Nimble New Zealand exporters finding opportunity amid shifting trade terms
Global trade wars and uncertain tariff regimes could play into the hands of many New Zealand exporters, according to Gareth Coleman ANZ’s Head of Trade & Supply Chain.
After nearly three decades on the same Fieldays site, Gallagher is moving to a new location — the former LIC building at site D72.
The shed has been stripped to its bones, re-clad, given a mezzanine floor and soundproofed.
Now a purpose-designed, modern building, the space will allow the Hamilton company to show existing products and introduce visitors to a raft of innovations.
These will include the new Electric Fence Dropper, launched at regional field days in February and well received by farmers. The unit allows users to extend the distance between fenceposts by introducing droppers, resulting in a much more cost-effective solution.
And the dropper keeps the integrity of the fence when, for example, managing sheep through multiple wires. The dropper ensures the wires maintain the same distance across the span to prevent animals from pushing through the fence.
The company will also introduce its MBS Energizer range, giving farmers three options for powering their units. The MBS (mains, battery, solar) multi-powered fence units provide stock control in 4ha to 32ha paddocks, delivering from one to eight joule of stored energy.
The units feature a range of ‘smarts’ to help increase reliability such as better battery management, meaning the farmer can trust that stock remain under control no matter the weather conditions.
Site visitors will also get a preview of the company’s new e-Shepherd fencing due for launch later this year.
e-Shepherd is virtual fencing via a collar fitted to animals. It works via a ‘geofence’ set by a computer, ensuring the animals stay inside predetermined virtual boundaries.
Animals can be trained in three to four days using two stimuli: firstly an audible warning when the animal nears the geofence boundary, then a safe, small electric shock if the animal keeps moving towards the pre-set boundary.
e-Shepherd is especially cost-effective for broadacre farming, particularly large beef farms, allowing herding animals efficiently over vast areas.
As an example of its versatility, the geofencing boundaries can be moved closer and closer to a destination yard over several weeks, making the final part of the herding much easier.
Gallagher will be on site D72 at Fieldays.
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.
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.
'Common sense' cuts to government red tape will make it easier for New Zealand to deliver safe food to more markets.
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…