NZ scientists make breakthrough in Facial Eczema research
A significant breakthrough in understanding facial eczema (FE) in livestock brings New Zealand closer to reducing the disease’s devastating impact on farmers, animals, and rural communities.
Nitrogen is an essential nutrient for plant growth, and nitrogen fertiliser has long been critical to maintaining the high productivity of grazed pasture systems in New Zealand.
For several decades research has been done on establishing the scientific basis for nitrogen management and fertiliser application in ryegrass and clover pastures. However, with so much research going on across various locations over the years, it hasn't always been easy to step back and see the full picture.
That is what prompted AgResearch senior scientist Dr Col Gray, with the backing of the Fertiliser Association of New Zealand, to take a closer look at the research undertaken over the last 50 years. He set out to provide an overview of this research, to raise the awareness of key findings, and importantly to provide a pathway for decision makers to find and access the research on nitrogen fertiliser use and management. Identification of knowledge gaps for new avenues of enquiry was another focus.
The result of this review is now published in the New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research. The full open access article, Nitrogen fertiliser use in grazed pasture-based systems in New Zealand: a summary, can be viewed at https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/00288233.2023.2198719.
The key research findings from the paper are as follows:
The review concludes: "With increasing expectations from consumers and constraints by regulators on the impact of using nitrogen fertiliser, it is likely there will still need to be innovation in the future to develop new nitrogen fertiliser products and technologies to further minimise environmental impacts and improve the efficiency of nitrogen fertiliser use".
Kiwis love their butter, and that's great because New Zealand produces some of the best butter in the world. But when the price of butter goes up, it's tough for some, particularly when many other grocery staples have also gone up and the heat goes on co-operative Fonterra, the country's main butter maker. Here the co-op explains why butter prices are so high right now.
DairyNZ chair Tracy Brown has waded into the debate around soaring butter prices, pointing out that the demand for dairy overseas dictates the price to farmers and at the supermarket.
Farmers are welcoming new Government proposals to make farm health and safety rules more practical and grounded in real-world farming.
Missing fresh mozzarella cheese made at home in Bari, southern Italy, Massimo Lubisco and his wife Marina decided to bring a taste of home to New Zealand.
An A$2 billion bid for Fonterra's Oceania business would be great news, according to Forsyth Barr senior analyst, equities, Matt Montgomerie.
Irish meat processor Dawn Meats is set to acquire a 70% stake in Alliance Group, according to a report in The Irish Times.
OPINION: Is the Government's taxonomy proposal dead in the water?
OPINION: There is zero chance that someone who joined Fonterra as a lobbyist, then served as a general manager of…