Editorial: Long overdue!
OPINION: The Government's latest move to make freshwater farm plans more practical and affordable is welcome, and long overdue.
Farmers, dairy product manufacturers and trade representatives in Uruguay and Argentina heard a New Zealand take on current agricultural issues last week.
Federated Farmers of NZ President Katie Milne was engaged in a busy schedule of speaking and meeting engagements in Montevideo and Buenos Aires in a programme put together by the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI), the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and New Zealand’s Ambassador to Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay, Raylene Liufalani.
Milne’s engagements in Uruguay included giving an address to a conference with the theme ‘Social innovation for a country with agricultural conscience’, a meeting with Uruguay’s Minister for Agriculture and Livestock, Enzo Benech, and visiting the PGG Wrightson Pas Research Centre to witness their operations in Latin America.
At the Argentine Congress on November 22, which included a Q&A session with Argentine Deputies and Senators, Milne’s topics included future farming challenges, the importance of co-operatives in NZ agriculture (dairy in particular) and the role of women in rural communities.
Among other events, she also had discussions with CIL (Argentina’s dairy industry body) and spoke at a symposium of La Serenisima, a dairy product maker with more than 5000 employees and annual revenue of more than $NZ 2 billion.
During her visit she also met Uruguayan and Argentine farmers, including her counterparts, to hear first-hand the challenges they are facing in the region.
While New Zealand has a much higher level of trade with Asian nations that those in Latin America, the latter is seen as offering significant opportunities — especially with Chile and Peru being signatories to the CPTPP. New Zealand is also exploring deeper trade engagement with MERCOSUR (Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay).
The 2025 game bird season is underway with Hawke’s Bay and Southland reporting the ideal weather conditions for hunters – rain and wind.
A group of meat processing companies, directors and managers have been fined a total of $1.6 million for deliberately and illegally altering exported tallow for profit.
New Zealand’s top cheeses for 2025 have been announced and family-owned, Oamaru-based Whitestone Cheese is the big winner.
Waikato farmer, and Owl Farm demonstration manager, Jo Sheridan is the 2025 Fonterra Dairy Woman of the Year.
New Zealand’s special agricultural trade envoy Hamish Marr believes the outlook for the dairy sector remains strong.
Everyone from experienced veterinarians and young professionals to the Wormwise programme and outstanding clinics have been recognised in this year’s New Zealand Veterinary Association Te Pae Kīrehe (NZVA) awards.
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