How farmers make spring count
OPINION: Spring is a critical season for farmers – a time when the right decisions can set the tone for productivity and profitability throughout the year.
NZFE chairman Simon Saunders says the trust recently revamped its website to make the “wealth of educational material and farming stories” easily accessible to farmers and others.
Saunders says the ‘Great Farming Stories’ link on NZFE’s homepage will let viewers see ‘Sustainability in Action’ video presentations and written reports.
Depicting the regional winners of the Ballance Farm Environment Awards (BFEA), the videos show farmers ‘doing the right thing’ in sustainability. Farms, vineyards and orchards are featured.
Site visitors may also see BFEA brochures from past competitions, showing supreme and category award winners from each region, detailing their farming practices and goals.
While all the featured farmers are at different stages of their farm development, they all intend to farm sustainably and profitably.
Saunders says the website will also interest people who are not farmers. “Urban people will enjoy learning more about what farmers are doing to look after their natural resources while improving the sustainability and profitability of their businesses.”
He says the website is a resource for anyone considering entering the Ballance Farm Environment Awards.
“You don’t have to have the best farm in the district to participate in the awards. Most farmers enter because they want to benchmark their farming operation and build knowledge on how to mitigate environmental issues and lift business performance.”
