Feed pad with rubber matting hailed as game changer
For Otago farmers Michelle and Rogan Borrie, a newly constructed feed pad on one of their three farms has been a game changer.
The judges at last year’s Agritechnica event picked the Italian-built Landini Rex 4-120GT Robo- Shift Dynamic as the Best of Specialised category at its Tractor of the Year 2024 Awards.
The judges noted the tractor had “raised the bar for specialised vineyard and orchard tractors”. The model features a robo-shift transmission, 48 forward and 16 reverse gears with electro-hydraulic reverse shuttle and four fully robotised driving gears. All of which can be operated in automatic or sequential mode through a joystick.
The Rex 4-120GT is also the first specialised tractor with a suspended cab to provide additional comfort to drivers. Interestingly, the dynamic version features an autonomous driving system option that allows, with the help of integrated sensors, automatic parallel driving between rows.
Meanwhile, an example from the company’s red McCormick camp was also a winner – taking out Tractor of the Year’s Best Utility section. The McCormick X5.120 P3-Drive was described as “the ideal utility vehicle for daily use on the farm”.
Featuring a 3.6-litre, 4-cylinder, 16-valve, Stage V compliant FPT F36 engine, the range offers 95 to 114hp with maximum torque to 460 Newton metres.
Its main new feature is the P3-Drive transmission: 36+12 or 48+16 with creeper, designed and manufactured entirely in-house by Argo Tractors.
The Ministry for the Environment (MfE) has found itself in a stoush with NZPork over the controversial National Policy Statement for Highly Productive Land (NPS-HPL).
Fonterra says the sale of its global consumer business and its Oceania and Sri Lankan operations could take 18 months to complete.
The lobby group the Methane Science Accord (MSA) says it welcomes a recent government move to seek outside advice on reducing biological methane targets, rather than relying on recommendations made by the Climate Change Commission.
Well-known scientist Jock Allison has passed away.
After a decade of consultation and court battles, Environment Southland has officially adopted a plan to prevent further decline in the region's water quality.
Farmers are throwing down the gauntlet to politicians - hold an independent inquiry into rural bank lending or face tough questions from the farming sector.