the same safe path that so many other wineries tread. In his other life as a director on multiple corporate boards and co-owner of corporate advisors Campbell MacPherson, Alistair is used to dealing with weighty business transactions like mergers, acquisitions, divestments, capital raising and debt finance. And when your clients include a rollcall of national heavyweights like Hynds, Fonterra, Holcim and Ravensdown, you are not used to dodging the hard decisions. So it is of little surprise that Alistair has dared to continually steer guide the family vineyard into new territories. . .
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