McIvor moving to OSPRI
Beef + Lamb New Zealand chief executive for the past eight years, Sam McIvor is heading for new pastures at Ospri, which runs NZ’s integrated animal disease management and traceability service.
Beef + Lamb NZ’s chief executive Rod Slater is keen to see NZ’s National Lamb Day on February 15 get as big as the Australian equivalent, held annually on Australia Day.
“Absolutely, the day receives more attention each year and we would love to see it cemented in Kiwis’ calendars,” Slater told Rural News.
“We consider NZ lamb a national icon and we wanted to give Kiwis a day to celebrate it.
“It also gives us another opportunity to recognise the hard work of our farmers and processors and to tell their stories on this day.”
This year BLNZ is running a special event at the British High Commission, which gives another opportunity to tell the farmers’ and processors’ story to the media, food writers and government ministers.
“In addition, we will be encouraging people to either cook lamb at home with family and friends or perhaps try one of our Beef and Lamb Excellence Awards restaurants where they’ll be guaranteed a beautiful lamb dish.”
The day is aimed at both promoting domestic consumption and celebrating pride in one of our best products.
“February 15 was chosen because it marks the date 135 years ago when the first shipment of sheep meat left Otago bound for London on the Dunedin, a real milestone in establishing our thriving export community,” says Slater.
In Australia, National Lamb Day is a controversial event. As a response to declining lamb sales, the Australian Meat and Livestock Corporation recruited former Aussie Rules footballer and media personality Sam Kekovich in 2005 to be its ‘Lambassador’. Kekovich’s first message – a 90-second diatribe – condemned vegetarians as un-Australian.
Annual advertising has continued to promote lamb for Australia Day, resulting in a spike in lamb sales in the week leading up to the national holiday. But the advertising has also provoked controversy and complaints.
NZ’s National Lamb Day was introduced in 2007 by then Agricultural Minister Jim Anderton and reintroduced last year in the hope of cementing the day as an annual event.
South Waikato farm manager Ben Purua’s amazing transformation from gang life to milking cows was rewarded with the Ahuwhenua Young Maori Farmer award last night.
Bankers have been making record profits in the last few years, but those aren’t the only records they’ve been breaking, says Federated Farmers vice president Richard McIntyre.
The 2023-24 season has been a roller coaster ride for Waikato dairy farmers, according to Federated Farmers dairy section chair, Mathew Zonderop.
Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) director general Ray Smith says job cuts announced this morning will not impact the way the Ministry is organised or merge business units.
Scales Corporation is acquiring a number of orchard assets from Bostock Group.
Family and solidarity shone through at the 75 years of Ferdon sale in Otorohanga last month.