increase font size
Logan Bowler, DairyNZ (right) and Jon Palmer, Waikato Regional Council at the effluent field day.
A large dairy farmer turnout at a recent effluent management field day shows they want to do the right thing with the environment, says organiser Jon Palmer.
"We had about 100 farmers and industry professionals at the field day at the Tumunui Dairy property to see how its effluent system works," says Palmer, a sustainable agricultural advisor at Waikato Regional Council.
"It's excellent to see such farmer interest in managing dairy effluent."
Farmers at the event, held near Rotorua, were able to consult experts from DairyNZ, AgFirst and OPUS, and council staff. Dairy companies Fonterra and Miraka were on hand to talk about their environmental initiatives.
The council is talking one-to-one with farmers to help them ensure their effluent management systems are up to scratch, and is encouraging them to make improvements where required. It's part of a new region-wide approach.
"Farmers have been responding positively to this approach," says Palmer.
DairyNZ says its plantain programme continues to deliver promising results, with new data confirming that modest levels of plantain in pastures reduce nitrogen leaching, offering farmers a practical, science-backed tool to meet environmental goals.
As an independent review of the National Pest Management Plan for TB finds the goal of complete eradication by 2055 is still valide, feedback is being sought on how to finish the job.
DairyNZ has pulled together tactics that will help farmers improve on-farm efficiency and have positive benefits for the environment. These tactics are based on research, data, and lessons from leading farmers.
The design and construction of an effective dairy effluent system is a complex process.
After serving three as a DairyNZ director, Waikato farmer Chris Lewis is ready for another term.
NZPork has appointed Auckland-based Paul Bucknell as its new chair.
The Government claims to have delivered on its election promise to protect productive farmland from emissions trading scheme (ETS) but red meat farmers aren’t happy.
Foot and Mouth Disease outbreaks could have a detrimental impact on any country's rural sector, as seen in the United Kingdom's 2000 outbreak that saw the compulsory slaughter of over six million animals.
The Ministry for the Environment is joining as a national award sponsor in the Ballance Farm Environment Awards (BFEA from next year).
Kiwis are wasting less of their food than they were two years ago, and this has been enough to push New Zealand’s total household food waste bill lower, the 2025 Rabobank KiwiHarvest Food Waste survey has found.
OPINION: Sir Lockwood Smith has clearly and succinctly defined what academic freedom is all about, the boundaries around it and the responsibility that goes with this privilege.
OPINION: Should cows in NZ be microchipped?
OPINION: Legislation being drafted to bring back the controversial trade of live animal exports by sea is getting stuck in the…
