Farmer of the year

26/10/2023

It started with a column by ODT business and rural editor Sally Rae saying this should be the Year of the Farmer.

. . .  Let’s make 2023 the Year of the Farmer; remember synthetic is just a fancy word for plastic, so clothe your families and clad your homes in natural, sustainable products, and support — and salute — your local food producers who are outstanding in their field year-round. Literally.

The positive response inspired  the ODT to act and make this the Year of the Farmer:

. . . The article triggered an outpouring of support for farmers and growers, from both rural and urban folk and from all walks of life. In response, the teams at the Otago Daily Times and Rural Life have come together to officially make 2023 the Year of the Farmer.

The aim is simple; to acknowledge the contribution of farmers and the importance of the primary sector to the national economy and to salute those food-producing heroes.

Year of the Farmer will showcase the work of farmers to create an environmentally, economically and socially sustainable future, while also making a positive contribution to their rural community.

To celebrate the initiative, we are on the hunt for an outstanding South Island farmer or grower who ticks all those boxes, to be awarded Year of the Farmer 2023. . . 

The response was huge:

The Otago Daily times and Rural Life have been overwhelmed by the support and enthusiasm for the 2023 Year of the Farmer initiative, which celebrates the South Island’s food and fibre producing champions.

ODT business editor Sally Rae said screeds of nominations were received, covering the length of the South Island, and they made for heart-warming reading.

‘‘They reflected exactly why we implemented this initiative; to showcase the work of farmers to create an environmentally, economically and socially sustainable future while also making a positive contribution to their rural communities.’’

The nominations had been narrowed down to 52 — representing the weeks of the year — and they will be profiled by Ms Rae  and her team of rural journalists in a special publication, to be published on August 30, she said.

A judging panel would select the five finalists.. . .

The winner announced this week was North Otago dairy farmer Myfanwy ALexander:

. . . Humble and hard-working, Ms Alexander, 37, was chosen by a panel of judges from five finalists in a celebration of the South Island’s food and fibre-producing champions.

Nelson and Fiona Hancox (Tapanui), Stefan and Holly Roulston (Heriot), Stu and Sarah Jamieson (Luggate) and Ross and Jo Hay (Herbert), along with Ms Alexander, were selected from a stack of nominations following the initiative’s launch at Wānaka A&P Show in March.

Judge and Landpro executive director Kate Scott said Ms Alexander embodied the positivity of the campaign, which was all about celebrating rural people who were creating an environmentally, economically and socially sustainable future while also making a positive contribution to their rural communities.

Continuing to progress through the dairy industry as a single mother with two young daughters, she had demonstrated resilience and an approach of “getting on and doing it” — making a success of her life and contributing to her community.

Welsh-born Ms Alexander, who is a contract milker on a 1000-cow farm near Duntroon, is president of North Otago Federated Farmers, the regional lead for the Dairy Women’s Network and a member of the South Island Dairy Event governance group.

She also instigated a group in her local area for female dairy farmers.

Her nominator described her as “literally the embodiment of what the farming industry should be”. . . 

Myfanwy is a deserving winner and the ODT deserves plaudits for a winning initiative.

Response to it was so positive the ODT has confirmed the Year of the Farmer will be run again next year.

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Rural round-up

20/04/2023

National’s getting back to farming :

National’s Getting back to Farming package will cut the mountain of red tape that has buried farmers since 2017, National Leader Christopher Luxon says.

“Labour has used regulation to declare war on farmers. National will end that war by cutting red tape.

“New Zealand has the worst current account deficit in the developed world. If we don’t earn more from overseas, there will be consequences – like lower wages and less money to spend on the public services we all want and need. 

“Farming is the backbone of our economy. Last year agriculture exports totalled $41 billion or 63 per cent of our goods exports. When farmers succeed, New Zealand succeeds. . .

Some movement in prices at latest Fonterra GDT auction, but there will need to be more – Point of Order :

At last, a glimmer of light for dairy farmers as prices rose  at the  latest Fonterra  GDT auction. It is the  first rise in more than two months.

The  question is whether the rise is  just a  flicker or  whether it will be sustained at subsequent auctions.

