Forest & Bird launches 2025–2026 Summer Adventure Challenges for all ages
Forest & Bird's Kiwi Conservation Club is inviting New Zealanders of all ages to embrace the outdoors with its Summer Adventure Challenges.
Steph Le Brocq and Sam Allen, a bride and groom-to-be, are among those set to face off in regional finals across New Zealand in the hopes of being named the Young Farmer of the Year.
Since October, New Zealand Young Farmers (NZYF) members have been putting their skills to the test, battling it out in one of seven District Contests across the country.
Now, the top competitors are set to face off in their respective regions, with seven Regional Finals scheduled between February and April 2025.
Le Brocq will square off against her fiancé, Sam Allen, at the Aorangi Regional Final in March.
It’s her first time competing at the events, while Allen placed runner-up at last year’s regional competition.
“It’s going to be quite fun to have a crack at each other,” she says.
“We met 10 years ago when we were both involved with Surf Lifesaving, so we’ve both got that competitive spirit and are used to pacing ourselves against each other,” she adds.
It was Allen who encouraged Le Brocq to apply.
He says that even though they’re battling each other for the top spot, there are no secrets at the dinner table.
“We’ve each got different strengths and weaknesses, so we’re helping each other prepare,” Allen says.
“We figure it makes sense that we can both put our best foot forward.”
The Meat Industry Association of New Zealand (MIA) today announced that Chief Executive Officer Sirma Karapeeva has resigned from the role.
The winners of the 2026 Hawke’s Bay/Wairarapa Dairy Industry Awards were announced at the annual awards dinner held at Copthorne Solway Park in Masterton on Thursday evening.
Environment Southland is welcoming this week’s decision by the Environmental Protection Authority (EPA) to approve the release of Blaptea elguetai, a leaf‑feeding beetle that will help control the highly invasive Chilean flame creeper.
This March, the potato industry is proudly celebrating International Women’s Day on 8 March alongside the International Year of the Woman Farmer, recognising the vital role women play across every part of the sector — from paddocks and packhouses to research, leadership, and innovation.
Fruit trader Seeka posted a record profit and returns to shareholders in 2025.
Recent weather events in the Bay of Plenty, Gisborne/Tairawhiti, and Canterbury have been declared a medium-scale adverse event.

OPINION: A mate of yours truly reckons rural Manawatu families are the latest to suffer under what he calls the…
OPINION: If old Winston Peters thinks building trade relations with new nations, such as India, isn't a necessary investment in…