Biosecurity levy slashed by 66%
A biosecurity levy, imposed on dairy farmers to fight Mycoplasma bovis, will reduce by 66% from next month.
Farmers groups are welcoming the Government’s decision to exempt agriculture from an Emissions Trade Scheme (ETS).
Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ) chair Kate Acland says they “have consistently argued that agriculture going into the ETS would be a disastrous outcome”.
“We welcome certainty about this being removed.”
Acland also welcomed the official disestablishment of the He Waka Eke Noa Primary Sector Climate Action Partnership.
“We withdrew our support for He Waka Eke Noa because of the significant impact this would have had on our farmers.
“While we are prepared to be part of a new group that discusses how to manage New Zealand’s agricultural emissions, any involvement will be with full transparency and discussion with our farmers. We will not allow this to be a repeat of the He Waka Eke Noa process.
“We are being very clear to the Government that our bottom line is that we do not support a price on agricultural emissions as a way of achieving reductions.
“Emissions reductions in the sheep and beef sector are already happening more quickly than needed.”
DairyNZ chair Jim van der Poel says the announcement is positive, following a huge amount of uncertainty for dairy farmers.
“New Zealand’s dairy farmers are among the world’s most GHG-efficient producers of milk, and inclusion in the NZ ETS could have shifted production to less-efficient producers offshore, hurting farmers, the economy and the country. That outcome would also increase global emissions,” he says.
“To remain internationally competitive, all paths forward must be grounded in a science-based approach. This will ensure a profitable and sustainable future for dairy – and for the rest of New Zealand.
“While there are currently no significant technologies to reduce methane emissions from New Zealand pastoral farms, our farmers continue to make strong progress towards measuring on-farm emissions, and we look forward to contributing to the government’s methane-reduction work. Methane emissions continue to reduce on-farm thanks to farmer action.”
Fruit and vegetable growers have overwhelmingly voted to continue paying their Horticulture New Zealand levy.
Farmers are hoping for a respite from complex national health and safety laws, under review by the Coalition Government.
When Cyclone Gabrielle hit in February 2023, it left an estimated $13.5 billion worth of damage across New Zealand.
The Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) is investigating a Southland farm over poor grazing practices after some dairy cows were found stuck in mud.
Having taken over from the previous distributor, who represented the brand for two decades, Landini New Zealand marks the beginning of a new distribution deal with Norwood, with a first look at Fieldays.
Strong demand for milkfats - anhydrous milkfat (AMF) and butter - is helping boost the farmgate milk price, according to ANZ agriculture economist Susan Kilsby.
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