At the sale overnight  prices rose  an average 3.2%, reaching $US 3,362MT.

Winning  bidders  totalled 105 from a  total 158 with the  quantity sold  22,713MT. Wholemilk powder sold for $3089, up 1% and skimmilk powder,$2776, up 7%. Cheddar rose 5.7% to $4,411, butter 4.9% to $4,891, and anhydrous milkfat 4.7% to $4,981. . . 

 

Beef + Lamb wants changes to on-farm emissions plan :

Beef and Lamb New Zealand says farmers shouldn’t have to pay for on-farm emissions until a robust emissions measuring and reporting system is up and running.

Farmers are set to pay for their on-farm emissions from 2025 – with the government adopting a split-gas on-farm levy which was developed by industry partnership He Waka Eke Noa.

Beef + Lamb is part of the partnership, but chair Kate Acland said after feedback from farmers they wanted some changes.

“We’re calling for the staged implementation of an agricultural emissions framework, starting with the establishment of a robust emissions measuring and reporting system, with a price on emissions not introduced until outstanding issues are resolved. . . 

 

Pining for success: Pinoli takes home top honours at the 2023 Outstanding NZ Food Producer Awards  – Emma Rawson :

Extracting a delicate nut from within the fortress shell of a pinecone takes determination and skill. Amateur nut harvesters often abandon the quest empty-handed, despite signs of the struggle in crushed nuts and marked fingers. Marlborough’s Andy and Barb Wilshire of Marlborough have persevered and found establishing a business from pine nuts has been just as tough a nut to crack as the kernels themselves.

In 1998, Andy and Barb founded Pinoli Premium Pine Nuts in the Wairau Valley, planting their strange-looking pines on a former sheep and fodder farm. At the time, their neighbours were busy with row after row of sauvignon blanc vines.

Scientists thought only a bunch of nutters would plant pine nut trees. Neither viable nor economic declared a research paper of Pinus pinea, the umbrella-shaped pine that produces edible pine nuts and is also known as a stone pine. Pine nuts had no future as a food business for this country, said the scientists.

Andy read the report and planted 1000 Pinus pinea anyway, and the following year he and general manager Lee Paterson planted a further 40 hectares. . .

Farmlands, Federated Farmers & Stuff team up to re-fence cyclone-impacted regions :

With tens of thousands of kilometres of fencing needing to be replaced or repaired in the wake of Cyclone Gabrielle, Farmlands, Federated Farmers and Stuff are calling on Kiwis to ‘Post Your Support’ as part of their plan to help farmers and growers.

The goal is to help to re-build the kilometres of fencing lost in Northland, the East Coast and parts of the Central North Island after the cyclone by supplying the fencing materials needed and the person-power to build new fencing quickly and to a high standard. Post Your Support is encouraging Kiwi businesses and individuals to donate $20 fence posts – each of which represents about a metre of fencing that will help farmers and growers get back on their feet.

Farmlands brings its buying power and extensive supplier relationships as a rural supplies farmer owned co-op, Federated Farmers its ability to mobilise farmers from across the motu to help, and Stuff its reach to all Kiwis who want to help farmers and growers get their businesses back up and running.

Post Your Support is launching with around $650,000 of funds already available – which will support up to 25 kilometres of fence repairs or replacement. Many times this sum is going to be required, given the thousands of kilometres of new fencing estimated to be needed. . . 

Wanaka A&P Show donates 30,000 to North Island farming communities :

The Wānaka A&P Show has donated $30,000 towards ongoing support for Cyclone Gabrielle-affected farmers and rural communities.

The significant donation was raised through ticket sales from the 2023 Wānaka A&P Show, held in March. One dollar from every adult ticket sold and livestock entry contributed to the fund.

The Wānaka A&P Show’s governing body – the Upper Clutha A&P Society – donated the funds to the Rural Support Trust, an on-the-ground service supporting cyclone-impacted rural communities in New Zealand.

Upper Clutha A&P Society board chair Brenda King says the decision to donate was unanimous across the board and management team. . .

