Meat Industry Association CEO to Step Down
The Meat Industry Association of New Zealand (MIA) today announced that Chief Executive Officer Sirma Karapeeva has resigned from the role.
A total of $8.8 million has been awarded to 42 projects around the country after the latest round of the Sustainable Farming Fund, Minister for Primary Industries Nathan Guy says.
"These projects are driven from the grassroots and will help to improve economic and environmental performance. This co-funding will make a real difference to rural communities.
"Some of these projects include improving nutrient management, promoting pasture persistence, biological controls for pests, developing aquaculture, improving deer farm environmental management, and planning for collaborative water management.
"This includes 14 projects that have received funding from a special round that was run for Maori agribusiness late last year. Maori freehold land has enormous potential and some of these projects will help to realise the $8 billion in potential gains, as highlighted in a recent report by KPMG.
"Each project involves local groups and businesses who co-fund the work as well as running the project and bringing in the required expertise. Experience has shown this approach works and provides good value," he says.
The projects approved in the main funding round will commence July 1,2013 and run for one to three years. Most of the Maori agribusiness projects have already started, with the remaining three to commence on July 1, 2013.
DairyNZ Chair Tracy Brown has seen a lot of change since she first started out in the dairy sector, with around one-third of dairy farmers now women.
Castle Ridge Station has been named the Regional Supreme Winner at the Canterbury Ballance Farm Environment Awards.
The South Island Dairy Event has announced Jessica Findlay as the recipient of the BrightSIDE Scholarship Programme, recognising her commitment to furthering her education and future career in the New Zealand dairy industry.
New Zealand and Chile have signed a new arrangement designed to boost agricultural cooperation and drive sector success.
New DairyNZ research will help farmers mitigate the impacts of heat stress on herds in high-risk regions of the country.
Budou are being picked now in Bridge Pā, the most intense and exciting time of the year for the Greencollar team – and the harvest of the finest eating grapes is weeks earlier than expected.

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