increase font size
The new Vets on Farm initiative will help fund local veterinarians to provide on-farm advice and support.
A new initiative to support North Island farmers recovering from flooding and Cyclone Gabrielle with veterinary services receiving $2.6 million from the Ministry for Primary Industries.
Facilitated by the Veterinary Council of New Zealand (VCNZ), the new Vets on Farm initiative will help fund local veterinarians to provide on-farm advice and support.
This will include farm systems reviews and planning, disease sampling and testing and herd health planning. Farm planning will focus on animal health and welfare.
VCNZ chief executive Iain McLachlan says veterinary clinics contracted by VCNZ will be contacting weatheraffected animal farmers in Northland, Coromandel, Tairāwhiti, Hawke’s Bay, Tararua and Wairarapa.
“We will be trying to register as many clinics as we can and for them to then contact as many farmers as possible by the end of December. The ‘on farm’ work will then start in earnest in the new year.”
McLachlan says farmers interested in benefiting from Vets on Farm should get in touch with their local vet. He adds that results from the disease sampling and testing will be hugely beneficial in understanding the impact extreme weather events had on animal health and production and ensure farmers have healthy animals.
“Another benefit from the project is reducing the risk of humans acquiring diseases such as Leptospirosis, which has been seen to increase significantly after floods and cyclones,” McLachlan explains.
“It’s important to ensure animals in affected areas are healthy and disease free, as prevention is always better than a cure.”
If there was a silver lining in the tragedy that was Cyclone Gabrielle, for New Zealand Young Grower of the Year, Grace Fulford, it was the tremendous sense of community and seeing first-hand what good leadership looks like.
Listed carpet manufacturer, Bremworth is undertaking a $6 million expansion at its Napier plant more than two years after the site was heavily damaged by Cyclone Gabrielle.
The road between Napier and Wairoa is on the mend.
The Good Carbon Farm has partnered with Tolaga Bay Heritage Charitable Trust to deliver its first project in Tairāwhiti Gisborne.
A large Māori-owned kiwifruit business that was badly damaged by Cyclone Gabrielle has bounced back with a vengeance.
Acclaimed fruit grower Dean Astill never imagined he would have achieved so much in the years since being named the first Young Horticulturist of the Year, 20 years ago.
The Ashburton-based Carrfields Group continues to show commitment to future growth and in the agricultural sector with its latest investment, the recently acquired 'Spring Farm' adjacent to State Highway 1, Winslow, just south of Ashburton.
New Zealand First leader and Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters has blasted Fonterra farmers shareholders for approving the sale of iconic brands to a French company.
A major feature of the Ashburton A&P Show, to be held on October 31 and November 1, will be the annual trans-Tasman Sheep Dog Trial test match, with the best heading dogs from both sides of the Tasman going head-to-head in two teams of four.
Fewer bobby calves are heading to the works this season, as more dairy farmers recognise the value of rearing calves for beef.
The key to a dairy system that generates high profit with a low emissions intensity is using low footprint feed, says Fonterra program manager on-farm excellence, Louise Cook.
OPINION: The Greens have taken the high moral ground on the Palestine issue and been leading political agitators in related…
One of the most galling aspects of the tariffs whacked on our farm exports to the US is the fact…