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Rural round-up

27/11/2021

Close call highlights necessity for on-farm covid plan – Gerald Piddock:

A sharemilking couple whose staff member become a close covid-19 contact are backing calls for farmers to create a plan in case they get a positive case in their bubble.

That checklist needs to be a living, moving document because of the variables that can occur during a close contact or covid positive situation on a farm when there are the needs of staff and animals to be taken into consideration.

The employee, Sarah*, became a close contact after they visited a family member while observing distance protocols.

One of the members of that household tested positive after they had met, which made that worker a close contact. . . 

‘Tomorrow’s too late’ – Borders open not fast enough for labour shortage :

Rural contractors struggling with a labour shortage are relieved the borders opening next year, but say they need workers sooner.

The government yesterday announced fully vaccinated foreign nationals would be allowed into the country from 30 April 2022, without needing to go through managed isolation.

Rural Contractors New Zealand chief executive Andrew Olsen said the border announcement was amazing news, but it had come too late for this summer’s harvest.

Andrew Olsen said the sector urgently needed 200 workers, but efforts to bring in skilled overseas workers through the MIQ system had proved extremely challenging. . . 

Wānaka A&P show to go ahead :

One of the South Island’s biggest agricultural shows will go ahead next year, bucking the trend of widespread cancellations of A&P shows around the country.

Organisers of the Wanaka A&P show have confirmed to RNZ that the show will return in March, despite a spate of show cancellations across the country in the past six months due to Covid-19 restrictions.

Gore was the latest show to be cancelled earlier this week, following the cancellation of the national A&P show in Canterbury at the beginning of November.

Wānaka event manager Jane Stalker said the show is a community event and a highlight on the town’s calendar. . . 

Share concentration risk allayed – Hugh Stringleman:

The risk of ownership concentration in Fonterra arising from proposed changes in the share standard will not adversely affect the co-operative, according to investment bankers and corporate advisors Northington Partners.

The firm was commissioned by Fonterra Co-operative Council to assess the proposed capital restructure, which includes much smaller minimum shareholding requirement and much larger permitted excess share ownership.

Within what Fonterra now calls the new flexible shareholding the historical one-for-one share-backed supply rule would be considerably changed.

The minimum requirement would be one share for three kilograms of milksolids and farmers would be permitted to own shares up to four times their annual milksolids production. . . 

Delving into diversification – Ben Speedy:

The future of farming is reliant on good people making good decisions – successfully managing risk today to ensure the farm is fit for tomorrow. We know from conversations with our customers those decisions weigh heavily on the minds of farmers.

Recent Kantar research conducted by ASB Rural told us 57% of farmers surveyed have succession planning on their minds. We know that for some owners of inter-generational businesses there can be added pressure when it comes to the business succeeding both today and into the future; it’s appeared to work up until this point so there is an expectation that it must continue to be successful.

Owning and running a business has never been easy, but inter-generational business owners often carry an extra burden with extra considerations, and at ASB Rural we work with our customers to support them as they make these decisions. . .

Don Agro International achieves 8.9 thousand tonnes growth in crops harvested :

Don Agro International Limited (the “Company” or “Don Agro”) and its subsidiaries (collectively the “Group”), one of the largest agricultural companies based in the Rostov region of Russia is pleased to announce that it has achieved a 8.9 thousand tonne growth in total crops harvested, with 72.3 thousand tonnes of winter wheat and 19.0 thousand tonnes of sunflower harvested till date.

A key driving force which has enabled Don Agro to sustain this growth has been the expansion of the Group’s totalled controlled land bank via new strategic acquisitions.

Following its initial public offering in February 2020, the Group made its maiden post-listing acquisition at the end of 2020 of Volgo-Agro LLC, an agricultural company based in the Volgograd region of Russia operating a controlled land bank of approximately 10,040 hectares. Subsequently in July 2021, the Group acquired a neighbouring agribusiness, Rav Agro Rost LLC (“Rav Agro Rost”), located in the Millerovo District, Rostov Region of Russia. With an arable land bank of approximately 3,200 hectares, Rav Agro Rost alone contributed up to 3.1 thousand tonnes of winter wheat and 1.54 thousand tonnes of sunflower. . . 

