Bridging the gap with rural New Zealand
OPINION: One thing I keep hearing from rural New Zealanders is the importance of relationships. Strong relationships don’t just happen - they take trust, consistency, and time.
The Southern Dairy Development Trust has announced that 516 farmers and businesses are pledging $1.306 million in support.
While the fundraising drive fell short of the $2 million target, trust chairman Matthew Richards is confident it will go ahead. “It’s a fantastic result and a huge endorsement for the hub project.”
“We are grateful and thankful for the support from our community and are confident we will get a good hearing in front of our industry partners DairyNZ and AgResearch.”
The official numbers include pledges that arrived in the mail after the April 30 deadline: 55% of farmers between Dunedin and Bluff have pledged financial support.
The next step is to present figures to DairyNZ and AgResearch, Richards says. “The support of a majority of southern dairy farmers is a key factor in determining the hub’s future, as our partners wanted to see farmers supporting this. While we didn’t hit the financial target of $2 million, I’m still confident we will get the decision to go ahead.”
The hub is intended as an innovation centre where ideas and concepts can be tested. It will do comparative research, demonstrate research results and have education and training facilities. It will be located in central Southland and house about 850 cows in four herds.
“We’ve been out looking for the right farm over the last couple of months – centrally located, with a mix of soil types and ideally some contour. It will be a sheep conversion to allow us to start with a clean slate.”
Funding will include $10 million from DairyNZ and AgResearch, $2.5 million from the closed Southland Demonstration Farm, pledges from southern farmers and businesses, and the remainder debt.
The trust expects the farm to make money from research, commercial lease space, room hireage, livestock sales and milk supply.
