McRae Wins Southern South Island B+LNZ Director Vote
Matt McRae, a farmer from Mokoreta in Southland who runs a sheep, beef and dairy support business alongside a sheep stud, has been elected to the Beef +Lamb NZ Board as a farmer director.
Beef + Lamb NZ chief executive Sam McIvor reckons NZ sheep and beef farmers, as a sector, have an opportunity to be world-leading stewards of the natural environment and sustainable communities.
He says sheep and beef farmers have made meaningful improvements to their environmental performance and lowering emissions and they deserve credit for these gains.
“However, farmers know there is more to be done – not just extending the good work already underway but also taking new and different approaches,” he told Rural News.
“This includes adopting new management techniques that better connect actions to environmental outcomes, and more onfarm monitoring and measuring that gives farmers confidence their actions are reaping benefits. We also need to inform the wider community to better understand the contributions farmers are making.”
McIvor says the strategy was developed in partnership with sheep and beef farmers who had significant input into the final document and are determined to be part of the solution.
With the New Zealand/India Free Trade Agreement (FTA) dominating political debate here, India Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be visiting New Zealand next week.
Michelle and Tony Roberts didn't inherit the farming business they have today. They’ve built it from the ground up.
“We’re not normal.” That’s how Jack Walters, executive director of Pungent Pukeko, describes his gin brand, which has just won gold at the World Gin Awards.
Dr Tim Harwood, a seafood food safety research leader, has been awarded the 2026 Significant Contribution Award at the New Zealand Institute of Food Science and Technology (NZIFST) Food Industry Awards.
Today marks the first day of operations for Waikato Waters, a new council-controlled organisation established by six district councils to deliver water and wastewater services for their communities.
The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) has announced has opened applications for the 2026/27 funding round of the Greenhouse Gas Inventory Research (GHGIR) fund.

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