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Rural round-up

19/06/2021

How morale among our food producers is flagging in the face of Covid fatigue and Ardern’s regulatory agenda – Point of ORder:

KPMG’s global head of agribusiness, Ian Proudfoot​,  reports morale in  NZ’s farming  industries has slumped over the past year, with industry leaders struggling under the pressure.

“We could sense anger during our conversations, particularly in relation to the labour shortages the sector faces”.

Proudfoot is the  author of  the  KPMG “Agribusiness Agenda” , delivered at a   breakfast session at the opening  day  of  the  Fieldays,   billed  as the  largest agricultural event  in  the  southern  hemisphere.

He  believes  NZ’s role in a global “food renaissance” could be hampered by Covid-19 fatigue and sweeping regulatory changes. . . 

Farmer who’s experienced his own struggles urges others to ‘get talking’ about mental health -:

A farmer of 28 years is encouraging others to talk about their mental health after experiencing his own struggles. 

Marc Gascoigne told Breakfast he had struggled with depression and anxiety on and off for 22 years.

However, he did not seek help until he had a “massive panic attack” six years ago, which he described as a breaking point.

Although he received support through Farmstrong, he did not speak up publicly about his struggles until his nephew, who was also a farmer, took his own life. . .

Auckland cycle bridge at cost of regional roads:

The Government is forging ahead with an ideological vanity project, in the form of a cycle bridge over Waitematā harbour, at the expense of the day-to-day maintenance of local roads and state highways across the country, National’s Transport spokesperson Michael Woodhouse says.

New Zealand’s councils are $420 million short of the funding they expected to get from NZTA to maintain roads in our towns and cities around the country. Meanwhile NZTA itself is short $340 million it needs to maintain state highways.

“All up, the Government has short-changed the country $760 million worth of funding that should have gone towards maintaining our roads.

“This isn’t about building new roads, this is just making sure we can drive safely on the ones we’ve got. . . . 

Wanaka A&P Show contributes almost $28.6 million to local economy :

The 2021 Wanaka A&P Show brought $28.6 million worth of direct economic benefits to the area, an independent study has found.

The report, prepared by Research First, looked at the total expenditure by visitors, trade exhibitors, volunteers, spectators and competitors over the two-day event in March.

The amount of total direct spending is up $17.7 million on the previous independent economic impact report, undertaken in 2015 (which found that the Show contributed $10.9m worth of direct economic benefits). No economic multipliers have been applied. . . 

On-farm ‘Intelligent Eye’ provides farmers with real-time health of dairy herd:

A pilot of a new automated on-farm monitoring system designed to provide farmers with an “intelligent eye” over the health of their herd, allowing for early detection of conditions such as lameness, will be launched today at Fieldays 2021.

Created by the makers of the world’s first sheep facial recognition system, Dunedin-based Iris Data Science, the technology is currently being piloted on five dairy farms in the lower South Island with success – and the company hopes to extend this to around 50 farms.

The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) is contributing $40,000 to the project through its Sustainable Food and Fibre Futures (SFF Futures) fund.

“Our pilot farms are already seeing promising results, with farmers saying they are receiving valuable, accurate, and consistent information on the condition of their herds,” says Iris Data Science’s co-founder and managing director Greg Peyroux. . . 

ASB commits $100 Million in low-cost green loans to help farmers tackle environmental impact:

Kiwi farmers wanting to boost their climate resilience and make a positive difference to the environment are set to benefit from ASB’s new Rural Sustainability Loan, which offers a market-leading 2.25% p.a. variable rate for sustainable farming improvements.

ASB rural customers can now tap into discounted lending to take their farm sustainability to the next level, with funding available for conservation and biodiversity restoration, and projects to drive the switch to renewable energy, prevent pollution and waste, cut emissions, and promote healthy soil, ecosystems, waterways and animal welfare.

The new offering follows ASB’s recently announced Back My Build loan, which encourages Kiwis to boost housing supply with a market-leading rate for new builds. Both initiatives make use of the Reserve Bank of New Zealand’s Funding for Lending scheme, as ASB honours its commitment to use the low-cost funds for productive lending to benefit all Kiwis. . . 

