We're all in it together!
OPINION: Hill Country farmers and foresters have common concerns about regulations and climate change.
An Austrian billionaire has been granted consent to purchase an $8m Hill Country farm.
The Overseas Investment Office (OIO) has granted Wolfgang Leitner consent to buy a 800ha property located in Kotemaori, Wairoa and convert it to forestry.
The property known as Ponui Station currently has 714ha being grazed by sheep and beef stock.
Leitner plans to plant a further 640ha of commercial forest.
Ponui Station currently has just 14ha of existing commercial forestry.
The remainder of the land includes 33ha of native bush and 113ha of unplantable land containing boundary and riparian setbacks, ponds and infrastructure.
The Bayleys’ real estate listing of the farm describe it as “clean, healthy country, sought after scale, and opportunity to extend farm capability.”
This isn’t Leitner’s first farm purchase in New Zealand, having been granted consent to buy the $4.5m, 489ha Ngapuke Station in Gisborne in September.
Leitner’s earlier purchase was also granted under the special forestry test.
Trade Minister Todd McClay says New Zealand has no intention of backing down in a trade dispute with Canada over dairy products.
There have been leadership changes at the Hamilton-based Dairy Goat Co-operative, which has been struggling financially in recent years.
Horticulture NZ chief executive Nadine Tunley will step down in August.
OPINION: In recent years farmers have been crying foul of unworkable and expensive regulations.
Another 16 commercial beef farmers have been selected to take part in the Informing New Zealand Beef (INZB) programme designed to help drive the uptake of genetics in the industry.
Trade Minister Todd McClay says Kiwi exporters will be $100 million better off today as the NZ-EU Free Trade Agreement (FTA) comes into force.