Day out at Fieldays leads to ute win
Out of more than 80,000 entries, Daniel Neil from Piopio has been announced as the lucky winner of the Isuzu D-MAX LX Double Cab 4WD Ute in this year’s Fieldays Ute giveaway.
The Jacson Cube, a portable all-in-one boot cleaning and disinfecting system that folds to go into a ute or car boot, alows rural professionals to arrive and depart farms without raising disease risk levels.
Jacson3 business partners Rusty Knutson and Jacqui Humm have spent two years developing the idea after Knutson – whose work was collecting calves for export – saw many farmers struggling to prevent rotavirus and cryptosporidium spreading between mobs of animals.
Cleaning and disinfecting boots on and off farms was hard to do thoroughly with only a bucket, brush and spray bottle combo. Hence the Jacson Cube for any kind of footwear cleaning and disinfecting.
The polypropylene Cube has three main components: body, lid and car-boot tray/footbath, which weighs 10kg empty and 15kg filled with water or disinfectant.
It has a rotating brush mounted on an aluminium spindle, in turn attached to a rhino-plastic grating designed to keep debris and contaminants away from the boot. A hand-brush can be used to shift stubborn debris while using the integrated handle in the lid for support.
The unit’s spray applicator draws disinfectant from a 3L reservoir and has a spray tip with enough pressure to shift debris.
It takes about one minute to set up and a couple more to pack away.
A ball-valve trap controls liquid flow and the body of the unit has storage for disinfectant, gloves, wipes and hand sanitiser.
For set-up the unit is connected by a 13-15mm hose-tail which directs liquid up to the brush assembly where it cascades over and under the footwear, with the motion causing the brush to rotate.
A tray is provided for holding the unit in a car boot; this can double as a footbath if used with an optional integral disinfectant mat.
The Cube can operate without a water source by using the integral reservoir. Price $549 + gst.
With wool prices steadily declining and shearing costs on the rise, a Waikato couple began looking for a solution for wool from their 80ha farm.
The Horticulture New Zealand (HortNZ) team is looking forward to connecting with growers at the upcoming South Island Agricultural Field Days, says HortNZ chief executive Kate Scott.
Choosing pasture seed at bargain prices may seem an attractive way for farmers to reduce autumn or spring re-sowing costs, but it comes with significant risks, says the NZ Plant Breeders and Research Association (PBRA).
A brand-spanking new administration building will greet visitors to this year's South Island Agricultural Field Days (SIAFD) at Kirwee.
2025 marks 120 years of FMG Advice and Insurance in New Zealand's rural communities.
The 2025 South Island Agricultural Field Days (SIAFD) chairman, Rangiora farmer Andrew Stewart, is predicting a successful event on the back of good news coming out of the farming sector and with it a greater level of optimism among farmers.
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