increase font size
Ruby Mulinder, Federated Farmers.
An aerial operation is underway on Chatham Islands to control feral cattle and pigs, responsible for lamb losses, fence damage and feed supply issues.
Funded by the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI), the six-week operation has culled 5,400 feral cattle to date.
According to Federated Farmers, the ever-expanding feral cattle population on Island has caused long term infrastructure damage, feed shortages and damage to unique wetland ecosystems over the years.
Federated Farmers Rotorua/Taupo meat and wool chair Ruby Mullinder looks after the interests of Chatham Island farmers and visits them regularly.
Mullinder says MPI's role in controlling the feral cattle population will also support farmers in achieving more viable farming operations in the future.
"There is now a need for the domestic cattle herd to be well marked in future to ensure the efforts of the MPI lead cull are not lost.
"With a basic ear marking or tagging program there will be a marked difference between domestic and any remaining feral stock in future which can be managed proactively."
A freshwater project on Chatham Island, led by Mullinder, has also sponsored several pig hunting prizes to incentives both total volume and sow culling.
She says this will support the efforts being made by MPI.
Mullinder is also calling for a long-term strategy to better manage the feral pig population on Chatham.
"It will also be necessary for the island community to implement a long-term strategy to better manage the feral pig population.
"They have both recreational and kai values however the current population is excessive. The current population causes major environmental damage through rooting up soil, damage to fences and livestock losses as pigs will hunt and consume young lambs, some farmers lose 100s of lambs each year. These are serious issues farmers face daily."
MPI's director of on farm support Dr John Roche told Rural News that reducing feral animal numbers enables limited livestock feed on the island to be kept for farmed sheep and cattle and helps reduce damage to fences.
"Supporting the island's community to reduce pest animal numbers is part of a package to prevent animal welfare issues and improve community safety," says Roche.
In early May, MPI staff, including Roche and other members of the on-farm support team, had practical discussions with local farmers on a range of topics, including feed budgeting and planning.
"A member of my team has been based on the island recently to provide continued, practical support to farmers," he says.
Sailing Again
Shipping services between Chatham Islands and the mainland has resumed.
Last month, the vessel Southern Tiare transported a load of sheep and cattle to Timaru.
MPI's John Roche says it was the first load of livestock to leave the islands since March. The second voyage was loading last week.
:"Shipping outages have led to a significant backlog of livestock on the Chatham Islands, including Pitt Island. It's estimated 24,000 sheep and 7,000 cattle need to be shipped to the mainland," he told Rural News.
The Southern Tiare, operated by Chatham Islands Shipping is the exclusive sea freight carrier of all export and imported goods to and from the Chatham Islands to mainland New Zealand with regular runs between Waitangi - Pitt Island and Timaru.
OPINION: Recent media commentary from Southland Federated Farmers has raised concerns among our rural communities, particularly around Environment Southland’s approach to winter grazing inspections and nitrogen reporting. But let’s be clear, much of what’s been said simply doesn’t reflect reality.
OPINION: Environment Canterbury's (ECan) decision recently to declare a so-called “nitrate emergency” is laughable.
A shameless political stunt is how Federated Farmers is describing the Canterbury Regional Council decision to declare “a nitrate emergency” on the back of its latest annual groundwater quality survey.
Federated Farmers say Environment Canterbury's decision to declare a 'nitrate emergency' is a shameless political stunt that won't help anyone.
Farmers want the Government to scrap controversial freshwater rules that "put river spirits and ideology ahead of practical water use", says Federated Farmers board member Mark Hooper.
Like many manufacturers around the world, European agricultural machinery and tractor manufacturers are currently operating in a difficult market environment. But they are heading to the world’s largest agricultural machinery event in Hanover next month with a degree of cautious optimism.
Established in 2021, the John Deere Technician of the Year Awards champion the important contribution parts and service technicians make to the Australian and New Zealand agriculture, construction and forestry industries.
Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ) is calling on farmers from all regions to take part in the final season of the Sheep Poo Study aiming to build a clearer picture of how facial eczema (FE) affects farms across New Zealand.
New Zealand is closer to eradicating bovine TB than ever before, but possums remain a threat, says Beef + Lamb New Zealand.
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters has joined the debate around the proposed sale of Fonterra’s consumer and related businesses, demanding answers from the co-operative around its milk supply deal with the buyer, Lactalis.
The ACT Party says media reports that global dairy giant Nestle has withdrawn from the Dairy Methane Action Alliance shows why New Zealand needs to rethink its approach to climate.
OPINION: Ageing lefty Chris Trotter reckons that the decision to delay recognition of Palestinian statehood is more than just a fit…
OPINION: A mate of yours truly recently met someone at a BBQ who works at a big consulting firm who spent…