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Rural round-up

29/07/2019

A united primary sector at last:

The united and unprecedented stand taken last week at Parliament was historic.

Read: Primary sector’s commitment to reducing emissions.

It brought together farmers, growers and other related sectors seeking to solve the vexing problem of agricultural emissions. 

Eleven different groups, including Maori, took a united position on climate change, even daring to challenge one recommendation by the Independent Climate Change Commission (ICCC) set up to advise the Government.

Faced with a hijacking of the climate change issue by greenies and others, the agri sector got its act together in style.  . .

Dutch methane blocker hits NZ roadblock:

A Dutch company trying to get its methane-slashing innovation into the hands of Kiwi farmers says it’s hit a roadblock with New Zealand’s regulations.

Methane emissions from livestock like sheep and dairy cows account for around a third of New Zealand’s emissions.

The animals themselves did not produce methane, but rather a group of microbes, called methanogens, that lived in the stomach (rumen), and produced methane, mainly from hydrogen and carbon dioxide when digesting feed. . .

Hawke’s Bay farm puts meat on the menu at some of New Zealand’s finest restaurants – Simon Farrell-Green:

You’ll find Pātangata on Google Maps if you look, though it’s barely a town, more of an intersection with a tavern beside the Tukituki River, not far from Havelock North where the vineyards and plains of Hawke’s Bay graduate to rolling hill country.

Here, the Smith family – Duncan Smith, Annabel Tapley-Smith and their children Tabatha and Rupert – farm several hundred hectares of rolling country and irrigated flat land, either side of the river, finishing Angus cattle and Suffolk-Texel lambs on grass rather than grain, and producing meat of uncommon quality. . .

Diversity aspect to next year’s A&P Show – Kerrie Waterworth:

Bee keepers, flower growers and other non-traditional farming types will be highlighted at next year’s Wanaka A&P Show.

Event manager Jane Stalker said this year’s marketing campaign focused on the people of the Upper Clutha and was incredibly successful.

She said she hoped to repeat that success, by focusing on diverse local agricultural businesses instead for next year . . .

Hāwera man’s life of music and farming – Catherine Groenestein:

Pat Powell’s neighbours used to listen to him practising Italian opera songs as he worked on his farm.

Powell, who recently turned 90, sang all the arias made popular by Pavarotti decades later and could have made a career as an international tenor, but instead chose to stay in South Taranaki.

“I was invited by Donald Munro to come to Auckland and join the New Zealand Opera Company, but I went to boarding school in Auckland and I hated every minute of it,” he said. . .

 

Montana ranchers can now get paid to sequester carbon using rotational grazing practices –

CO2, or carbon, is a dirty word these days – and for good reason. Due to a number of causes including the burning of fossil fuels and widespread deforestation, there is far too much CO2 being returned to the atmosphere, resulting in climate change. The U.S. Energy Information Administration estimates that in 2017 the United States emitted 5.1 billion metric tons of energy-related carbon dioxide, while the global emissions of energy-related carbon dioxide totaled 32.5 billion metric tons.

Despite the grim outlook, there are ways of reversing the abundance of CO2, including sequestration, which is the process of capturing and storing atmospheric carbon dioxide. An entire marketplace has developed around CO2 mitigation that enables CO2-emitting industries to purchase carbon credits from businesses engaged in offsetting activities, such as the production of renewable energy through wind farms or biomass energy, as well as energy efficiency projects, the destruction of industrial pollutants or agricultural by-products, reducing landfill methane, and forestry projects. . . 

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Rural round-up

14/03/2019

Lack of Kiwi workers a problem – Chris Tobin:

Young New Zealanders are still slow in coming forward to work in the dairy industry and it’s becoming a mounting problem, not just in dairy, but also in other sectors.

South Canterbury Federated Farmers dairy spokesman Ads Hendriks said he advertised a position in recent months and only one of the nine applicants was a New Zealander.

”Two were Filipinos already on a farm in New Zealand, two were Indians also on farms here and then there were four others from India.

”The one New Zealander had a CV which had three months on a job, followed by another three months and another three months. That’s the sort of choice you have as an employer.” . . 

