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North Canterbury Federated Farmers dairy chairman Michael Woodward has signed up for the scheme.
A dairy apprenticeship scheme jointly developed by Federated Farmers and Primary ITO could have 100 apprentices nationwide by June.
Federated Farmers’ dairy section vice-chair, Wayne Langford, Golden Bay, said the scheme was launched in October after “a good year’s work” had gone into planning it.
After a quiet summer, they are now “getting back into” encouraging farmers and prospective apprentices to register. Almost 150 farmers and 120 apprentices are ready to go. Langford hopes to have about 100 paired-up and working by June.
“Then long term, potentially, we could get about 500 annually, working through the industry. That would be a positive result.”
Langford heads the working group overseeing the interests of the employers in the scheme.
He said farmers taking on apprentices must sign a farm charter, agreeing to payroll, health and safety, and other systems all up-to-date and up-to-scratch.
One farmer supporting the scheme and signed to take an apprentice is North Canterbury Federated Farmers dairy chairman Michael Woodward.
He said fewer people are entering dairying, so the scheme is aimed at attracting motivated people and prompting farmers to become “employers of choice”.
“There’s a survey [employers] fill in and that will identify areas you need help with.
“Some employers may be great people but they just don’t know about current legislation because they either haven’t employed people or stuff has changed since they last employed people.
“It helps the people on both sides to get the skills they need to become better employees and better employers.”
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Red meat farmers are using higher farmgate returns to make their farms more resilient, says Federated Farmers meat and wool industry group chair Richard Dawkins.
Newly appointed Federated Farmers vice president Sandra Faulkner says she is honoured and excited to hold the role.
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Associate Agriculture Minister Mark Patterson says his party – NZ First - isn’t opposed to the “trade element” of a free trade deal with India.
The managing director of a company seeking to build a solar farm in Canterbury says receiving fast-track approval is a “really positive outcome”.
Retiring MP and dairy farmer Mark Cameron is blasting the Green Party for proposing to ban the use of synthetic fertiliser and cutting cow numbers.
A huge reduction in ACC claims from on-farm accidents over the last five years is due to thousands of small, practical decisions being made in sheds, yards, paddocks and around kitchen tables across the country, says Safer Farms ambassador Lindy Nelson.
Wayne and Ange Moxham of Horowhenua have just been named as Fonterra's top organic performer for milksolids. As well as providing organic milk to Fonterra, the couple also sell Udderly Organic milk to more than 100 outlets in the region and are embarking on another exciting venture producing organic gelato. Reporter Peter Burke went along to see their farming operation.
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