Former co-op chair accepts Queen's Birthday honour
Former Fonterra chairman John Monaghan says he's quite humbled to make the Queen's Birthday and Platinum Jubilee honours list.
This year's Queen’s Birthday Honours had 13 rural people making the list for their outstanding achievements and contributions.
Wendy McGowan ONZM for services to rural women
McGowan is a member of the Kaimai-Mamaku Catchment Forum and Federated Farmers Rotorua/Taupo province, and has been president and chair of Federated Farmers meat and fibre section for the province.
Nick Pyke MNZM for services to the arable industry
Pyke is chief executive of the Foundation for Arable Research (FAR). His contributions have brought New Zealand’s arable industry recognition as a world leader in cereal, ryegrass, vegetable seed, clover yields, sustainable resource use and environmental management.
Maxine Simmons CNZM for services to science, particularly biotechnology
Simmons has been a leader in scientific research and innovation for 35 years. She was a member of the Foundation for Research Science and Technology board and started ICP Bio, developing and marketing products for animal breeding -- pregnancy kits, ovulation enhancers and embryo transfer solutions.
Doug Avery MNZM for services to agriculture and mental health
Avery has adopted land-use techniques to drought-proof his farm and has spoken to audiences in New Zealand, Australia and Argentina about his new farming systems that have underpinned sustainable environmental and financial growth. In 2011 his family won the South Island Farmer of the Year competition for their farm management systems. He is an advocate for rural mental health and frequently shares his personal experiences.
Rebecca Keoghan MNZM for services to business, particularly the dairy industry
Keoghan is business manager at Landcorp Farming Ltd on the West Coast; she is responsible for the development and management of five large dairy farms in the region, a dairy support farm and a machinery syndicate between Cape Foulwind and Grey Valley. She is a director of Westland Milk Products Ltd and of Buller Holdings, which has responsibility for Buller District Council’s commercial assets.
Peter MacGregor MNZM for services to Māori and agriculture
MacGregor held various positions in the Department of Māori Affairs in the 1970s and 1980s. He developed the joint working agreement between the then Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry and Te Puni Kokiri. He has helped develop the Te Kuiti Māori Farm Managers Diploma and the Ahuwhenua Young Māori Farmer competition. MacGregor is a trustee of several Ahuwhenua trusts and is an advisor trustee to the Hinemanu/Ruaka/Te Upokori Charitable Education Trust.
Dr Lesley Rhodes CNZM for services to science and marine farming
Rhodes, a senior scientist with the Cawthron Institute since 1994, has worked on programmes to manage marine algal blooms and biotoxins in shellfish internationally, ensuring New Zealand’s seafood exports meet international food safety standards. She has published at least 100 papers in international journals and has influenced international monitoring standards and policy development.
Tony Hall CNZM for services to education and sport
A pro-chancellor and then chancellor of Lincoln University, Hall has provided leadership since the Canterbury earthquake and has overseen the set-up of the Lincoln Research and Education Hub.
Jim Anderton CNZM for services as a member of Parliament
From 2005 to 2008 Anderton served as Minister of Agriculture, Minister for Biosecurity, Minister of Fisheries and Minister of Forestry. He was in politics from 1963 to 2011 when he retired.
James Guild MNZM for services to the deer industry
Guild has been a councillor and president of New Zealand Deer Farmers Association and active in the deer industry for at least 40 years. He has advised the government on animal welfare and livestock tax, and helped develop the Game Animal Council Act. He is chair of the Queen Elizabeth II National Trust and the Molesworth steering committee.
Graham Kennedy MNZM for services to business
Kennedy has worked in accountancy and corporate governance. In 2005 he was awarded a District of Ashburton Civic Honour for services to the set-up of Lake Hood and he is a founding director of Heartland Bank Ltd.
Allan Scarlett MNZM for services to local government and the dairy industry
A chair of the West Coast Regional Council and a councillor for five terms, Scarlett was chair of Westland Milk Products and led Westland Dairy during the introduction of the Dairy Industry Restructuring Act.
David Finlay QSM for services to irrigation and sport
Finlay served for 41 consecutive years on the committee of the Lower Waitaki irrigation scheme and the board of the Lower Waitaki irrigation company, a scheme that irrigates 19,000ha of farmland. He has contributed to irrigation’s transformation of the North Otago region.
A technical lab manager for Apata, Phoebe Scherer, has won the Bay of Plenty 2025 Young Grower regional title.
Following heavy rain which caused flooding in parts of Nelson-Tasman and sewerage overflows in Marlborough, the Insurance & Financial Services Ombudsman Scheme (IFSO Scheme) is urging homeowners and tenants to be cautious when cleaning up and to take the right steps to support claims.
Newly elected Federated Farmers meat and wool group chair Richard Dawkins says he will continue the great work done his predecessor Toby Williams.
Hosted by ginger dynamo Te Radar, the Fieldays Innovation Award Winners Event put the spotlight on the agricultural industry's most promising ideas.
According to DairyNZ's latest Econ Tracker update, there has been a rise in the forecast breakeven milk price for the 2025/26 season.
Despite the rain and a liberal coating of mud, engines roared, and the 50th Fieldays Tractor Pull Competition drew crowds of spectators across the four days of the annual event.
OPINION: ACT MP Mark Cameron isn’t everyone’s cup of tea, but he certainly calls it how he sees it, holding…
OPINION: Did former PM Jacinda Ardern get fawning reviews for her book?