Could Overseer be leading to troubled waters? –

Time is fast running out to iron out all the issues with Overseer, writes Federated Farmers North Otago Dairy Chair Jared Ross.

Key Otago Regional Council Water Plan nitrogen leaching rules take effect in April 2020 and your attention is needed immediately.

A recent meeting on the Otago water plan drew a sizeable crowd, who picked a number of gaping holes in the regulation as they tried to understand the real impact on their business beyond April 1, 2020.

Many of these shortcomings relate to the hard numbers based on Overseer contained with the Otago water plan. . . 

Three generations all judging – Sally Rae:

There was something a bit special going on in the equestrian judging at the Wanaka A&P Show.

Three generations of one family were officiating in the ring, led by family matriarch, the remarkable Catherine Bell (81), of Southland. Mrs Bell has had a lifetime involvement with horses and ponies and that interest has been passed on to her daughter Dawn Kennedy, who is in her 60s, and grand-daughter Georgina Bell (22).

All three were at Wanaka, kept busy with various judging duties.. . 

Time for Marlborough to discuss water storage –

It is time once again, as the wider Marlborough community, to discuss water storage writes Federated Farmers Marlborough provincial president Phillip Neal.

Liquid gold or water as it is known in Marlborough is our lifeblood.

The Marlborough Environment Plan hearings have just finished after fifteen months. Water allocation was the last issue raised but I think the most important.

This included water allocation from all our rivers, especially our biggest river and aquifer, the Wairau. . . 

Motueka fruit exporter opens cutting edge apple packhouse – TIm O’Connell:

A major player in Motueka’s fruit industry says its new apple packhouse is as “good as it gets in the world” .

Golden Bay Fruit Packers’ new 25,000 square metre packing house has been officially opened on a 4.6 hectare site on Queen Victoria St.

More than 800 guests from the Motueka community and the company’s 200 Pasifika RSE workers attended the opening ceremony inside the new building on Tuesday. . .

Seeka purchases Aongatete Coolstores for $25m:

Seeka Limited today announced that is has agreed to purchase kiwifruit orcharding, packing and coolstore business and assets of Aongatete Coolstores Limited in the Bay of Plenty for $25m.

Seeka Chief Executive, Michael Franks said the acquisition was aligned to the company’s growth strategy and builds on Seeka’s kiwifruit foundation. “Aongatete’s kiwifruit packhouse and coolstore facility processes around 4.5m trays of green and gold fruit, providing Seeka additional market presence in a growth industry. The acquisition compliments our existing business with further infrastructure in a great growing location.” . . .

Dutch cows are about to walk on water: here’s how – Richard Martyn-Hemphill:

This spring in the Dutch port city of Rotterdam, cows will walk on water.

Holy Cow?!

Not exactly: they’ll simply be the first offshore bovine residents aboard a maverick urban agtech project known as the Floating Farm.

Two vast steel mooring poles fasten a buoyant three-story structure of concrete, steel, and polycarbonates to the riverbed beneath Rotterdam’s Merwehaven Harbour.

If it is a bit surprising all those materials stay afloat, it will be even more so once it gets packed, over the next few months, with a hale and hearty herd of 40 Meuse-Rhine-Issel cows.  . . 

https://twitter.com/Global_Farmers/status/1104646157245009920

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Rural round-up

10/03/2019

Canterbury shepherd a history-maker as Young Farmer of the Year finalist – Emma Dangerfield:

A North Canterbury shepherd has made history by qualifying for the prestigious FMG Young Farmer of the Year grand final.

Georgie Lindsay, 23, won the fiercely-contested Tasman regional final in Culverden on Saturday, beating seven other contestants. It is the first time a woman has made it to the grand final from the Tasman region.

She is also one of only five women in New Zealand to ever qualify for the grand final in the competition’s 51-year history. . . 

Showchanges over to years ‘unbelievable’ – Sally Rae:

Few know their way around the main ring at the Wanaka A&P Show like Tussock Lucas. Mr Lucas (74), who will be in his usual position leading the grand parade today, has attended the show for 57 years.

