Spray duo provides top protection in high-stakes cereal crops
As the seed cereal manager at Carrfields, in Ashburton, Phil Smith carries a fair weight of responsibility.
In anticipation of on-going growth, international seed business Germinal has appointed Andrew Miller as its sales manager.
Initially based in Dunedin, the new position has a New Zealand-wide focus; growing Germinal’s customer base, building on the work done in the past and the success of the Aber High Sugar Grass varieties.
The company says Miller brings great knowledge and understanding of the New Zealand agronomy sector, as well as hands-on, on-farm, experience from his 200ha, family-owned, dairy farm on the Taieri Plains, near Dunedin.
With a Bachelor of Commerce from Lincoln University, Miller’s career has centred around the seed industry
. “I started work at a small seed company, Hodder and Tolley, and have now come full circle to an exciting and growing, international seed company, Germinal,” he said.
In between he has worked for Wrightson Seeds as a consultant in Australia, Ravensdown in the lower half of the South Island and most recently in an advisory and training role in the Grain and Seed division of Farmlands as an agronomist.
“We sold Germinal products at Farmlands so I know the varieties well. Germinal has high quality varieties which fit many New Zealand systems already, but we are developing new material even better suited to the New Zealand market which will come on stream in the years ahead.
“Germinal has strong science behind its products, so helping farmers understand and realise these benefits by increasing production and profitability excites me and will be extremely satisfying,” he said.
Controls on the movement of fruit and vegetables in the Auckland suburb of Mt Roskill have been lifted.
Fonterra farmer shareholders and unit holders are in line for another payment in April.
Farmers are being encouraged to take a closer look at the refrigerants running inside their on-farm systems, as international and domestic pressure continues to build on high global warming potential (GWP) 400-series refrigerants.
As expected, Fonterra has lifted its 2025-26 forecast farmgate milk price mid-point to $9.50/kgMS.
Bovonic says a return on investment study has found its automated mastitis detection technology, QuadSense, is delivering financial, labour, and animal-health benefits on New Zealand dairy farms worth an estimated $29,547 per season.
Pāmu has welcomed ten new apprentices into its 2026 intake, marking the second year of a scheme designed to equip the next generation of farmers with the skills, knowledge, and experience needed for a thriving career in agriculture.
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