Budget 'strengthens support for NZ food and fibre industry'
The Government says it is sharpening its focus and support for the food and fibre industry in Budget 2025.
Rural Communities Minister Mark Patterson, who farms at Lawrence in Otago, has personally been actively involved in assessing the situation in his region.
For several days he embedded himself in the Clutha Emergency Management bunker and later visited farms and towns in the region to see the situation for himself. He says he visited the small settlement of Toko Mouth where the Tokomairaro River comes out and the Catlins and settlements around the Puerua River.
“The event in Otago was quite coastal in terms of impact and in some cases there was up to a metre and half of water on some farms. In many cases it was the tributaries of the larger rivers that came up fast,” he told Dairy News.
Patterson says his own farm at Lawrence did not get too badly hit by the floods. He says one of the positives to come out was the early warning of the impending heavy rain that allowed farmers to move their stock to safer ground.
“Driving around the district, I didn’t see too many stock in floodwaters,” he says.
In the meantime, Patterson says he’ll continue to monitor the situation and will await the MPI report to see what further assistance is needed from government in Otago and Southland.
Two butcheries have claimed victory at the 100% New Zealand Bacon & Ham Awards for 2025.
A Taupiri farming company has been convicted and fined $52,500 in the Hamilton District Court for the unlawful discharge of dairy effluent into the environment.
The Climate Change Commission’s 2025 emissions reduction monitoring report reveals steady progress on the reduction of New Zealand’s climate pollution.
Another milestone has been reached in the fight against Mycoplasma bovis with the compensation assistance service being wound up after helping more than 1300 farmers.
The Government’s directive for state farmer Landcorp Farming (trading as Pamu) to lifts its performance is yielding results.
The move to bring bovine TB testing in-house at Ospri officially started this month, as a team of 37 skilled and experienced technicians begin work with the disease eradication agency.
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