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James Parsons.
There have been negativities around farmers saying the sheep sector is declining.
Farmers are noting that the sheep flock is down to 28 million and returns aren’t good enough, says BLNZ chair James Parsons.
“However, right now we are running at our five year average for lamb per kilo of carcase weight,” he says. “It is not stellar, but in terms of averages we are ticking along okay.”
Meanwhile, Parsons says he has a “shed full” of wool on his farm that he hasn’t yet sold, but wool is always up and down.
“It is a commodity: China suddenly decides to stop buying and the price falls [but] in 12 months they will be back into it and the price will be up.”
Beef has been an interesting one: the schedule for bull was about $3.30/kg five years ago and is now sitting at $5.20/kg.
“The beef prices have really come up so we are seeing a lot more interest and probably have a bit more beef production and are decreasing sheep flocks,” he adds.
“We haven’t seen a big shift to dairy in the last couple of years understandably…. Some of the environmental regulations coming in are putting a dampener on those dairy conversions.”
Recent widespread autumn rain will have triggered the germination of subterranean clover seeds, and the resulting seedlings should be allowed to reach the 3–4 trifoliate leaf stage before grazing, says Beef+Lamb NZ.
A hub farm in each of Beef + Lamb NZ’s seven regions and more focus groups are being rolled out for the red meat sector this year.
The red meat sector is poised for a strong rebound this season, with export receipts forecast to top $10 billion and farm profitability to almost double.
Progeny testing at Pāmu’s Kepler farm in Southland as part of Beef + Lamb New Zealand’s Informing New Zealand Beef programme is showing that the benefits of hybrid vigour could have a massive impact on the future of beef breeding.
Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ) has reiterated calls for New Zealand to revise its methane targets after the Government's "disappointing" announcement of its revised Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC).
Beef + Lamb New Zealand (B+LNZ) is calling for nominations for director roles in the Eastern North Island and Southern South Island electoral districts.
Going one better than a frustratingly close second place finish at last year's event, the country's top axeman, Jack Jordan of Taumaranui, last weekend won the Stihl Timbersports World Championship individual event in.
Canterbury A&P Association (CAPA) show president Brent Chamberlain says a big development for this year is the Wool Zone, first introduced two years ago as a showplace for everything produced from wool, but now greatly enlarged with its own Wool Marquee and more than 30 trade sites.
Salmonellosis is a serious disease in cattle.
Drench resistance is already hitting farm profits; it's not just a future problem.
Applications are open for Horticulture New Zealand's (HortNZ) 2026 scholarship programme, with 20 funding opportunities available.
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