Rural Communities Receive Wellbeing Boost
The Government has announced its support for 18 community-based initiatives through its Rural Wellbeing Fund.
Agriculture Minister Todd McClay says a series of rural resilienced set to be rolled out next week will help farmers and growers better prepared for adverse weather events.
McClay says that significant rainfall and flooding over the summer have caused damage to farms and orchards while also impacting freight, transport and other infrastructure.
"Farmers and growers have shown significant resilience getting through recent storms and ensuring the welfare of their animals. These workshops will help in emergency preparedness," he says.
The catchment emergency preparedness workshops will be held across the country with a rural resilience roadshow set to be held on the West Coast this month.
Mark Patterson, Rural Communities Minister, says rural communities are highly exposed to the impacts of emergencies, and preparation is key.
"The workshops are designed to be practical to help rural New Zealanders prepare for and respond to adverse events," he says.
A farm emergency plan template and an adverse event preparedness checklist for farmers can be found on the Good Farm website or on MPI’s website: https://www.mpi.govt.nz/funding-rural-support/adverse-events/preparing-for-adverse-events.
Additional details for workshops will be available on the events section of the NZ Landcare Trust website closer to the time.
A partnership between Canterbury milk processor Synlait and the world's largest food producer, Nestlé, has been celebrated with a visit to a North Canterbury farm by a group including senior staff from Synlait, the Ravensdown subsidiary EcoPond, and Nestlé's Switzerland head office.
Canterbury milk processor Synlait is blaming what it calls "a perfect storm" of setbacks for a big loss in its half year result for the six months ended January 31, 2026.
More of the same please, says Federated Farmers dairy chair Karl Dean when asked about who should succeed Miles Hurrell as Fonterra chief executive.
A Waikato farmer who set up a 'tinder' for cows - using artificial intelligence to find the perfect bull for each cow - days the first-year results are better than expected.
Fonterra says it's keeping an eye on the Middle East crisis and its implications for global supply chains.
The closure of the McCain processing plant and the recent announcement of 300 job losses at Wattie’s underscore the mounting pressure facing New Zealand’s manufacturing sector, Buy NZ Made says.

OPINION: If you ask this old mutt, the choice at the next election isn't shaping up as a contest of…
OPINION: A mate of yours says we're long overdue for a reckoning on what value farmers really get for the…