Budget 2026: Slim Pickings For the Rural Sector
In advance of the Budget, Finance Minister Nicola Willis put a clear damper on expectations and delivered accordingly.
While most dairy farms were mostly spared, orchards and sheep and beef properties found themselves in the firing line.
A major issue, weeks on from the storms, is the condition of major roads in Northland, Hawke's Bay and parts of Bay of Plenty.
State Highway 2 through the Waioweka Gorge from Gisborne to Opotiki has been closed and the road around the costs SH 35 is also being blocked.
There aren't a lot of dairy farms in the region and those impacted by the road closures are being taken care of by Fonterra.
A silver lining for the dairy sector has been heavy rainfall, welcome by dairy farms that were starting to get dry.
It's now greened up, and the grass is growing, and farmers are relying less on supplements.
Read More:
- Upper North Island Storms: Limited impact on dairy farms
- IFSO warns of insurance claim delays after severe weather
- Award-winning Māori farm severely damaged by isolated Northland thunderstorm
Post-storms, rural advisory groups coordinated well to build a clear picture of what was happening on the ground and ensure that information was shared where it needed to be.
According to Federated Farmers, we've come a long way in this space, including last year's progress on legislative reform to ensure rural people and businesses finally have an experienced voice in emergency management planning and response.
It notes that having at least one person with rural expertise on each of New Zealand's 16 regional Civil Defence Emergency Management (CDEM) groups put farmers in a much stronger position for the future.
Rural communities have strong local networks, people and equipment ready to help. However, those resources are only effective if they're properly integrate into the formal emergency management system.
