The good, the bad and the ugly – 2015 in review
Another year has almost passed us by – again – and it is time for the annual review of 2015's good, bad and ugly in regards to the primary sector as seen by the Rural News editorial team...
Be proactive in your thinking and recognise your options because the next three weeks will be crucial in planning to deal with drought.
That’s the message to farmers in Manawatu/Rangitikei region from the local Fed Farmers’ Meat and Fibre chair Richard Morrison. He says the dry weather has come earlier than normal to his region and that’s got local farmers wondering what’s going to happen next
Morrison says it hasn’t rained there for a long time, but most people grew a lot of grass leading up to Christmas so there has been feed on hand. It seems like a stand-off with people waiting to see if the rain is coming before planning their next move.
“It seems like the works should be flat-stick because everyone should be off-loading stock and while people are booking space the works probably aren’t as full as they might be,” he told Rural News. “I think people are probably getting the lambs into their yards and finding they’re not as good as they hoped or thought they would be. I believe they are sending off the lambs that are ready and hoping they’re going to get a shower of rain to be able to bring the next bunch along.”
Morrison thinks lambs in the region are probably a bit lighter than what people would hope or like.
“We have had bad droughts before and this is early – it’s not February – and people are wondering, is this just a typical dry summer or is it going to get worse and will the rain come? Everyone can remember the last three years and how challenging that was.”
Morrison says the Rangitikei River is running low and it’s possible restrictions on irrigation could be imposed. “The soil moisture maps are out and the deficit looks pretty bad and anyone can see just how dry the grass is.”
He says farmers should be looking closely at feed budgets and starting to develop a plan they can implement if the situation gets worse.
Fonterra has cemented its position as the country’s number one cheesemaker by picking up nine NZ Champion of Cheese trophies this year.
New Zealand dairy processors are welcoming the Government’s commitment to continuing to push for Canada to honour its trade commitments.
An educational programme, set up by Beef + Land New Zealand, to connect farmers virtually with primary and intermediate school students has reported the successful completion of its second year.
The Food and Agriculture Organisation of the United Nations (FAO) has welcomed a resolution adopted by the United Nations (UN) General Assembly to declare 2026 International Year of the Woman Farmer.
Waikato herd health veterinarian Katrina Roberts is the 2024 Fonterra Dairy Woman of the Year.
Horticulture NZ chief executive Nadine Tunley will step down in August.
OPINION: The new government has clearly signalled big cuts across the public service.
OPINION: Your canine crusader is not surprised by the recent news that New Zealand plant-based ‘fake meat’ business is in…