He competed for many years in jumping events and also exhibited sheep and wool at the show while farming at Timburn Station, near Tarras.

Now semi-retired and living in Wanaka, he is chief steward for round-the-ring jumping at the show and also helps out with the FEI showjumping classes.

Agritech is growing :

Agritech has been buzzing since a large Australian event was held last month. In Melbourne, AgriFutures Australia hosted EvokeAG, an event designed to bring together the agritech community. Over 1,100 attendees, including a strong contingent from New Zealand, were treated to a great overview of where the industry is at, what are the big innovations, key challenges, opportunities and who the principal players are in the agritech space.

The programme covered panel discussions on everything, from field robotics and agriculture 4.0, to alternative protein farming and tech investments. From a New Zealand perspective, one key takeaway came from AgritechNZ executive director, Peter Wren-Hilton.

“The exciting thing for New Zealand is our alignment with addressing many of the big global challenges for feeding the world while not destroying the planet.” . . 

Allbirds is taking its viral fabric tennis shoes to China – Selina Wang:

Allbirds Inc., the wool shoe startup that’s become a staple of Silicon Valley fashion, is opening its first stores in China, aiming to replicate its viral success in the world’s second-largest economy.

San Francisco-based Allbirds plans to announce this week that it will open a brick-and-mortar store in Shanghai in the coming months. By the end of the year, it plans to have stores in Beijing and Chengdu. It will also be rolling out its goods on Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.’s Tmall online shopping website as well as building its presence on Chinese social media services including WeChat and Weibo. . . 

Winter brings a year’s worth of water for 9 million Californians – Peter Chawaga:

California may have a reputation for persistent drought and water scarcity, but already this year the state’s freshwater reserves are worth celebrating.

Storms in the beginning of January brought an influx of snow to the Sierra Nevada and heavy rains elsewhere in the state, boosting its water reservoirs exponentially.

Over the first three weeks of January, “47 key reservoirs that state water officials closely monitor added 580 billion gallons of water — as much as roughly 9 million people use in a year,”  . . 

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Rural round-up

09/01/2019

Chucks empire lays golden egg – Bryan Gibson:

For many in business 1987 was a bad year but for Max Bryant it was the beginning of something special.

Under pressure from the bank over a kiwifruit development that hadn’t panned out Bryant decided to build a chicken shed at home in Halcombe, the small Manawatu settlement where he lived.

Thirty years later he has sold the company, Proten, for $400 million.

Bryant estimates about $60m of that will stay with shareholders in the district, who were ground-floor investors.

He admits Proten has come a long way since that first shed was built out the back. . . 

A new wave of stress relief – Luke Chivers:

The Gisborne farming community is testing the waters this summer and seeing how surfing can be used as a way to let off steam.

Staff at AgFirst have created a programme dubbed Surfing for Farmers to help rural communities reduce stress and it works, AgFirst consultant and programme founder Stephen Thomson said.

“When you get off the farm and into the water it’s like taking a plunge into another world.

“For an hour or two you forget about everything else.” . . 

It’s time to look at soil health – Dr Han Eerens:

Spare a thought for soil — arguably our most underappreciated natural resource.

Globally, 95% of the food we consume comes from the earth. Soil serves as the earth’s largest natural water filter helping supply the world with fresh, clean water. Additionally, one-quarter of the world’s biodiversity — including millions of microbes which are key to the success of today’s antibiotics — are found in soil. Yet despite all this our soil is being destroyed at a rapid rate. . . 

Mycoplasma bovis eradication is far from done and dusted – Keith Woodford:

There is a widespread belief in both the rural and urban communities that Mycoplasma bovis is well on the way to being eradicated from New Zealand. My response here is that there is a still a long way to travel before any declarations of success are appropriate.

In December, Prime Minister Ardern, no doubt choosing her words carefully and based on official advice, talked of ‘substantial progress’.  However, the broader tone of both MPI and DairyNZ messaging has led to parts of the media and then the general public taking a further step and concluding that the battle is almost over. . . .

A career in dairy might be more different than you think –

Fonterra Chief Operating Officer of Farm Source and Global Operations, Robert Spurway, says a career in dairy doesn’t necessarily mean milking cows.

