University of Waikato research reveals 2050 drought threats
New research could help farmers prepare for a future where summer rainfall is increasingly unpredictable and where drought risk is rising, no matter what.
The dairy industry is well placed to front the cost of new technologies to deal with methane emissions, but the sheep industry isn't.
That was one of the messages from the chair of the Climate Change Commission, Dr Rod Carr, a keynote speaker at last week's Agriculture and Climate Change conference in Wellington.
More than 400 delegates attended the two-day event and heard from a wide range of speakers on topics like market drivers for agricultural emissions reduction, investment in new technologies and the emission targets and tools to deal with them.
Carr says in the case of the dairy industry, it's likely that a solution will be found in the form of a vaccine or bolus to deal with methane emissions because of the profitability of that sector.
"If it costs $50 per animal a year to vaccinate or put a bolus or whatever down the down the gut of a cow, the dairy industry can afford that cost and still be profitable," Carr says.
But he says the same can't be said for the sheep and wool industry. He notes that with just under 25 million sheep, producing $4.4 billion worth of meat and wool, farmers are only getting about $180 in gross revenue per animal.
"Consequently, they don't have any margin to pay for methane emissions technology and I think this cost should be taken up and be paid within the dairy sector. I don't know how we get a methane technology that works for pastoral sheep farming in NZ that is affordable to farmers given the current value of the product they produce," he says.
Conversely, Carr says the dairy industry is more profitable in most ways in terms of methane emissions than sheep farmers, including per hectare of land, per hour of labour and gross revenue per hectare of land.
Like many manufacturers around the world, European agricultural machinery and tractor manufacturers are currently operating in a difficult market environment. But they are heading to the world’s largest agricultural machinery event in Hanover next month with a degree of cautious optimism.
Established in 2021, the John Deere Technician of the Year Awards champion the important contribution parts and service technicians make to the Australian and New Zealand agriculture, construction and forestry industries.
Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ) is calling on farmers from all regions to take part in the final season of the Sheep Poo Study aiming to build a clearer picture of how facial eczema (FE) affects farms across New Zealand.
New Zealand is closer to eradicating bovine TB than ever before, but possums remain a threat, says Beef + Lamb New Zealand.
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters has joined the debate around the proposed sale of Fonterra’s consumer and related businesses, demanding answers from the co-operative around its milk supply deal with the buyer, Lactalis.
The ACT Party says media reports that global dairy giant Nestle has withdrawn from the Dairy Methane Action Alliance shows why New Zealand needs to rethink its approach to climate.
OPINION: Dairy industry players are also falling by the wayside as the economic downturn bites around the country.
OPINION: Methane Science Accord, a farmer-led organisation advocating for zero tax on ruminant methane, will be quietly celebrating its first…