How farmers make spring count
OPINION: Spring is a critical season for farmers – a time when the right decisions can set the tone for productivity and profitability throughout the year.
The country's two largest fertiliser traders have increased prices, for the second time in as many months.
Ravensdown and Ballance are blaming global supply and pricing dynamics for the latest price rise.
Both have bumped up urea prices by nearly 25% to $1,190/tonne.
Potash prices have also jumped by nearly $100/tonne. Ravensdown is selling potash at $995/t, Ballance at $1000/t.
Ravensdown has raised its superphosphate price from $339 to $367 but have told farmers that the new price will be maintained for the next six months.
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.