Rural NZ Welcomes $8.5m Government Health Package
Rural New Zealand is welcoming the Government’s recent package of rural healthcare initiatives.
Sarah Higgins and her Marlborough shearing company have been named the NZI Rural Women New Zealand (RWNZ) Supreme Winner for 2020.
Higgins Shearing, Marlborough, was named the Supreme Award winner at the NZI Rural Women New Zealand (RWNZ) Business Awards last night.
The company was one of seven category award winners announced at the Public Trust Hall in Wellington.
“We strive to break through the status quo of the shearing industry,” owner Sarah Higgins said.
Higgins said that her inspiration comes from passion for the job.
“When I left school, having worked as a woolhandler in the sheds, I had developed a real passion for wool,” she said.
She said that since she’d started shearing full time, it had become her passion.
“I love to see others excel in what is essentially a professional sport,” she said.
She added that it was the company’s passion and commitment that endeared them to farmers.
“Farmers love our passion for the work we do and the commitment we put in to doing the best we can for their wool in such a professional manner,” she said.
RWNZ national president Fiona Gower said Higgins was a fantastic role model for women in the industry.
“Sarah’s passion for her work, together with her support for her community, and the shearing industry is outstanding,” she said.
Christina Chellew, NZI’s executive manager commercial underwriting, said that a combination of commitment, leadership and support for the rural community made Higgins “a very deserving winner.”
Pāmu has released its FY26 Integrated Annual Report, reporting a Net Operating Profit of $113 million, more than double the $49 million recorded in FY25.
Meat Industry Association data, released alongside the Red Meat Sector conference in Wellington, shows export value climbing across the US, China, UK and Canada.
Applications are set to open for the 2027 Zanda McDonald Award, a trans-Tasman award recognised for identifying and fast-tracking talented young leaders in agriculture and agribusiness.
The Royal New Zealand College of General Practitioners (the College) and Hauora Taiwhenua Rural Health Network are calling for investment in a proposed new training pathway for rural GPs, warning that many rural practices are struggling to recruit while a large share of the existing workforce nears retirement.
Federated Farmers has called on Central Otago District Council (CODC) to drop or vote down a plan to truck sludge from Alexandra and Cromwell to farmland near Lauder, warning it would compound an "outrageous" situation created by a separate council's decision weeks earlier.
Synlait has swung to second-half profit as operations stabilise, but the dairy processor still posted a $75.4m annual loss.

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