New pasture guide launched to support farmers in a changing climate
A new publication has been launched that offers a comprehensive and up-to-date resource on commercially available grazing pasture species in New Zealand.
Kate Stewart, helped by a pet ram lamb Skippy, won this year’s Massey University Rural News Group-sponsored video competition.
The competition involved students creating a ‘commercial’ to encourage students in secondary schools to choose a career in agri and Massey University as the place to do this.
Good entries poured in, but none could head off Skippy the lamb, who led viewers on a tour of the university, on field trips and even to the Massey/Lincoln exchange visit.
This was the clear and popular winner.
Stewart, who has now completed her ag science degree, hales from Palmerston North and is heading to Te Awamutu as a DairyNZ trainee consulting officer. While she doesn’t come from a farm, her grandparents do.
“I went to Palmy girls college, but my grandparents have a dairy farm 20 minutes out of the city and I love the people and animals – especially calving,” she told Rural News. “I’d stay out with my grandparents every weekend so that sparked the love of agriculture.”
Stewart says she saw others making videos and after taking Skippy along to campus she decided he had a good story to tell.
“So I put the footage together and entered it in the competition. I enjoyed making the video as I hadn’t made one since I was at secondary school. It was quite a challenge at times, but Skippy cooperated and didn’t leave any ‘visiting cards’ in the library,” she says.
Stewart also won the Young Farmers Sally Hobson Award.
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.
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