Editorial: Agri's mojo is back
OPINION: Good times are coming back for the primary industries. From sentiment expressed at Fieldays to the latest rural confidence survey results, all indicate farmer confidence at a near-record high.
Beyond Massey University’s cheeseboard at Fieldays was the objective of promoting sheep milking.
Associate professor Craig Prichard, a driving force in promoting the new industry, spent all his time at Fieldays handing out samples of an ever-popular smoothie made from sheep milk.
He says Massey is trying to get people used to sheep milk as a food.
“There is an historic gap in New Zealanders’ palette in respect of sheep milk,” Prichard told Rural News. “That’s why we have been doing a smoothie, which is a very popular food.”
And people were able to add their own flavours, which was popular.
Spring Sheep Dairy, which runs a big sheep milking farm in the central North Island, was also on the stand talking to farmers about setting up to milk sheep.
“Sheep dairy is no longer a novelty but we need to build supply now,” Prichard says. “While we have proven markets, NZ still has only 16 significant sheep milk farmers. This this is just a pimple on the side of the dairy industry and we need to ramp that up.”
He says chefs are excited about sheep milk and how it can be used as an ingredient for other dishes, hence the need to think of sheep milk beyond the cheese board.
NZers are good at eating cheese, but getting cheese into foods and developing it as an ingredient is also important, Prichard says.
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.
Nationwide rural wellbeing programme, Farmstrong recently celebrated its tenth birthday at Fieldays with an event attended by ambassador Sam Whitelock, Farmers Mutual Group (FMG), Farmstrong partners, and government Ministers.
Six industry organisations, including DairyNZ and the Dairy Companies Association (DCANZ) have signed an agreement with the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) to prepare the country for a potential foot and mouth outbreak.
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?