DairyNZ chair wants cross-party deal
New DairyNZ chair Tracy Brown says bipartisan agreement among political parties on emissions pricing and freshwater regulations would greatly help farmers.
Former Meat and Wool NZ director Tom Mandeno believes despite the roadshow meetings organised by B+LNZ and DairyNZ on the He Waka Eke Noa (HWEN) proposals farmers find it all pretty complicated.
He says the meeting he attended posed more questions than answers and he still doesn't have a clear picture of what the answer should be in terms of how the scheme should be funded.
"Like many others, [I] don't think the legislation is practical and there hasn't been enough discussion on it to satisfy farmers," he told Rural News.
Mandeno says, as someone who's farmed the land for many years, he wants the next generation to come onto the land - in this case his two daughters and their families.
"It would be lovely for the land to handed down to them and have it continuing to produce what it produces now - or even better - with younger people bringing new ideas," he says. "But I also want it to be sufficiently viable so that they can make it work."
Mandeno says the challenge for him and other farmers is whether the Government is prepared to soften its ideological stance and allow farming in NZ to be profitable and sustainable.
Profitability issues facing arable farmers are the same across the world, says New Zealand's special agricultural trade envoy Hamish Marr.
Over 85% of Fonterra farmer suppliers will be eligible for customer funding up to $1,500 for solutions designed to drive on-farm efficiency gains and reduce emissions intensity.
Tighter beef and lamb production globally have worked to the advantage of NZ, according to the Meat Industry Association (MIA).
Groundswell is ramping up its 'Quit Paris' campaign with signs going up all over the country.
Some farmers in the Nelson region are facing up to five years of hard work to repair their damaged properties caused by the recent devastating floods.
Federated Farmers is joining major industry-good bodies in not advocating for the Government to withdraw from the Paris Agreement.
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