Leah Prankerd: A passion for dairying and farmer support
It was love that first led Leah Prankerd to dairying.
Moving Day is the busiest day of the year for livestock movements.
DairyNZ, OSPRI and Ministry for Primary Industries stress that good biosecurity practices, including NAIT compliance, are critical over this period.
When NAIT compliance is compromised, the country's traceability system is threatened, and we run the risk of having a system that will not perform in the event of another disease outbreak.
OSPRI's message is clear: all movements of cattle and deer between NAIT locations must be recorded in NAIT within 48 hours of them leaving one property and arriving at a new property.
The Person in Charge of Animals (PICA) sending the animals is responsible for recording a sending movement in NAIT. The PICA receiving the animals is responsible for recording a receiving movement.
All animal movements between NAIT locations must be recorded, even if there has been no change of ownership - for example, moving them for grazing or mating and even if the animals are exempt from tagging.
OSPRI says it's important to record movements because up-to-date information in NAIT means the time it takes to control disease outbreaks, the number of affected farms and the risk to livelihood can all be reduced.
Farmers are advised that to record a movement, they need their NAIT location number, the NAIT location number of the other property, the date the animals left, or arrived at your property and the individual NAIT RFID or visual tag numbers of the animals that have moved. Farmers are also required to complete an Animal Status Declaration (ASD) while moving animals to another property, a saleyard or meat processor, although there are exceptions.
ASDs transfer important information about animals being sold or moved to the next PICA or meat processor. This includes information about animal health and treatments, farming practices, and TB incidence and testing.
As well as passing on information to a new PICA, ASD information is important when deciding if animal products are suitable for overseas markets. They support the issuing of export certificates by the Government - vital to New Zealand's trade-dependent economy. Meat processors use the information to guide examinations of the animals before and after slaughter.
OSPRI says if you are the PICA for any animals that must have an ASD before they move off farm, it is your responsibility to complete it.
"If you buy animals from a saleyard, they pass on the ASD, which they will adjust if the number of animals on the vendor's ASD has changed."
Dignitaries from all walks of life – the governor general, politicians past and present, Maoridom- including the Maori Queen, church leaders, the primary sector and family and friends packed Our Lady of Kapiti’s Catholic church in Paraparaumu on Thursday October 23 to pay tribute to former prime Minister, Jim Bolger who died last week.
Agriculture and Forestry Minister, Todd McClay is encouraging farmers, growers, and foresters not to take unnecessary risks, asking that they heed weather warnings today.
With nearly two million underutilised dairy calves born annually and the beef price outlook strong, New Zealand’s opportunity to build a scalable dairy-beef system is now.
Graduates of a newly-updated Agri-Women’s Development Trust (AWDT) course are taking more value than ever from the programme, with some even walking away calling themselves the “farm CFO”.
Meet the Need, a farmer-led charity, says food insecurity in New Zealand is dire, with one in four children now living in a household experiencing food insecurity, according to Ministry of Health data.
Applications have now opened for the 2026 Meat Industry Association scholarships.
OPINION: Voting is underway for Fonterra’s divestment proposal, with shareholders deciding whether or not sell its consumer brands business.
OPINION: Politicians and Wellington bureaucrats should take a leaf out of the book of Canterbury District Police Commander Superintendent Tony Hill.