According to Primary ITO chief executive Dr. Linda Sissons, one in five applicants for their new dairy apprenticeship programme are from Auckland. The programme, in partnership with Federated Farmers, is responding to the need for an estimated 17, 000 new workers by 2025. It will encourage more smart, innovative and ambitious people – including those from urban centres – to consider a career on a dairy farm.

This is great news because with increasing animal welfare, environment, and compliance requirements, number 8 wire will only go so far. Today, our farmers need to be everything from agronomists, environmental scientists, veterinarians to high-tech experts. . . .

New Wanaka A&P Show campaign explores what it means to be “local”:

The Wanaka A&P Show today launches a timely campaign about the sense of community and what it means to be a local in Wanaka.

The ‘Call Me Local’ campaign is a tongue-in-cheek inquiry into the tricky question of ‘how long does a person have to live in Wanaka before they’re considered a local?’

Correspondingly, Wanaka is experiencing significant growth, development and change – leading residents to prioritise the sense of ‘community’ even more. The Wanaka A&P Show campaign acknowledges this to remind people about the importance of being part of a community. . . .

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Rural round-up

11/03/2018

Farmer’s lucky escape from Cyclone Bola – Kate Taylor:

A lucky glance gave now-retired Whatatutu farmer Rod Mead time to escape when a flooded river topped its stopbank. Kate Taylor talks to a survivor of Cyclone Bola.

Rod Mead looked across the river flats on Waitahoata Station near Whatatutu, Gisborne, with horror but also relief. Minutes earlier, he had been lifting equipment in the station’s old woolshed in case Cyclone Bola flooded the valley.

Glancing towards the river, Mead saw it had breached its stopbanks and immediately went outside and started up the tractor. As he did so, floodwater swirled around his ankles and he steered the tractor toward the safety of his hillside track 400 metres away.

He didn’t look back again until he reached the track and when he did he saw floodwaters raging where moments before he had been standing.

Learn from best dairy farmers – Alan Williams:

New Zealand’s best dairy farmers are achieving results well above average levels and other farmers are being urged to learn from them.

Their pasture and animal health management put them well ahead in milk produced per cow liveweight and in lower rates of cow losses.

Research overseas and in NZ showed leading farmers are ahead of the consultants, institutions and available information in the work they’re doing, veterinary surgeon and farm systems analyst Brian McKay told a Federated Farmers dairy group presentation in Christchurch. . .

MPI stock process creating huge stress – Sally Rae:

From a distance, Kerry and Rosie Dwyer’s Maheno farm looks a picture.

The sun is shining on a glorious autumn day in North Otago and the paddocks are covered in lush, green grass.

But something is missing; shelter sheds – usually home to hundreds of calves – sit empty and the 120ha farm is devoid of stock, apart from a few sheep.

“I’ve got no business. It’s stuffed and I accept that.

“I just don’t know what we’ll do,” Mr Dwyer says. . . 

Barren paddock turned bustling village: Celebrating 25 years of the Central Districts Field Days -Sam Kilmister:

The Central Districts Field Days turn 25 next week. Sam Kilmister looks back at an agricultural showcase that had small beginnings and now a big following.

Noel and Eleanor Mortimer recall the moment their son-in-law Don Eade started the Central Districts Field Days.

He had returned from the Mystery Creek Fieldays, near Hamilton, which ignited a vision to have it replicated in Manawatū. . .

What a whopper! Dart takes pumpkin prize again – Sally Rae:

It was a hell of a pumpkin.

Dart Watson might have been one of the younger entrants in the produce shed at the Wanaka A&P Show, but he sure grew one of the most spectacular entries.

For the third consecutive year, Dart (13) won the largest pumpkin in the junior section with an absolutely whopping vegetable. . .

Heat detection device up for an award :

A low-cost device designed to detect when cows are ovulating and ready to be inseminated has earned two Kiwi entrepreneurs a place among the finalists in the 2018 New Zealander of the Year awards.

Fraser Smith and Matt Yallop, of Farmshed Labs, are finalists in the New Zealand Innovator of the Year category for their product FlashMate.

 

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